It is not easy to close a transaction, and an REO is no exception. In my area we do not have a lot of bank owned properties for sale. Even in 2009, when San Jose had a good number, the northern part of Santa Clara County had very few foreclosed homes as a percentage of listings, and newer, nice homes were even harder to find. In 2010 the REO inventory has been few and far between, so when a 4 year old home in the western part of Sunnyvale came on the market I had a buyer who jumped on it right away, and managed to get his offer accepted in a multiple offer situation. The home was foreclosed by Chase, and they wanted a pre-approval from Chase, so the listing agent told everyone to go through Long Nguyen, a very nice and competent loan officer from Willow Glen. My client was very impressed with Long, and decided to use him to get the loan for the property, not just for the pre-approval. Well, nothing was particularly easy. The appraiser took 14 days to submit her report, and on a 17 day contingency that does not work out too well. The underwriter also declared the property a second home instead of a primary residence, so that took time to fix. Last week it was apparent that not only would we not meet the contingency removal deadline, but the closing date was also not going to be possible. Long tried to pull strings and got his wrist slapped, but kept persevering. My client was a little perplexed about how innefficient everything was, but did not blow a gasket. In the middle of a bad conversation about things not going right I stopped and thanked Long for doing so a great job and working so hard for us. He acted as if I had just handed him a million dollars. I guess a thank-you goes a long way, especially in these tense times.

The great news is that loan docs were finally drawn, my client signed today, and hopefully we close by Wed, only 2 days late. Chase gets their money and a new loan, my buyer gets a 4 year new home with great schools and only a little cosmetic damage, Long, the listing agent and I get our commission, and no one was yelled at, belittled, or made to feel like they were not wroking as hard as possible. It really makes for a more pleasant transaction if you just say a few thank-yous.

To all Broker and Agents;

Due to the foreclosure processing problems being addressed by XYZ, we have been advised not to list any assets or accept any offers until this is resolved.

In the interim, Agents are still responsible for managing and marketing the assets per the listing agreement.

MLS rules may require that you change the status in the MLS to “temporarily off market”. Please follow the MLS rules.

Even if an asset is under contract, we are in a holding pattern until XYZ gives further guidance.

Keep your asset manager advised if you encounter problems.

We will keep you updated on any status changes.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Anyone else get similar correspondance?

I have worked for a ton of these companies over the years, and sometimes get companies that are hard to pay or won't pay.

I have one right now, Service (blank), that didn't pay for BPOs since the first of the year. They stated that I wasn't a provider and that I wasn't assigned these properties. I scanned every order page, submitted my BPO pay log and now....Since getting Richard with myreotogo.com involved, they are finally paying!

I got Richard involved yesterday and I received a phone call from the company in question this morning! Suddenly I have gone from not being a service provider to "the information is going to accounting and a check will be in the mail this eveing with a tracking number."

It may sound like an ad, but it is true! Call or message me, and I will get you Richard's contact information!

Finally an REO/BPO success story!

THANK YOU, RICHARD!!!

Read all about it here:

http://www.dsnews.com/articles/old-republic-will-no-longer-insure-jpmorgan-and-chase-2010-10-05

I figured something like this would start to happen with the title companies as their going to be on the hook.

I can't imagine what will happen to the market if more title companies quit insuring foreclosures.

Up to 3.5 Percent Seller Assistance; Selling Agent Receives $1,500 Bonus

Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) today announced a seller assistance incentive on Fannie Mae-owned properties listed on the company's REO website, www.HomePath.com, and expands the initiative to offer an incentive to real estate agents and brokers. Qualified homebuyers who will be owner-occupants can receive up to 3.5 percent of the final sales price that can be used toward closing cost assistance, including a home warranty, if desired and available. In addition, selling agents representing owner-occupants will receive a $1,500 bonus. Eligible offers must be submitted on or after September 23, 2010, and must close by December 31, 2010. The sale must close within 60 days of the offer being accepted.

"More than eighty-seven thousand families have purchased HomePath^® properties in the first half of 2010 - nearly double the number of Fannie Mae foreclosed properties sold in the first half of 2009," said Terry Edwards, Executive Vice President of Fannie Mae's Credit Portfolio Management. "We continue to look for ways to stabilize neighborhoods and offer incentives to qualified buyers who will occupy these properties over the long-term and help support their communities."

