Why Off-Market Real Estate Deals Are No Longer Cheap in Los Angeles

India Mynatt (00:00)
Don’t call or text the agent. We’ve already made it so that you can just do it this way. Why would you have—who has a million-dollar listing and doesn’t want to be contacted about it?

Like, are you kidding me? Like, do like do you not want to sell this property? Do you not want to sell this? I don’t care how competitively priced it is. Why would you not want people reaching out to you via call or text or email or whatever? And that’s what I’m saying. Cause I didn’t realize it until I started, like I said, working more with my clients and we started putting in more offers.

Meghan Escobar (00:21)
Interesting thing.

Meghan Escobar (00:21)
Hello, everyone. Welcome back to the Real Estate Pros podcast hosted by Investor Fuel. I am your host, Meghan Escobar, and today I have the pleasure of speaking with an incredible young lady, India Mynatt, with me. And I’ve been looking forward to this conversation. And the reason why is because, one, she’s a woman in the industry, and I love to

Women kill it in the industry. Not only is she a licensed real estate agent in the LA area, she’s also dabbling in investing in her home state, Ohio. So we’re gonna learn more about what she’s doing out here in the industry. And so thank you again so much for being here on the show with us today. And for those of our listeners who might not be familiar with your world at all.

Give us a thirty thousand foot view of what your main focus is these days, India, and you know, what markets you’re operating in.

India Mynatt (02:55)
Absolutely. And thank you so much for having me, by the way. I definitely appreciate being on this podcast. It’s super popular. But to answer your question, so right now my primary focus, like you said, because I am a licensed realtor in the LA area. So my primary focus has been building my business and my brand here in Southern California, which as anyone knows is not the easiest. I mean, of course, everyone sees reality shows like

Million Dollar Listing and, like, other TV shows showing, like, what agents do out here, and they’re selling, like, multimillion-dollar properties. For the record, that’s a very, very small percentage of agents out here. And I don’t want to say that type of—I don’t wanna say that type of real estate in LA is gatekept particularly, but it’s definitely for a particular niche of people and you kind of have to work your way in that circle if you’re not already in there.

But I definitely would love to be in here one day. But to answer your question, my primary focus is working with investors. I do work with anyone. So if someone wants to buy for themselves or their families, of course I would love to help them out. Or if someone needs a property sold, I do have experience with that. But what I’ve been primarily focusing on is investor clientele and just helping people gain investment just for either cash flow purposes or for generational wealth, or just to go ahead and build their brand as an as an investor.

Meghan Escobar (04:11)
Hmm. I love that. You know, one thing that caught my attention on our previous conversation was the thoroughness, right? The way that you work with clients, the way that you insert yourself to be, you know, actively working on their goals. I feel like, you know, a lot of agents out here will pitch things to their clients that they don’t really want.

India Mynatt (04:12)
Mm-hmm.

Meghan Escobar (04:41)
So talk to us a little bit about how you’re navigating through keeping your clients happy and having that quality.

India Mynatt (04:49)
Yeah, I’m glad you asked that. So the how I navigate that pretty much is I always go ahead and listen to the client. I’m very thorough in the sense that if a client tells me what they want, I always make a list depending on a client, of course. I mean, because some clients are like kind of vague. They’re like, this is the price range, this is what I want, you know, just bring me options in this area. But other people are way more particular where they’re like, okay, I can’t have this, can’t have this, but I do need this, I do need this.

My price range is this is very tight and I’m only looking in these areas. So I always try to be very particular. I always try to help my clients out the best I can as far as finding them exactly what it is they’re looking for. And then I also do take their feedback as well. I know like other agents they’ll help people and they’ll just literally just try and kind of run the show. And I don’t do that. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I obviously take lead whenever I have to take lead, but for the most part, I’m always looking.

After my clients’ best interests. And I’m always trying to help them find what works for them the best. So that’s I guess how I navigate it is just to try to be the best listener I can be and then just try to do my job the best I can with them.

