Done-for-you is a phrase covering everything from a referral to a turnkey product sale, and the differences matter enormously. Understanding what the model should actually do is how you judge whether a particular version of it is worth paying for.
What it should cover
- Establishing the tax position and time constraints before any property is discussed.
- Market selection against those constraints, including regulatory posture and seasonality.
- Deal sourcing at volume, with a screening ratio that eliminates most of what is seen.
- Underwriting: comparable set, twelve-month model, complete expense stack, stress tests.
- Regulatory verification: zoning, permit, transferability, association declaration, in writing.
- Negotiation on price, based on what the analysis says the property is worth.
- Launch sequencing: furnishing, photography, permitting and listing during escrow.
- Management selection based on performance data rather than a national brand.
What it should not do
Give tax advice. A real estate acquisition firm is not a CPA firm, and a firm presenting itself as both is either licensed for both or overstepping. The tax side should be an independent professional relationship.
Sell you a property it owns or has an interest in. Any compensation from the sell side is a conflict, and it should be disclosed and understood.
Promise a return. Results depend on purchase price, financing, market performance, management quality and your own tax situation. Certainty is a sales technique.
Take every client. A firm that finds a property for everyone is not screening for fit, and fit is most of the value.
How turnkey providers differ
A turnkey provider typically owns or controls inventory and sells it to investors, frequently with management attached. The economics are different: their margin is in the sale, which means the price is set to include it.
That is not inherently wrong and it is a different relationship from a buy-side representative whose job is to get the price down. Understanding which one you are dealing with is the first question.
The tell is the answer to how they are compensated and by whom. A firm paid by the buyer to negotiate against the seller has different incentives from one selling its own inventory.
How coaching programs differ
Education programs teach you to do the work yourself. That is a legitimate model and it suits people who want to learn the business and have the time.
The tradeoff is that education does not compress the search. A buyer who has learned to underwrite still has to review the deals, and the volume required to find a property below market is substantial.
It also does not provide the negotiating position that comes from transacting repeatedly in a market. Both models can work; they are answering different questions.
How to judge a firm
Ask how many deals they screen and how many they bring. A firm that brings most of what it sees is not screening.
Ask for the repeat buyer rate, which is the only statistic in this business that cannot be manufactured. Nobody buys a second property from a firm that got the first one wrong.
Ask for references from clients who bought in situations comparable to yours, and actually call them. Ask for an example of a deal they rejected recently, with the reasoning.
And ask which markets they refuse to work in and why. A firm that will work anywhere is either extraordinary or not doing regulatory diligence.
What the fee should buy
Access to deals that were not visible to you, an analysis you could not have built without reviewing the same volume, a negotiated price below market, and a launch that opens the calendar weeks earlier than it otherwise would.
The negotiated price is the largest of those in dollar terms. Buying $50,000 to $80,000 under market is a permanent improvement to the return that never has to be re-earned, and it typically exceeds the fee by a wide margin.
The launch compression is the second. Weeks of carry saved plus a ranking position established in the first season, which compounds through the first year.
What we do and do not do
We are a real estate acquisition firm. We find, underwrite, verify, negotiate and help launch. We do not provide tax advice; AE Tax Advisors is an independent partner firm, not owned by or affiliated with us beyond a referral relationship.
We screen roughly a thousand deals a week and eliminate about 98%. We turn away prospective clients whose situations the strategy does not fit, and we decline to work in markets where the conventional investment model is not legally available.
Our repeat buyer rate is about 80% and 500-plus homes have closed for 260-plus clients. Those are the numbers we point to first, because the alternative is asking you to trust a description of a process, and a repeat rate is evidence rather than description.
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Frequently asked questions
What should a done-for-you STR acquisition service include?
Establishing the tax position first, market selection, deal sourcing at volume with heavy screening, full underwriting with stress tests, regulatory verification in writing, price negotiation, launch sequencing during escrow, and management selection on performance data.
How is an acquisition firm different from a turnkey provider?
A turnkey provider typically owns or controls the inventory and their margin is in the sale, so the price includes it. A buy-side firm is paid by the buyer to negotiate against the seller. Ask how they are compensated and by whom.
How do I judge an acquisition firm?
Ask how many deals they screen versus bring, their repeat buyer rate, references from comparable clients, an example of a recent rejection with reasoning, how they are compensated, and which markets they refuse to work in and why.