People are motivated by many things other than financial well being. Test yourself- Aren't you motivated by fear, guilt, shame, envy,, anger, pride, worry, personal loss of a loved one, security needs, health, greed, anxiety, family considerations, comfort - even caprice? Don't we often do things, spend lots of money doing things that are FUN, CHALLENGING, ADVENTUROUS? So do sellers. Thus, it's up to us to find which one of these (or combination) is the HOT BUTTON. We can't use a 'canned' approach. Each person is different. Each requires a different approach, solution, currency.
When I got started, I heard about people buying houses "subject to the mortgage" with no money down. I thought, who in their right mind would let someone take over their mortgage payments and just walk away from their house.
Like you, I doubted that this could really be done.
Then, one day, I got a call from a guy who said "I don't have much money but I'll give you everything I have if you'll take my house!"
He owed about $80,000 on a $125,000 house. If I bought subject to the mortgage, I'd have a $300 a month cash flow.
He PAID ME $1638 to buy his house subject to the mortgage.
Why in the world would he do something like this?
He had a tenant in the property who had not paid in 3 months.
The seller was still making the payments on the property. He was scared to death of the tenant who was a big burly guy who repossessed cars. He had 3 big rottweiler dogs. When the owner tried to convince the tenant to pay rent, the tenant intimidated him.
I bought the house, got the tenant out (with threats of taking his truck), then exchanged the house for another one I liked better.
Logic goes out the window when you're dealing with a really motivated seller. They are more interested in reducing pain, fear, stress, etc.... then financial gain.
Just because YOU would never sell your house below market or YOU would not let someone take over the payments on your mortgage, it does not mean someone else would never do it either.
When I got started, I heard about people buying houses "subject to the mortgage" with no money down. I thought, who in their right mind would let someone take over their mortgage payments and just walk away from their house.
Like you, I doubted that this could really be done.
Then, one day, I got a call from a guy who said "I don't have much money but I'll give you everything I have if you'll take my house!"
He owed about $80,000 on a $125,000 house. If I bought subject to the mortgage, I'd have a $300 a month cash flow.
He PAID ME $1638 to buy his house subject to the mortgage.
Why in the world would he do something like this?
He had a tenant in the property who had not paid in 3 months.
The seller was still making the payments on the property. He was scared to death of the tenant who was a big burly guy who repossessed cars. He had 3 big rottweiler dogs. When the owner tried to convince the tenant to pay rent, the tenant intimidated him.
I bought the house, got the tenant out (with threats of taking his truck), then exchanged the house for another one I liked better.
Logic goes out the window when you're dealing with a really motivated seller. They are more interested in reducing pain, fear, stress, etc.... then financial gain.
Just because YOU would never sell your house below market or YOU would not let someone take over the payments on your mortgage, it does not mean someone else would never do it either.
Dislike ads? Become a Fastlane member:
Subscribe today and surround yourself with winners and millionaire mentors, not those broke friends who only want to drink beer and play video games. :-)
Access Restricted: Unlock 1,000,000+ Posts
Stop Peeking Through the Keyhole.
Open the Door.
You hit a wall because the best advice isn't free—it's earned. Since 2007, MJ DeMarco has been active here daily (99.9% active rate), building a war room for entrepreneurs who refuse to settle for mediocrity.
- Active Daily: Life-changing content posted dozens of times every day. No dead threads.
- MJ's Inner Circle: Direct access to the author of The Millionaire Fastlane.
- Vetted Network: Connect with founders scaling to 7 and 8 figures.
- Proven Roadmaps: Strategy over motivation. Execution over "hustle porn."
"SCALED TO 6-FIGURE MONTHS"
"Tips and advice here saved me from huge mistakes, others allowed me to scale my business to 6-figure months."— User MitchC
"INSANE QUALITY OF PEOPLE"
"The number of high quality people I've met from this forum has been insane. All of it predicated on building real value."— User Richard Peck
"You are the average of the five people you surround yourself with."
Are you surrounding yourself with success?