HomePath properties are owned by Fannie Mae and include a wide selection of homes, including single-family homes, condominiums, and town houses. HomePath properties may also be eligible for special HomePath Mortgage and HomePath Renovation Mortgage financing.

Do some quick MLS research to find out what Altisource Homes is up to in your market as a listing brokerage. If you are an REO agent you might be surprised to find that Ocwen is listing properties with Altisource Homes offices that are not even in your state. Sure, sellers can list with anyone they want to but local agents should be aware of this growing trend. Why? you ask.

Well,

If you perform BPOs for Ocwen and Altisource you might just find your interior BPO pictures posted on someone else’s MLS listing. Think it can’t happen? I promise it can because it happened to me. When I called my local Altisource contact in New Delhi they assured me that I was mistaken and that it was impossible that Altisource Homes in Georgia (8 hours away) had received and used MY interior BPO photos in their MLS listing in my local market. They asked that I provide documentation and that the issue would be escalated.

I provided the documentation over 2 months ago and have not heard a peep from Altisource. I have stopped accepting work from Altisource and always refer to the fact that I am awaiting an explanation on this specific issue when I reject assignments.

Has anyone had similar experiences? I have had numerous conversations with REO listing agents about Ocwen at national conventions and decline to comment further about Ocwen.

I have found that being in the BPO and REO business is much like playing a competitive sport when you were a youngster. Whether your favorite sport is football, basketball, baseball, soccer or any other sport, one of the first things you were taught was offensive skills, which of course was soon followed by defensive skills. The better you were at both, the more likely that you would be successful at beating your opponent, right?

The same scenario and expectations applies within anyone's BPO and REO business, the only difference is that we are now all grown up and more is on the line and at stake.

When I got started in the BPO business in Sept. of 2006 the phrase, 'Broker Price Opinions' was something that a very select group of people in the real estate business knew about. I'm guessing that the percentage was very low at the time.

I was able to put together a BPO Manual for others (in Jan 2008) who wondered what a BPO was, what it involved and every possible question under the sun as it applied to broker price opinions. Sales of my BPO Manual really took off in early to mid 2007. I had to presume that at this point the 'secret' was out of the bag. So, it had to be a matter of time before everyone jumped on the bandwagon. I was right!

For those that heard about and saw the tremendous opportunity they benefited greatly if they dove into doing BPO's. For many REO listing became the next logical product of the vast amount of BPO work they did. For the next two years, I saw more and more people jumping into the BPO and REO business.

During this time I also talked to lots and lots of people in the business. They came from all walks of life, backgrounds, time in the real estate business and everyone had own their opinions about the BPO business. I appreciated each and every phone call, email and letter that I shared with my fellow peers. They helped me understand so much about the business that I would never have been able to figure out on my own. I owe a lot to these countless number of fine folks. If you are one of them, thank you very much for everything! :-)

I guess a good secret can't stay hidden for long though, huh! Thank goodness. This business is filled to the brim with open-ended possibilities.

And in the end, if you have found or are finding that many in this business stay very guarded and extremely secretive about their own BPO and REO business (I can respect and understand the need behind this) there are a few others that will share their knowledge and expertise with you. Me being one!

Feel free to drop me a line sometime, I'd be more than happy to help in anyway I can!

Keep your chin up and keep shooting for the stars!

Warmly,

Nicole Ocean

Freddie Mac starts new First Look Program which allows homebuyers 15 days to purchase a HomeSteps REO home before investors can write an offer.

In addition to owner-occupant buyers searching for their primary residence, Freddie Mac’s First Look 15-day window is open to buyers who are part of HUD’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP), as well as groups affiliated with the National Community Stabilization Trust (NCST).

For the full article from DSNews click here - First Look

New HUD Process

I had the opportunity to attend a webinar for new HUD listing brokers and there are somechanges, I think HUD is improving their customer service and their system, Ihave been selling HUD homes since I started in real estate 5 years ago, alwaysfrom the buyer side and sometimes it was very frustrating, and I think some ofthe new changes will make things easier.

