The 47 Awesomest MLS Keywords for Real Estate Investors
In today’s Knowledge Bomb we’ve got some tasty distressed property leads in the oven, and we’re just about to serve up a ‘swipe & deploy' system for getting you more of them, and doing it easier and awesomer.
Basically I’m handing you a simple but potent recipe for routinely extracting qualified distressed sellers from your active MLS listings – or as I like to call it, MLS Awesome Sauce.
How do you make this spicy MLS goodness?
Well like any good recipe, it all starts with selecting the highest quality ingredients.
So let’s get cooking, shall we?
Recipe for MLS Awesome Sauce
WHAT YOU NEED:
MIX:
MLS Access + Keywords + Customization = Awesome Sauce
DIRECTIONS:
Our goal here is to uncover properties listed in the MLS that kind of smell like they might be a deal for investors like us, and to be as efficient and effective as possible in doing so. So rather than just potshotting around randomly or pouring through MLS listings on end, we want to systematically unearth key ingredients (choice keywords) in the listing that will give you clues that there may be a distressed property or distressed situation worth your time and attention.
Here’s exactly how I do it. And please note that your MLS may differ slightly from mine, depending on the platform your local board of Realtors uses. But the principles should be the same.
- Open your local MLS.
- Go to the search page, where you can input whatever criteria you might need or want.
- Enter your basic search criteria for whatever type(s) of deals you’re focusing on (area, price range, beds/baths, etc.)
- Make sure you’ve got search fields for listing remarks, like “Public Remarks”, “Realtor Remarks” etc. If not, then you may need to “add more search criteria”.
- Make sure that you’ve got the search criteria set to search for “contains (keyword)” and not “equals” or “contains all”.
- Input your top MLS investor keywords in the search fields for “Public Remarks” and “Realtor Remarks”. (see ingredients below)
- Save this search and setup a automatic daily ‘hotsheet' search to run for you based on these parameters.
This may go without saying, but I'll say it anyway: Don't skip step 7!
Look, I get it. I totally remember what it's like when my default norm was being a silly task monkey that repeats the same work over and over again. That kind of learned self-hatred can be hard to shake.
But stop it. Be a CEO, not a task monkey. CEOs know or learn how to leverage (i) people, (ii) systems and (iii) processes to make your business run better and your life easier. And in this case, that means setting all this up one time as a daily ‘hotsheet' that pings you whenever something fresh hits the MLS that matches your criteria and keywords. Every single MLS in the known ‘verse can do this.
Then as soon as possible, it also means training someone else on your team (your Realtor, Acquisitions Manager, or even your V.A.) to be the initial filter for each day's hotsheet and see what's really worth digging into further before putting it in front of you.
*saunters down from soap box*
OK let's hit those tasty keywords…
Awesome Sauce Ingredients:
Time for the good stuff. These took us a while to compile, and are the exact keywords we have setup in our search of “Public Remarks” and “Realtor Remarks”.
- probate
- inherited
- foreclosure
- short sale
- preforeclosure
- estate
- bring all offers
- junker
- must sell
- investor special
- special warranty deed
- quit claim deed
- heir
- heirs
- TLC
- motivated
- fixer
- fixer upper
- fixer-upper
- repairs
- as-is
- as is
- relocation
- rented
- tenant
- do not disturb tenant
- owner will carry
- owner will carry 2nd
- owner finance
- owner will finance
- personal rep
- personal representative
- estate
- trustee
- basement issues
- basement repairs
- basement problems
- foundation issues
- foundation repairs
- foundation problems
- structural issues
- structural repairs
- structural problems
- no FHA
- lease option
- engineer report
- price change
Ba-bam!
So there you have it. Now you possess the prized family recipe for MLS Awesome Sauce passed down to us from dear Great Aunt Maud who bequeathed it to us before moving on to that great real estate development in the sky.
Before you head out, just a few worthy footnotes you may want to be aware of.
