Grant Warrington
Grant Warrington has been a guest on Collecting Keys, the real estate investing podcast hosted by Mike DeHaan, Dan Austin and Dylan Koch.
Multifamily Success: Tips to Find Properties, Negotiate Seller Financing Deals, & More w/ Grant Warrington
Grant Warrington explains how he went from bankruptcy and three failed single-family rentals to owning 41 units of small multifamily, focusing on the five-to-20 unit range. He walks through finding off-market apartment buildings by scanning Google Maps and cold calling owners, how he asks for and structures seller financing, and why property taxes reassessing after purchase can kill a deal. He also talks about stepping away from real estate content after the portfolio gave him the freedom to choose what to work on.
Key takeaways
- Small multifamily (5-20 units) is easier to find and buy than 100+ unit deals because sellers are mostly mom-and-pop owners, and commercial loans underwrite the building's performance more than the borrower's personal finances.
- Grant finds off-market buildings without paid data: scan Google Maps for large roofs and parking lots, drop into street view, note the address, then look up the owner and their cell number and call directly.
- When a seller says "I have long-term tenants," expect three things: below-market rents, a tough tenant base, and lots of deferred repairs.
- On seller financing, just ask - and never hand money directly to the seller; run funds through a title company. Sell the seller on spreading capital gains and staying passive with monthly payments.