'Handwritten' house-flipping letters not a scam, says contractor

When Fred Shore saw the handwritten note left on his door his first thought was, "it's kind of amateurish."

Theblock letteringdidn't work on himand a closer look showed the letter was not handwritten at all, but aphotocopy.

Shore'sreaction?

"I sent it to the recycling bin," hesaid.

The note's pitch was pretty simple, it read: "My name is Jeff and my partners [sic] name is Amy. We noticed your property are you selling? For a fast close, a cash offer, and a fair price. Give us a call."

"It's kind of peculiar. If you're actually going to buy houses you'd have enough money to buy a pamphlet,"said Shore.

"Just all sorts of flags went off, bells and whistles."

He said he worried calling the number might "get me involved in some weird selling process where I never get my money."

Leavingletters on doorsteps can be an effective way of reaching homeowners willing to sell their propertiesin the private market, saidcontractor and real estate investor, Brett Schreyer.

Schreyer himself said he uses the tactic tostir up potential sellers he renovates properties and resells them for a profit.

"I just get creative and try and find ways that I can help the homeowner and maybe find a fixer-upper project," said Schreyer.

"What we do is we help the homeowner . We don't need property disclosure statements we buy homes as is."

Schreyer said house flipping works for all the parties involved. He makes money off the resale and an owner can offload a property they can't afford to fix up.

He said he doesn't try to target people who may need fast cash but otherwise, have homes in good condition.

"It's not a scam. Call the number, have a conversation, see if there's some way we could work something out," Schreyer said.

The Manitoba Securities Commission (real estate division) says it's aware of tactics like those used by houseflippers. It encourages homeowners to consult a professional, like a realtor or a lawyer before selling their homes.