One of the most common statements I hear from investors is, "It's easier where you live." The problem with that statement is twofold. First, it blinds the investor into thinking he or she would be successful if only they lived somewhere else.  Second, it denies that there are extremely successful investors where they live. Both conclusions are false!

In every state, in every county, in every city someone is doing the impossible: making a fortune buying and selling real estate for a living. I say the impossible because it seems that no one lives in the perfect location. The perfect location always is a county away. Let's once and for all deal with the fact that it's not our location, it's us. Let me give you a few examples:  I  live in Riverside. The buying business over the past seven years consisted of buying bank owned and government owned houses. The business is changing with less foreclosures, so I simply switch gears and buy more from private parties. Riverside, however, hasn't had much inflation for the past eight years. I  can't get much of a down payment from a buyer yet, so I can't buy "subject to loans". The land values haven't escalated to the point that I can tear down an old house and build a custom home in its place. I couldn't keep rentals because they were declining in value. I could have gazed over into Orange County and complained, "If only I lived there! Properties inflate in value and are soooo easy to resell.  If only I lived there I could buy "subject to" existing loans and resell them and make a killing. If only I lived in Orange County, I could buy a  property in a beach city that's fifty years old and add square footage and make a  fortune....If only...If only I lived in Los Angeles where there is an abundance of single family homes on R-2 lots. I could buy a single family home and add a second unit, over doubling the value of the property. If only I lived in Los Angeles, I could tear down an old house in a booming area and build a custom home in it's place...If only....If only I lived in San Diego where inflation has taken the values up 25% over the past two years alone. I could have bought some properties to hold and by now I'd be so much farther ahead.  If only I didn't live in crummy old Riverside. What if I lived in Long Beach? I could take some of those old five plexes and convert them to four plexes and sell them to owner occupants and make a lot of money. Or I could buy one of those beach front condos that went down 50% in value and rent it for much more than my payment...If only I lived in Long Beach...Or perhaps San Bernardino is where the real opportunity is. That county is supposed to get the majority of our population boom over the next five years.  If only I lived there I could get options to buy building lots and double my money every year very easily. If only...."

I hope you get my drift. There is no "one" perfect location. They all are perfect in there own special way. If you live in Riverside you just customize what you do to fit what works best in Riverside. The same thing is true in every city all over the county. I visited a relative in West Virginia a couple of years ago.  One of his kids had never owned a home. This was beginning to be a problem because they were running out of room. I suggested that it would be very easy to find a deal and they could own a home within a week. I returned to California and placed an ad in the Clarksburg, West Virginia newspaper that said I buy houses. On the first day I received a call that went something like this. The caller stated that he had two three bedroom, free and clear houses that rented for $250.00 a month each. I asked him what he wanted for the houses. He said $5,000. I confirmed, "You want $2,500 each house for a total of $5,000." "That's right", he said. "Why do you need $5,000?" He replied with this classic, "It's deer season...I need a Winnebago!"

Last I heard, The couple had raised the rent to $350.00 on the rental and live in the other house with a $70.00 payment. I asked if they would be interested in me keeping the ad going with them looking at the houses, me putting up the money, and splitting the profit. The comment.."Oh, you can't make any money in West Virginia like you can in California. If only we lived out there..then we would really have something".....if only.

Bruce, do you mean that once you know the buying business, you can buy in any location and make serious money? The answer is a resounding yes! Most investors miss the opportunity and waste all their time moaning about "if only". A.D. Kessler wrote a great book entitled, "A Fortune At Your Feet." He was talking about real estate in such close proximity you literally could touch it.

The opportunity exists where you are to make a fortune as a real estate investor. To make that happen you do just three things. First, analyze what successful investors do in your area. What's stopping you from doing the same thing. Or even better? Second, learn to attract the sellers of these properties to your business. How you approach it depends on where you live. We have a class that will show you how to customize your advertising to maximize the buying business in your area. Thirdly, you must learn how to talk with sellers. In our class we also cover the entire subject of negotiating. By the time you leave that class, you will know what to ask and what to say to a seller. You simply have to be able to pursuade a seller to be a successful investor. This is extremely important as the market changes away from buying bank owned properties to dealing with private owners.

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As a buyer and lender of over 1,000 properties, Bruce Norris has a unique perspective towards the wholesale house buying business. He has published a course titled Making Power Profits with Buying Systems so you don't have to invent where your next lead will come from! It's all there, ready for you to implement. Visit the RealEstateLink.net Catalog to review this course and Bruce's other fine courses and materials.