I used to cold call all my own leads when I first got started in this business. I can tell you from personal experience that you can get all of the information I laid out in my cold calling script guide 98% of the time. It is not as much the question but how you ask it. I always assume they will give me the information when I ask the question and I never ask permission to get the information:

For example lets start with the question the most people have the problem with:

Q. How much do you owe on your mortgage ?

This questions typically strikes fear in people and they are afraid to ask. This is a key qeustion to determining motivation, and I get it answered 98% of the time. Like I said before it is all in the attitude I just say it with the voice inflection that of coure they are going to give it to me. I dont beat around the bush and act mousy about it or they will sense that and not give it to me.

Having said that I will tell you that I get told many time "NO" initally so here are some great rebutals. Use the one that fits your style the best and practice a few of these till you get one that works with your personality.

1. Before I can make an offer I always check the courthouse records if you give it to me I can make you an offer quickly.
2. Your mortgage information is public record and I can obtain if from the courthouse but it would be great if you could save me some gas money and give it to me now.
3. I am in the business of solving people problems you wouldn't make a doctor guess your symptoms would you?
4. I verify all your mortgage  information at the courthouse anyway so giving it to me makes my courthouse trip easier ?
5. I can usually get you an offer in 48 hours but I wont be able to if I need to make a special trip to the courthouse just for your property?
6. You are aware that I can just get this information from the courthouse right? I am just trying to save myself a trip.

Feel free to alter or make different versions of those questions to fit your personality but please remember it is all in HOW you ask not the question itself.

Now onto the home condition, although this question is easy to solicit an answer it is also has the highest probability of being inaccurate. Homeowners see their home everyday and quickly grow used to the fading paint, the cracked and peeling outside, and gutters that have fallen down. So whenever I get an answer I like to throw in a quick "Honesty Check" rebutal question. For instance when they say their house is a perfect 10 her are soem great rebuttals I use to solicit a more honest reponse.

1. Wow whats your secret my wife has a list of "Honey Do's" a mile long and I can never keep up on all the maintenance I need to do on my house
2. Wow you must be a mr fixit I never seem to get cuaght up on all of the maintenance projects on my house.
3. Id better not tell my wife how good you are at maintenance or it will get me in trouble im always behind.

The purpose of the rebutal is 2 fold. 1. We of course want the most honest questions possible 2. We want the homeseller to be honest with themself so that they will start dropping their own expectation of selling price in their mind in preparation for our offer.

I use these rebutalls on anything of 8 or higher and sometimes they stay put on their esitmation but sometimes they make changes and lower there answer.

It also goes without saying that if they answer low that you should not try to get them to asnwer higher so if they say their house is in condition 5 leave them with that image in their head they probably already know they won't get top dollar.

The next 2 questions that are sometimes hard to get the right answer are the lease option and seller financing questions. I will cover each question seperately and show you some of the rebutalls I use and once again feel free to change them around a bit to match your personality.

Q #1. Would you be willing to offer terms or owner financing? (Their are only 3 answers to this question)

If they say yes or maybe don't bother rebutting the question but here are soem great rebuttals if they say "NO" (Anyone that says no and changes their mind should be considered a maybe not a yes)

1. Oftentimes when sellers are able to offer me terms or owner financing I am able to offer them more money would you reconsider for more money?
2. Oftentimes Cashing out your mortgage only nets a few thousand dollars anyways If I were able to cover all your expenses till I refinanced would that work for you?
3. Sometimes I cant close for several months but I like to give my seller the peace of mind of having sold their house already. Would you let me cover 100% of your expenses until I was able to close?
4. I have seen many sellers wait 6 to 10 months to get the perfect offer but it costs them months of unwanted payments, what If  I was able to cover all your expenses right now? Would you give me a while to get my financing in order?


Q #2. Would you be willing to Lease with the option to purchase? (Their are only 3 answers to this question)

If they say yes or maybe don't bother rebutting the question but here are soem great rebuttals if they say "NO" (Anyone that says no and changes their mind should be considered a maybe not a yes)

1. Alot of people misunderstand that quesation like you I am offering to cover all expenses and pay all your bills as a highly qualified tenant until I cash you out.
2. Sometimes people wait for up to 12 months to sell their house and essentially are renting their own house from themselves while they wait, why don't I pay that expense and you can get moving today.
3. Even with a larger deposit that you would ever get from any renter you still wouldnt reconsider?
4. For your information having a lease option contract in hand helps offset your income for mortgage qualifications for your next mortgage. Plus you won't have to make any payments on an empty house.

Last but not least is a question that many investor neglect to ask but they are missing out on one of the most important questions if they do.

Q. If I were to offer you all cash and close quickly what is your rock bottom price?

Before I give you my rebuttals to this question let me give you some other creative versions of the same question.

The only time I offer a rebuttal is when they dont drop at least 10% off of their asking price. Here are some great rebuttals I or my friends have used when the seller says something like ill knock off a hundred bucks if you can close today.

1. If you list with an agent you would be automatically receiving at least 6% less than your asking price right now and you would still have to make payments while you wait. Wouldnt you agree?
2. I have met many peple that will make $10k worth of payments for the sake of an extra $10k in asking price? That doesnt make sense if they have to move today does it?
3. So if I handed you a check for $ XXXX you woul tear it up right?
4. So if I could only pay $ XXXX I shouldnt even drive by an look at your property?

You get the picture, don't take no for an answer and be aggressive the best deals are still out their to be found

Remember it is not so much what you ask but how you ask it. If you have a  great rebuttal  then  give it to me and I will add it to my review.