I think the most important change is the time allowed for home owners to purchase FHA uninsurablehomes, in reality it is harder for a home owner to do all the renovations, andsome either don’t qualify or don’t care much about a renovation loan. Now withthe new deadline, it makes more sense for investors to start bidding earlier.

Well here is an overview of the changes.

· Separatecontractors responsible for property management and marketing/sales.

· HUDHomestore.comis a one national site for everything.

· Commissions,minimum $2,500 divided equally between listing agent and buyer’s agent. Maximum6% commission also split equally for both listing and buyer’s agent.

· NewBroker Registration Process.

· Earnestmoney (made out to HUD) submitted with the contract.

· ElectronicLock Boxes.

HUD has divided the country in 4 contract area and every region is divided in a smaller set ofsubregions.

HUD register, (no only listing agents) brokers may advertise, and hold open houseson HUD properties, however they must gain approval from the Asset Manager.

For agents to bid and sell HUD homes, their broker has to be approved by HUD and have a NAIDnumber and also both broker and agents must be register with HUDHomestore.com.About this site it is one site for the entire country, purchasers will see whatbroker see, bringing more transparency to the transaction, Asset Manager willlist properties on a daily basis instead of once a week. Also this website isthe only place to submit a bid.

House insurable or Insurable with Escrow will have an Exclusive “Owner Occupant”period of 30 days, a 10 day biding period and if no offer is accepted then bidswill be reviewed daily for another 20 days only for owner occupant.

For Uninsurable Properties there will be a 5 day exclusive Owner Occupant period, after thatbidding will be open to all purchasers on a daily basis if an acceptable owneroccupant offer was not received.

Also agents have to make sure they have complete sales contract HUD form 9548 andcertification of broker form, Lead Base paint, Radon and Mold, MED, ExtensionPolicy, Home Inspection, Owner Occupied (if applicable) and local requireaddenda, together with a pre-qualification letter form a certified, licensedlender if sale contains a mortgage contingency. Agents have 48 hours to submitall those documents to HUD after bid acceptance

Earnest money will be held by HUD’s designated closing agent, and they will notify thebrokers who will closing agent will be once the contract is ratified.

Important Reminders

Never take or give a property key to anyone, absolutely no repairs prior to settlement,remember that all HUD homes are sold ASIS, do a pre-settlement inspection, alldocuments and contracts have to be submitted to HUD with in 2 business days.

Don't Steal My Photos Man!

Those who have worked with me any amount of time know one of my biggest pet peeves....... DO NOT STEAL MY PHOTOS FOR YOUR LISTING!

As a easier way to keep up with my local market, I have myself set up in the MLS's to get daily updates of new listing as they come on the market, like all good agents should, right? This morning I get my usual 5 or 6 emails from the MLS on new listings and one of them has one of my old REO listings that expired in June that was just re-listed. No problems, I expected the bank to assign a new agent as I had that troublesome property for over a year and was ready to get rid of it.

As I was looking at the report I noticed that the photos looked familiar, so I pulled up my old listing and sure enough, they were my original photos..... ALL of them! There is NO description of the house, no private comments other then “See attached documents”..... which there were not any. And other important information was missing like “No Certificate of Occupancy Issued”, etc. (new construction)

Well, I'm still a pretty good friend with the bank's property manager, so I sent her an email. One to check on her to see how they weathered the current hurricane and to let her know that she needs to tell the agent that using photos from another brokerage is against MLS rules, not to mention it's just plain lazy!

Then I looked up the other listing we had of developed building lots. He did a little better there, but I guess he did not like my photos because it looks like he just rode through the subdivision taking pictures of any open space he THOUGHT was a building lot. The funny part is he had 3 or 4 pictures of properties we SOLD last year that the bank no longer owns! The listing has no information on lot numbers that are for sale. And had a nice picture of a STOP SIGN! Lol

New Construction REO's take more research then a normal listing. And I would have gladly given this agent my folder on this property.... before now. But don't steal my work because you are too dang lazy to take a few photos of your new listing!