Meghan Escobar (06:40)
That’s incredible. Definitely, you know, building that trust with your clients. It’s a it’s a serious transaction, you know, that these individuals are getting ready to, you know, purchase a family home or whatever the case may be. So building that trust, I think, is super, super important. Another thing that caught my attention, we—you—we talked a little bit about the challenges that you’re facing with off, off-market listings. You know, that’s definitely not an easy thing to

to deal with in this climate especially. So talk to us a little bit about, you know, what helps you keep that machine running smoothly in those situations.

India Mynatt (07:17)
Yeah, absolutely. So as everyone knows, the LA market is when it comes to real estate and specifically investing in Los Angeles, it’s incredibly oversaturated. The second anything comes on the market that’s even remotely close to a deal, it gets, like, in escrow within the week. So again, like things go very quickly out here. That’s why the off-market properties are becoming a thing because people don’t want that competition. They don’t want like, you know, a hundred plus

Other people that they have to kind of go against for a property and it’s gonna be driven up over fifty thousand dollars or a hundred thousand dollars sometimes over asking. They don’t wanna do that, especially for a fix and flip, because with with investors, they’re very particular about their numbers. The numbers have to make sense, the numbers have to work for what they’re doing. So with the off-markets, of course, it’s supposed to be a better option because, A, less competition, and then, B, usually the prices, depending on what the seller’s situation is and the actual condition of the property, they can possibly get it for pennies on a dollar.

But unfortunately, the off-market demand is becoming so big here in the Los Angeles area or just LA County in general, or really Southern California in general, not just LA County, but all over Southern California, that unfortunately now is not even kind of worth it sometimes to get it off-market because they’re either gonna wanna sell it as close to like market price or like listing price, or there’s still gonna be at least 10 to 15 other people that know about it. And now you’re gonna have to compete against them. And the price sometimes still is gonna be driven up.

So how I navigate that, I always try to build personal connections with people or sellers just so I can get my clients the best deal. I do work a lot on-market, but usually the on-market deals I work, I always try and build relationships or at least reach out to the to the seller or excuse me, listing agent themselves and try and see if we can work out a deal. So yeah, so that’s how I navigate that. It’s just trying to network more and then just kind of be more communicative with the listing agent, if there is one involved. And yeah, it worked that way. And also I guess to kind of while we’re talking about that too, off-markets, wholesaling is also becoming a thing as well. And with wholesaling, that’s pretty much where someone who’s not a licensed realtor can still have a contract with a seller and then they can go ahead and sell the property on their behalf, on a seller’s behalf, and then they can still make a cut out of that.

That’s also becoming kind of a thing out here because unfortunately a lot of these wholesalers are not experienced because again, wholesalers are not licensed. I’m a licensed real estate agent. So I’ve gone through the process of like, you know, going to school, studying, getting license. I actually, you know, am with the Department of Real Estate. So if anything happens that’s not supposed to happen with me, I’m gonna be held accountable. Whereas with a wholesaler, because they’re they’re not licensed, there’s no one to hold them accountable except for whoever they’re working with.

So that’s also becoming kind of like a thing. There are some good wholesalers out there, but for the most part, a lot of them are inexperienced, don’t really know what they’re doing. And they usually can sometimes kill deals. So yeah, but like I said, just to navigate that for me, finding the best option for my client. And then if I do happen to come across the off-market, just going ahead and communicating effectively just so we can go ahead and get the deal closed.

Meghan Escobar (10:56)
Love that. So you just do what you can to, you know, keep your due diligence and, you know, find the loopholes that are going to help the client.

India Mynatt (11:13)
Yeah. Yeah. Thank you.

Meghan Escobar (11:15)
Every operator I know, every entrepreneur that I know, India, has—they have a very specific moment where things got real for them. You know, maybe that is a deal that has gone sideways or a time they feel like they needed to pivot really fast. Do you mind sharing one of those moments for you?

