In addition to just local knowledge, there are a number of other issues that we must consider. Specifically, some of the pro's & con's of local investing that we see are:

Pros: 1. Knowledge of market – If the investor does their homework. 2. Easy access to property – Simply drive to the property to inspect. 3. Can control any fixups, rentals, etc. – Much easier to deal with locally. 4. Can structure deals with little money or credit – Yes, the no/low money down deals do work but just take a lot of work to create.

Cons 1. Heavy competition – Almost all other investors are looking locally so you get the needle in a haystack problem; 2. Time – Because you have to find the deals, it is hard to invest with limited time. Successful local investors set up advertising systems to bring properties to them. 3. No Clout – Let's face it, as an individual investor, it is difficult to get great deals, discounts, etc. unless you have a LONG track record of performing in that market. 4. No Outside Analysis – Other than possibly a local agent helping you, there is little market/growth analysis that is available to you unless you perform it yourself.

Again, this can be quite time consuming. Most local investors take one of two paths after gaining some experience: either they abandon it because it takes too much time, or they find it lucrative enough to turn it into a full time business. For the individual that has money and credit to invest but not much time, then most find the local approach to be frustrating.

National Investing: The best way to understand national investing is to look at Walmart's business model. What they do is find suppliers that can produce quality product at the most competitive price. Because they have such a large consumer base, it is lucrative for the supplier to provide quality product at much reduced margins relative to low volume stores. Also, by not being restricted geographically, they can find those suppliers where the economics makes sense for everybody. In the national real estate arena, it really works the same way. Consider our group that has over 20,000+ investors registered to our database. If you are a real estate developer interested in rapidly selling a portion of your project, then you would be very interested in talking with us because of our volume of buyers. Of course, you know that you are not going to get top dollar for your sales because our investors are not going to buy unless it is a good deal; this is how it becomes a win-win for both the developer (supplier) and the investor (consumer). One other factor comes into play: In many locations, including my local area, many types of real estate investments do not make sense because fundamentals like price, rents, and consumer demand are out of whack. For a national investor, it is absolutely irrelevant because there are always markets doing well. When a specific market, like maybe Florida or California gets out of line, it is simple to just look for investments elsewhere.

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