I want to say to any asset manager who might read this, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE double check your agents! You have no idea how much liability or lost sales these “Lazy” agents are causing! If you do not have the time to do so yourself, hire an agent in that area to “shop” your listing agents. They will tell you real quick if there is a problem! A quality listing agent will not mind at all if they get “shopped”, it helps them stay on their toes! I welcome it any time!

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.

-Robert A. Heinlein

Kind of makes you tired just reading it, but how true is that. In these days, we have to have a diverse set of skills. It’s also very important to identify talented team members that can help us excel in all of the areas we must be experts at.

While doing some BPO work today for some multi-family houses it still amazes me the number of agents who do not fill out many of the non-required fields in the MLS.

It also was interesting that many of these "slim" MLS listings are REO properties.

Do people not realize that if you fail to fill out fields such as, # of units, number of bedrooms, number of baths, total sq feet, than many people doing searches for properties will NEVER SEE YOU LISTING IN MLS.

I also love the MLS description when people write... "Bank owned"... and nothing else.

I try to fill out full data fields, give multiple pictues (good and bad), and write an accurate description in the remarks field. No wonder my last 4 sales averaged 45 DOM.

That's my rant for the day.

I woke up this morning and started looking over all of my favorite business news websites and I saw that the headlines for today was something like…..,

“Economic Growth at a Standstill, Revised Government reports 2^nd Quarter Growth Down Sharply”

I get asked often, “who is your business” because, people want to know, is housing recovering. My reply to this question is normally,

“The worse the economy gets, the better my business. I am Bentley shopping have you seen the new Bentley Continental GT?”

Everyone laughs in nervous anticipation thinking I was joking and that any minute now I am going to say something to diffuse the un-comfortableness floating in the air like a lead balloon but, I don’t. My point with my reply is, the economy isn’t growing, it’s not even set to grow. In fact, the economy is actually set to fail and fail big. People are amazed or even combatively when I say these things, it’s almost as if they are walking around in a drug educed stupor with the thought bubble floating over their head that reads something like,

“YES, WE CAN” or “HOPE” and even better, “CHANGE”

The economy reminds me of that scene in the movie Constantine where Keanu Reeve’s character “John Constantine” has a face to face encounter with the angel Gabriel who want’s to make the human race earn the love of God by hastening the coming of Satan’s son. Gabriel explains her madness by elaborating that the human races is capable of such incredible triumphs but, through her years of observing us, she realizes that we only change when we are on the event horizon of total destruction or despair. She goes on further to say, she will bring further our destructions so that we can rise to the occasion and be found worthy of God’s love and grace.

Yes, it’s a sick, crazy understanding of human nature but, what could we ever expect from a being (an angel) who has felt as a 2^nd class race for eternity? You need to understand the concept from Gabriel’s point of view. She knows, God has put her and her race as 2^nd, in behind humans which in her eyes have done nothing but, thrown Gods incredible grace back in his face whereas, she and the other angels have served and will serve for eternity without such love or forgiveness.

In many ways, this battle that Gabriel struggles with, in the movie, is suppose to be a reflection of the concept of communal grace or collective salvation and manifest destiny.

In other words, Gabriel can’t be saved from these wretched horrible, less than desirable position behind humans unless everyone can be saved and she believes it’s God’s will and that she is doing God’s work and come hell or high water, she is going to make it happen.

Now, let me ask you, do you believe this theology could be present in our current Government leadership?

Yeah, I know….the movie analogy is a bit fanciful and maybe a bit ridiculous but, it’s a good analogy none the less.

Is it possible that our Government is being lead to bring forth fundamental change in the way of transforming our country into a socialist utopia where Government knows best. Is it possible that some in our Government feel it’s their destiny to make these changes and they are doing a good work by following what they believe is God’s will for their lives? Is it possible that some in our Government are working towards this transformation by creating a environment of total destruction so that they can rise up as our saviors and cleanse us of this evil capitalism that we suffer from?

Here is what I know. I know that Franklin Roosevelt announced in a radio program that he believed in a 2^nd Bill of Rights, of which, this administration has succeeded in accomplishing a few of those items.

The specific right I want to focus on is “The right of every family to a decent home.”