India Mynatt (11:33)
Yeah, absolutely. So another thing too, once you’re in real estate long enough, you are gonna realize that not every deal that goes into escrow is gonna close. Unfortunately, I’ve realized that a couple of times this past year. And again, that’s just part of the game that any any experienced real estate agent is gonna know like not every deal is gonna close, unfortunately, whether it’s on the seller’s end, a buyer’s end, something you guys just can’t control, such as a lender or something like that. But yeah, I did have a situation like that that happened.

India Mynatt (11:55)
To answer your question.

India Mynatt (12:00)
End of last year, so about six, seven months ago, I did go into escrow with the buyer. This particular buyer was very—they were very strict about what they wanted just due to why they were buying. And we were finally able to find them a place after a couple months of looking. And we went into escrow with it, thankfully. And the condition of us going into escrow was that the lender had to do a particular thing to be able to get my client’s loan type approved there.

So before we even had the offer accepted, we, me and the listing agent of that of that particular property checked with our lender. And the lender said, Yeah, you know, we can go ahead and do that. It’s not a big deal. So we’re like, okay, cool. So, you know, we go ahead and go into escrow and you know, we’re relying on this lender to do his thing because up until then they had done a pretty good job. So fast forward three weeks into escrow, we were literally a week before closing and we were two weeks before Christmas, because again, this happened like in December.

And unfortunately, due to a lending mistake, we were not able to close on this particular property. And it was just more so just due to the loan type not being accepted. So unfortunately, the lender wasn’t able to make that happen. But yeah, unfortunately, it’s just like things like that do happen that are out of your control. And the thing about it is you always ask yourself, like, okay, like what could I have done differently? So of course, I mean, there are a couple of things I could have done differently, but at the end of the day, it’s like

When you work with a team of people, it’s not just one person doing everything, especially when something goes into escrow, because once something goes into escrow, you’re relying heavily on the lender, you’re relying heavily on the buyer cooperation, you’re relying heavily on the seller cooperation and the listing agent making sure that they do things on their end and certain documents to get disclosed and things like that. So I feel like for the most part, I did a good job. Obviously, could I have done some things differently as a realtor? Of course I could have, but

I always take examples like that as a learning experience and I just try and do better the next time. And that’s also why I now have like a newer kind of vetting process I do for my buyer clients that kind of will help me avoid situations like that going forward. So, yeah. So hopefully, if—look, if nothing else closes in the future, it won’t be because of lending, put it like that. So

Meghan Escobar (14:10)
That’s a really important thing to share. And it’s it’s why I always ask that question because truthfully India, I I feel like that’s the type of stuff that people don’t talk about enough. You know, obviously as a agent, you’re an an independent contractor, you’re running your own practice and you know, in the highlight world that we live in, we always see the highlights of the, you know, the success, but not enough people talk about the struggles behind the scenes of, you know, what’s keeping the things going, what

what you’re learning along the way, you know? And it truly is what separates folks who are in the industry to just dabble and create a couple of transactions versus those who are, you know, here to stay in the game long term. So and let me ask you this, you know, what what do you feel like you’re most focused on scaling next? Like, what’s next for the big goal for you?

India Mynatt (15:41)
So, big goal for me is, with me still being somewhat of a newer agent, because again, I am just shy of like three years in the industry. So I have had, of course, multiple transactions and I have had a lot of experience in these past three years. But what I look into scaling next is definitely, like I said, working with my investor clients, closing multiple million dollar deals. ‘Cause luckily, the investors I work with—not all of them, but the ones that I’m focused on the most, that’s the deal price range. They more so kind of look in. It’s like the million-dollar-and-up range, just because it’s a little less competitive. And then also usually when you have a deal that’s in the million dollar range, most of the time the spread actually is better because it is a more expensive area or just depending on like either the location or the type of property it is, usually those deals make sense more than, like, a deal that’s, like, you know, like $600,000.

