Deal of the Week · The human side of investing

This house had no seller.
Michael made $41,000 finding one.

A house sat abandoned for nearly 20 years after Hurricane Katrina. The owner had died and the property was in ruin. Forgotten. Until Michael found the one person who didn’t even know it belonged to her. The deal paid the heir over $100k, and Michael made $41,000. Here’s how he found her, and what he did after the closing:

The 3 bed / 2 bath single-family property in Metairie, Louisiana, vacant for 20 years
The actual propertyMetairie, LA · SFR · 3 bed / 2 bath

The story

A vacant house. A missing heir. A closing that changed a life.

The $41,000 assignment fee makes for a great headline. But it’s what happened before and after the closing that makes this deal worth studying.

  1. The drive-by

    The house looked like time had stopped: boarded up, overgrown, and empty since Hurricane Katrina. Two decades, no renovations, no “For Sale” sign. Michael started digging.

  2. Finding the heir

    The owner had passed away years earlier, leaving no seller to call. Michael knocked on doors and tracked down family friends until he found the owner’s estranged daughter, who didn’t know her mother had died, or that she’d inherited a house.

  3. The succession

    Michael guided her through succession, kept the closing on track, and she walked away with more than $100,000 from an asset she never knew existed. The contract went to a buyer ready for a $150,000 renovation.

  4. Closed, then the extra mile

    The deal closed with a $41,000 assignment fee, but Michael kept going: a bank account to deposit her check, a trusted friend to help her buy a car, and a CPA to fix her taxes. For her, it was a fresh start.

“Don’t be afraid to go the extra mile when helping solve problems.” Michael
Deal sheet · Single-family 3/2 Verified in REsimpli
Purchase price$128,000
Estimated rehab (buyer’s scope)$150,000
After-repair value (ARV)$399,000
Exit strategyWholesale
Assignment fee$41,000
The $399k ARV, split
$128k buy
$150k rehab
≈$80k
$41k
Purchase · $128k Rehab (for the buyer) · $150k Costs & buyer margin · ≈$80k Michael’s fee · $41k
Lead source · Driving for dollars  |  21 days lead-to-close

Deal snapshot

Everything on one screen

The kind of numbers you’d log in your CRM after the wire clears.

Market
Metairie, LA
Lead source
Driving for dollars
Seller situation
Inherited property
Property
SFR · 3 bed / 2 bath
Purchase
$128,000
Rehab est.
$150,000
ARV
$399,000
Fee
$41,000

At the closing table…

$41,000

Michael’s assignment fee. And a life changed on the other side of the table.

$100k+ paid to the heirA 20-year problem solved
21 days on the form, start to close
Only on this page · the buyer’s math
Buyer’s all-in (buy + rehab + fee)$319,000
After-repair value$399,000
Buyer’s remaining margin≈$80,000

Investor spotlight

Michael Breedlove

A real estate investor working Metairie and the greater New Orleans area. This deal started with a vacant house spotted from the street and ended with an estranged daughter receiving over $100,000 for a property she never knew she inherited, and a $41,000 assignment fee for the investor who made it happen.

His edge is patience with hard problems: a 20-year vacancy, a deceased owner, a succession process, and a seller who needed help far beyond the closing table.

$41k
this deal
21 days
lead to close
$100k+
paid to the heir

The real reason

Why this deal actually closed

It wasn’t a pocket listing, and it wasn’t a lucky call. It closed because Michael solved three problems nobody else would touch:

A 20-year vacancyA missing heirA succession no one had started

Take it to your next deal

What to steal from this one

  • 01
    A 20-year vacancy is a 20-year-old problem. Nobody had solved the title, the succession, or the family estrangement. The investor willing to untangle the problem is the one who earns the deal.
  • 02
    Some doors only open in person. There was no seller to call. Michael found the heir by talking to neighbors and family friends, one conversation at a time.
  • 03
    The deal ends at closing. The reputation doesn’t. The bank account, the car, the CPA: none of it was required, and all of it is why communities trust investors like Michael with the next one.

Behind the scenes

How REsimpli fit into this deal

This deal was won on the street: the search, the succession, and the extra mile were all Michael. REsimpli’s role was to keep track of the deal, and all its data, in one place:

Leads Management

Lead status set and tracked at every stage, with every offer logged the moment it was made.

Transaction Pipeline

From New Contract to Accepted Offer to Clear to Close, the closing stayed tracked to the wire.

Why investors trust it

Not just Michael’s deals

2,547+
reviews across platforms
360
5-star Google reviews
10+
tools replaced by one login

“I went from 1–2 motivated leads every couple of months to 15–30 a week. The difference is having one system that actually works the leads instead of just storing them.”

Casey Gregersen, REsimpli investor

Run your deals the same way

That’s the system Michael used

There was no seller to call and no file to inherit. Michael built the deal record from the first conversation, and every note, offer, and milestone stayed in one place until Clear to Close. Try it free for 14 days.

  • 14-day free trial, so you can see it on your own leads first
  • No developers and no complex setup, you can be up and running in 2 minutes
  • All-in-one: CRM, dialer, calling & SMS, webform lead capture, AI call summaries
  • Replaces the stack you’re duct-taping together right now
Start your 14-day free trial
Plans from $149/mo · cancel anytime · cheaper than the tools it replaces

Before you ask

Straight answers

Do I need REsimpli to find deals?
No. REsimpli works the leads you already have, from any source. This deal came from driving for dollars: one vacant house spotted from the street, with the deal record living in REsimpli from first note to close.
Is REsimpli only for wholesalers?
No. Wholesalers, house flippers, BRRRR investors, buy-and-hold landlords, and virtual investors all run on it. Michael wholesaled this one, but the same platform runs wholetails, flips, rentals, and full portfolios.
Can it really replace multiple tools?
That’s the whole point. One login covers your CRM, dialer, calling and SMS, webform lead capture, and AI call summaries: the pieces most investors stitch together from separate tools. One subscription, one bill.
How long does setup take?
About 2 minutes. Sign up, connect a phone number, and start working your leads. No developers, and no one to hire to configure it.
Is there onboarding support?
Yes. You get guided onboarding plus ongoing support, not just an email address. Start the free trial and you can book a setup call to get your account dialed in fast.