1: Honorables
Besides the 47 fresh, all-natural, certified organic, non-GMO keywords in the list above, there were a handful more – 7 to be precise – that didn’t quite make the prime cut, but could still prove potentially useful. So here are the ‘honorable mentions' in case you want to include these in your search as well:
- Water issues
- Leak
- Water problems
- Not responsible
- Relocated
- Vacant
- Out of State
2:Â Float your own boat
Depending on the types of deals you’re focusing on, many of these keywords may not make sense for you to include. Just pick and choose those that do, and keep trying until you get the right results. Awesome sauce takes some practice to perfect, but once you do it is spicy and well worth it!
3: If your MLS is dumb
Some MLS systems are apparently still stuck in the early 2000’s and may not give you the option to select “contains (keyword)” in the criteria menu. If your MLS is dumb like this, you can often use wildcard characters to accomplish the same thing. These wildcard characters are typically ‘*' or ‘%' depending on your MLS system.
So for example…
Contains:
Remarks = ‘%Bank%'
or
Remarks = ‘*Bank*'
Starts With:
Remarks = ‘Bank%'
or
Remarks = ‘Bank*'
Ends With:
Remarks = ‘%Bank'
or
Remarks = ‘*Bank'
OK, that’s a wrap.
Got any thoughts on this? Maybe a tasty keyword or two we missed?
Leave a comment below. And don't forget to be awesome.
This is a very helpful list and resource
Thank You for the tools
Thank You. So glad to have stumble across your site.
I’m so excited to use these tools!
Great keywords
Thank you
These really help thanks a billionaire
Thank You for the info
This is awesome sauce. Great way to set up a system. Work like a CEO.
THIS KNOCKS IT OUTTA THE PARK!
very interesting send more information a
Good Points . I definitely need that list. It helped my search with the investor more easy. I can act like i know what I’m talking about. YIPPEEEE!
Awesome resources
so much to learn ty guys for your help
YOU GUYS ROCK THANK U SO MUCH
Awesome sauce
Awesome sauce
Hi friends of JP,
My name is John Magee and I’m a Trust Consultant for Nexxess. If you know about Trusts, we sell a Complex, Specialized, Spendthrift Trust that gives you the ability to avoid the Capital Gains tax. Our typical clients own businesses and already work with CPAs and other professionals. However, nearly all of them were paying 50-90% more in taxes than they should have been paying.
AMAZING resources
So many, but also so helpful! I love it!
hardest thing is to be salesman ,need these guiding words
Like it .Hope it works for me TOOOO
Very helpful information, thank you
AMAZED WITH THE RESOURCES BEING OFFERED
This list, can be a valuable resource, for investors just starting out. I also wonder; if this list can be utilized; when perusing ZILLOW’s FSBO listings?
Never have I heard of these key words but now it makes so much sense. Thank you
i’M SO AMAZED WITH THE RESOURCES BEING OFFERED!
Great starting point, very helpful, got my mind bubbling with lots of fresh ideas.
As with any keywords, one has to make adjustments to their particular area for price pear lead, however, great starting point!
You need to be putting all your time & energy into this type of field if you wanna see results.
Information is very informative I’m knew to this venture and I’ll like to succeed @ it with all the knowledge I can recieve
Thanks very helpful and straightforward
Great idea JP! Thanks.
Fresh to Death, great info
More tasty tidbits of info.
Thank you for the 47 keywords. Much appreciated.
Why people still use to read news papers when in this technological globe the whole thing is presented on net?
I have been exploring for a little bit for any
high quality articles or blog posts in this sort of space
. Exploring in Yahoo I at last stumbled upon this
web site. Reading this info So i’m satisfied to express that
I’ve an incredibly excellent uncanny feeling I found out just what I needed.
I so much surely will make sure to don?t fail to remember this website and
give it a glance regularly.
Wow…this is so impressive, and uses phrases that are proven. Way to go guys!!!
Hi there I am so thrilled I found your site, I really found you by accident,
while I was browsing on Yahoo for something else, Anyhow I am here now and would just like to
say thank you for a incredible post and a all round interesting
blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have time to read it all at
the moment but I have bookmarked it and also included your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be
back to read much more, Please do keep up the excellent job.
Simplicity at its best… Love it
Wow my mind is going so fast with fresh ideas. I should be asleep frm.