But it may be priced closer to market because the price is already like, you know, well under a million. Whereas the ones that once they get into that range, like I said, they usually have a better spread. So I do plan on like scaling my business with that particular client and closing multiple deals for them. And then of course, like after we close so many deals together, I’ll plan on myself you know, getting into investing myself and

I’ll probably start off in my hometown of Akron, Ohio because I am, of course, already familiar with it. And then I do work again for the Ohio-based company, North Coast Consulting Group. I work for them as well. So technically I already kind of have it in in the Ohio investment market. And of course, it’s a lot more affordable than investing here in California. But my ultimate goal is to be able to do investments here. Like, pretty much like my—my—like the clients I work with. Like, my goal is to—to do what they do eventually.

Meghan Escobar (17:16)
That’s huge. I love to see it, you know, just continuing to climb the ladder, getting yourself into bigger rooms. You know, and—and that next movement really it sounds like gonna help you compound things to the next level, maybe create some chaos in between, depending on how it’s played. But hey, a lot of our listeners they’re they’re either early on in their journey just getting their feet wet in the real estate industry, or they’ve been in the game for a while and

Looking for the next best opportunity. And, I really think that they would benefit from hearing this. Like you you talked a little bit about networking and how you love networking and and, you know, meeting new people. When it comes to building relationships and growing your network, India, what what do you feel has made the biggest difference for you?

India Mynatt (17:58)
So as far as building my relationships and growing my network, what I found makes a huge difference is attending like different like networking events or meetups out here in Los Angeles, only because of course, like in LA, there’s definitely not like a shortage of them. There’s always like a new meetup or pop-up or even if it’s something like on Zoom, like you know, but most of them are in person, but some of them are like digital or, you know, online, but

That’s what I found makes a difference. It’s just like kind of attending these events here and there and just like networking, meeting new people, even if it is like another real estate agent, like just networking with them. Because here’s the thing like they may have a property that may work for my buyer, and because I already am familiar with them, we may be able to kind of work in like somewhat of a better deal depending on the seller. And then also you know, vice versa. You know, they may have something that I may or or I may have something that they may be looking for, and we can just work together to get it done.

So just networking and just attending those events I found have made like a huge difference as far as just building my network.

Meghan Escobar (18:56)
Yeah. And and I think that’s a solid piece of, you know, information to share, especially for those that are just getting started. You know, relationships are everything in this space and you never know who’s going to be in that room. So opening doors is is something that you need to constantly do. And so I appreciate you sharing that. Even though you’re somewhat new in the industry, you understand the importance of, you know, creating those relationships, even if it is a an another agent. You’re not looking at that individual as

This is my competitor. This is my, fellow, right? Really great way to look at it.

India Mynatt (19:30)
Yeah, look at them, like colleagues. Yeah, because that’s the thing. And that’s the thing, you know what? I guess since we’re on the topic, I’m so glad you kinda brought that up. So piggyback off of that, like I’ve been because like you I’m big on social media. That’s also how I’m building my brand too, of course like everyone else on social media. And I’ve been thinking about making a video because here’s the thing, like now like since I’ve been taking my real estate career more serious and working with investors, especially like on the higher-end side of like, you know, the million-dollar, like, listings and up, it’s crazy because like you said,

Most realtors will look at you as competition, which don’t get me wrong, if you guys are working in the same area, going after the same clientele, I can see why they would think that. But at the same time, it’s like, the way some of these agents act out here. And I know it’s not just LA or California. I’m sure it’s other states too. But because I work out here, I can only speak from my experience. But it’s just like the way some of these agents act, like now I know why there’s like so many reality shows, because some of them are like,

It’s like just kind of crazy because you’d think that they would—like, for example, I’ll give you an example of what I’m talking about. My investor clients now we usually put in offers a lot, right? So we’re putting in a lot of offers. Of course, not all of them are gonna be over a million dollars. Some of them might be, like, seven hundred thousand, eight hundred thousand. So not always, like, million-dollar listings we’re putting offers in on, but like let’s say it is like a higher-end listing where it is maybe close to a million, if not over a million dollars. I’ll reach out.

