Real Estate Investing - FSBOs Vs. Agent Listings?

Investing in real estate is an option that tempts all, but the feeling that investing in realty requires a lot of investment often discourages people from taking a leap in this business. Often people who have it in them to become the next big name in realty investment cannot muster up the courage to invest in real estate because of the lack of tangible monetary resources at their disposal. In fact this feeling is so deep rooted in people minds that some even believe that in the absence of nothing as down payment, purchases are impossible.

The concept of zero down payments was started in 1980s. Robert Allen first mentioned about this real estate strategy in his best seller Nothing Down. After Allen observed how commercial properties were acquired with no down payment, he applied those concepts on the residential property marketplace as well. He took almost 50 techniques from the commercial property zero downpayment sales for the purpose. The concept was so popular that Allen was reportedly paid $1 million in advance as royalty for the book publication and was invited to many places to hold realty investing conventions throughout the country.

The zero down payments were instantly popular and attracted a lot of public attention. However, Allen was not the first man to write about this move. There were other experts also before Allen like Nick Nickerson, Al Lowry and Mark Haroldsen, who wrote books on the topic of realty investment that requires no money. However, the concept was popularized only after Allen published his book and headed seminars on it.

However, because of some untoward experiences like Allens convention speakers being recognized as con men and the others declared as bankrupt, people started to doubt the credibility of the concept. The last nail in the coffin was when Robert Allen was also declared bankrupt in 1996. It was then that people concluded that in order to invest in real estate you need money and no down payment concept is probably fraudulent.

Finally, the wall street journal came to know about the concept and started interviewing many investors who were still using the no down payment concept in their investments. Ultimately, people once again started reading books, magazines and articles on how to invest in realty with limited funds.

There are two parties through which a person can acquire a real estate property for sale. One is by the owners or FSBO and the other, involves realty agents. To purchase from FSBO with a very small down payment, you have to have negotiation skills and need to contact motivated sellers. It is possible to buy millions of dollars worth of property by paying a small and negligible amount as down payment, if the buyer or the investor has the learned acquisition skills that require no money down.

Real estate agents however may prove a little tricky; as for them the down payment also involves the listing fee. The realty dealers usually put a minimal amount for down payment, which has to be paid and which covers the dealers listing fee. The listed properties do not exceed the FSBO properties in terms of value or any other factor. It is just that a third factor is involved who looks after his own fee first.