Month: September 2026

Update on the House Search

We have an offer submittted on a house set on 3 acres with a stream running through the back yard. It is a strong offer, above ask, no mortgage contingency, no inspection, and no septic inspection.

Some folks on my team here at Diamond Equity are reading this right now, probably in shock, for my willingness to accept this type of risk.

The lesson here-when the property is just right-you may have to offer more than you were comfortable offering-if you want to win.

I’ll keep you posted on how this turns out.

How to WIN 2027

The real estate business is all about momentum. Deal cycles take 3-6 months on the quicker end (brokerage, house flips) and 5-10 years or more on many commercial development deals or even long term rental property.

My team is buidling momentum for 2027 RIGHT NOW, in the middle of September because we understand how to create momentmum.

Deal Timeline – Illustrates Deal Momemtum

Here’s how this applies now, in Sept, to activate your deal flow for 2027. First, let’s map the timeline of a deal:

• Day 1 (Sep 26) – You learn about a deal
• Day 5-7 (Sep 26) – You’ve presented your offer
• Days 7-30 (Oct 26)  – If it’s a fast deal, you’ve negotiated an acceptable offer
• Days 31-60 (Nov-Dec 26) – You close on, and own that deal
• Days 61-150 (Dec – Mar 27) – You’ve completed your renovation & gone to market
• Days 150-210 (Mar-May 27) – You’ve gone to market & accept an offer
• Days 211-270 (May-Jul 27)  – The buyer has gotten their mortgage and closed the deal.

As you can see, we are perfectly timed, right now, to buy deals which will hit the Spring Market (when pricing is often reaching it’s yearly high) and provide income by the middle of next year.

Considering this timeline, which doesn’t account for longer term negotiations where sellers aren’t so agreeable in the first 30 days, we might actually be LATE for 2027. I bet you were even questioning my logic, my earlyness of this topic when you read this subject line….

Here are Your Action Items to Win 2027:

1. The time is NOW to build your momentum for 2027
2. Make 6 or more Offers with Urgency THIS WEEK.
3. Repeat that process again each week through 2027
4. REMEMBER those offers which deserve long term, strategic follow up.

Momentum in Negotiation 

EVERY DEAL EVER DONE BEGINS WITH ONE THING: AN OFFER

However, most junior, inexperienced deal makers think you make the offer and get the deal within a few days. There are enough of these “right now” deals available to make a successful career in the business (Here are 48).  However, this is elementry and NOT how the Deal Making Masters think & operate.

The Deal Making Masters recognize that HALF the available deals require the momentum to build -often long after that first offer is made. This is following up, keeping the conversation going until the deal is made.

The Master Deal Makers spot the pattern of a Deal to be made and then pursue that deal regardless of how many times the seller says “no” or the broker tells them “they’ll never sell for that price”. The Master REMEMBERS which deals in their system fit this pattern and stays on them. They work them until they’re closed.

The ONLY acceptable reason to forget about those deals you’re working on would be once the property has sold and SETTLED. Until then, the deal is in play, REGARDLESS of whether that seller says no, or even responds to your calls/emails/texts.

Most real estate investor are working only on the “right now” deals. Those which sign within 30 days of the initial offer. Allow me to push you to BE THE MASTER – recognize and latch on to those select deals that show signals of becoming a deal REGARDLESS of the current price that the “counter offer” has returned.

Becoming a Master, choosing correctly CERTAIN DEALS to continue working long term, is the key to doubling your income. Choose too many and you dissipate your enerygy and are ineffective. Choose too few and you miss the exact long term deals to which I am referring. Choose perfectly and you maximize your deal/effort results. THIS is how you WIN 2027!!

Lessons from a Top NJ Shore Developer

Yesterday my wife and I attended a few Open Houses here at the shore. The sport of vacations here on 7 mile island IS real estate.

Just after we arrived, one of the most prolific Jersey Shore developers walks in to check out the build himself. He did not build the house we were both walking through. I’m leaving his name out for privacy reasons, but you likely know the name & brand if you’re in Jersey or Main Line PA real estate.

We chatted for a while and I came away with 2 lessons:

1. Successful Business Operators are ALWAYS ON.
2. Location, location, location

First, let’s talk about ALWAYS ON. Here is a guy who certainly “has enough” in life. More than enough. Yet, on a Saturday during Memorial Day weekend, here he & I are both randomly walking a  new build neither of us have any intention of buying. Why?

Well, I believe for us both, is that we simply love real estate. Buildings, the brokers, the builders, the conversation. This must be the type of thrill folks get from following & talking about their local sports team. For us, that thrill comes from the business of real estate.

The other benefit here is market research. What is the competing product available in the market? Have you ever scheduled showings of houses you never intend to buy, simply to better understand the market from your buyer’s perspective? Or even called competing commercial properties available for lease to understand the rents being quoted in the market??

Now, Location, Location, Location

As we chatted for a while in this brand new house, my wife had mentioned several towns where she has considered houses. Some with 40+ acre parcels.

Our new Developer friend stopped, somewhat seriously, and STRONGLY steered us toward one of the towns she mentioned. Wayne, PA. His reason? He expects values to always climb in that highly constrained, desirable market. Location, location, location.

Then, to drive home that lesson further, as we start to break away into different directions to tour the house, he calls us back down the stairs, pulls us in close, and whispers:

“I am definitely NOT risk averse, but building this house, in this location is the riskiest move I’ve ever seen. Remember, location, location, location.”

Knowing the caliber of record breaking, exclusive homes this gentlemen builds, this lesson definitely hit differently as we stood there checking out this $4.5M home together.

On that note, do you have any Wayne, PA or similar Main Line, PA prime locations for me to buy?  1 Acre+, prefer something move ready, but willing to tear down & rebuild or renovated.