Or I’ll even like look because I always look at the personal remarks. Cause as a real estate agent, we have access to personal remarks that the average viewer can’t see on Zillow or other sites. So I’ll always look at the personal remarks, see exactly what’s going on with the property, you know, if there’s any challenges or whatever or what have you. And sometimes like I’ll see on there, because I’ve seen this more than once, where they have on there,

Don’t call or text the agent. We’ve already made it so that you can just do it this way. I’m just like, why would you have—who has a million-dollar listing and doesn’t want to be contacted about it?

Like, are you kidding me? Like, do like do you not want to sell this property? Do you not want to sell this? I don’t care how competitively priced it is. Why would you not want people reaching out to you via call or text or or or email or whatever? Yeah. And that’s what I’m saying. Cause I didn’t realize it until I started, like I said, working more with my clients and we started putting in more offers.

Meghan Escobar (21:31)
Interesting thing.

India Mynatt (21:38)
Cause of course, I’m always scouring like, you know, what’s on-market, sometimes off-market. And just like when I see certain things like that.

I’m like, why would you like like do you realize it’s a privilege to have this type of listing? Right. Like, you know, there’s so many agents out there that are not in production that would love to have this listing. And here you are saying, Don’t contact me about it. Like, what do you do? Like what are you doing? Right.

Meghan Escobar (22:01)
You’re right, like all right.

India Mynatt (22:03)
Yeah, ’cause—but the reason they say that is because they’re like, okay, if you want to submit an offer, this is the email. And then they have, like, certain instructions. But it’s just like, Well, what what if I have questions I want to ask first? Like, you know, like, well, like what if we want to ask you something first before we just like submit the offer? So which is normal. That’s totally normal. And then here’s the thing. Usually most agents want to be contacted before you do the offer because—because now some people too, what they’re doing now is like they’re not accepting what’s called a blind offer, because a blind offer is where

You submit the offer without seeing it. So now some agents are like against that. So they’ll even say, like, in their listing in the private remarks, no blind offers, which is which is totally fine. If you want somebody to come out and see it, we get that. But yeah, but even then, like they’ll have certain instructions where it’s like only contact this person for that and we have to get back to you. And then it’s like you contact them, they don’t get back to you, but then, like, a week later, it’ll still be showing for sale. I’m just like, Are you kidding me? Like

Meghan Escobar (22:55)
My God.

India Mynatt (22:56)
Yes. And it’s like I’ve been thinking about making like a video, but I don’t want to come off like super negative or or whatever. But I’ve been thinking about making like a rant video about that because it’s just like it’s like, honey, like we’re all in this business and this industry to make money.

Meghan Escobar (23:10)
Yeah, you definitely can’t be the only one that that has that perspective. So share it, girl. And thank thank you for sharing it here. So before we do wrap this, you know, if somebody did want to reach out to you and connect with you and and collab with you or or learn more about what you’re doing and how you’re doing it, what would be the best way for them to reach you? Is that through socials or email or phone number?

India Mynatt (23:33)
Absolutely. So you know what? I’ll go ahead and do all three. But the best way to contact me, I mean, ideally will probably be like via like call or or really text. I’m a big I’m a text, I’m a big texter. So either text message, but of course social media is a big thing too. Cause I’ve had people reach out on social media, including actually someone who I just had a coffee meeting with last week, reach out to on social media. But yeah, so you can reach out to my social media. It’s @IndiaDoesRealEstate. Very simple, very straightforward, because I do real estate.

So @IndiaDoesRealEstate on Instagram, Facebook, and even TikTok. And then my email is just gonna be my first and last name at KW—Keller Williams—KW.com. So I-N-D-I-A-M-Y-N-A-T-T at KW.com. And then people can also reach me on my business line via text or call 310-601-8758.

Meghan Escobar (24:23)
Perfect. Well, listen, I really appreciate your time, your story, and more importantly, your perspective. I think we need more people in this space who are doing things the right way, who are just being fully authentic and and actively listening and not looking at their colleagues as competitors. Thank you again so much for being here. And for those of you that are tuning in, if you did get value from this, please be sure to hit subscribe and like. We’ve got more conversations coming in with operators just like India here who are out here building real businesses with real people in real time. We’ll see you on the next episode.