2^nd Bill of Right # 2: The right of every family to a decent home;

Once again, the politicians realized you can’t just give people a home but, you can collapse the housing industry and everyone who has a home and paying a mortgage can keep their homes regardless if they pay or not because, the government can raise taxes, create bailouts or take over banks and simply cancel out the homeowner’s debt at the expensive of the tax payer.

Let’s be clear, the Progressive agenda to move away from our constitution or to transform our constitution has been in the works for a long time. With the Progressive control of the White House and both houses of Government, we are simply seeing a fast forwarding of their agenda.

Make no mistake, you can’t have a housing recovery without jobs and from my point of view, this Government hasn’t done anything to increase jobs. In my opinion, they have done what they can to kill jobs and that leaves me with a question…………..why.

The next time your asked about your business, the next time someone ask you when you think we will recover from this economic crisis I hope you remember this blog, I hope you ask yourself do you really know what is happening in our Government that will forever impact our industry and how we do business.

This isn’t a Republican vs. Democrat argument, this is a Constitution vs. Progressive argument of which, both go to the core beliefs that you may have about this divinely inspired country.

I just attended the WinDS conference in Las Vegas last week... what an event! This group was founded by Marla Webb, Shelley Kaye, Arna Friedman, and Shelia Blockson. The first day was packed with Keynote speakers, forming of committees, and networking. The second day we joined with the Asian Real Estate Association of America, conducted a question/answer session with an asset manager panel, and ended the day with a charity poker tournament at the Hard Rock Hotel.

There are several reasons to become a member of WinDS:

• Get noticed by asset managers
• Make connections with other REO professionals
• Learn from the pro's
• Increase your knowledge of the business
• Be available to service providers

I would encourage everyone to check out this powerhouse group of professionals. Learn more about WinDS, or to join this dynamic force in the default industry, please click here! Men are always welcome as members .

If you end up joining, please mention my name!

Well everyone.

I recently engaged a discussion on Linked In about flaky REO agents and some of it was pretty heated...you know agents pointing fingers at one another...so I have reproduced some of my thoughts here because they were revelant and I beleive propel us agents (none of us are flaky agents here!) to a higher level.

...THE DISCUSSION STARTED LIKE THIS:

More REO Listing Agent Lies, BS & Laziness!

I have consistently given credit to REO Listing Agents for earning their lofty position. Now the other side of the coin! "Homes listed in the MLS that show active are active" Lie! Unreachable and lazy REO Listing agents have the rest of us running around in circles and taking their word only to find out an offer has been accepted. How about the geniuses that put only a combo box on the home and don't answer their phones? And don't most REO listing agents give their clients the best chance to buy the home? Even if it calls for (nod and wink) exchanging information about other offers?

What do you think?

Tony Lewis RE/MAX of Valencia, Ca. www.TonyLewis tonyglewis@yahoo.com 661-702-4720

AND I RESPONDED IN THE COURSE OF THE DISCUSSION:

Well I always enjoy these heated discussions and time for me to weigh in as a buyer's agent:
Price your listing correctly...if it sells more than 103% of list you did't price it correctly and it deceives my buyers...they get frustrated.
Price it with the notion that an FHA buyer wants to buy it...that means closing costs too...offer a cash discount or something like that.
Please keep the bugs out of it and I mean roaches...this looks bad and it reflects on me too.
Yes...you MUST know if the condo is FHA approved...the health of the association, etc...you want to sell it right?
While you get 40- agents calling you on it...I have one buyer that easily gets frustrated when we put in an offer and never get an official rejection. They think its my fault and want to use another agent...just think of that!
Don't require cross preapproval...by the time your LO gets with my client...the property is gone anyway...(see above). All that exists anymore are direct lenders.
Please learn something about the property you list...all 100 of them!
Answer your phone or email rapidly... my buyer wants to know....if you need to have a contact person listed for this.
Yes, I want to know how many lenders you have and who is the bank...it lets me know what the process will be like.
Put a Supra Box on...always...combo locks and me do not get along always.

There it is...apply this to be a listing agent and you have it.
Be QSC certified... I am and clients know I am quality.
Asset managers...if you are reading this...this is just a glimpse of the superior service some of us agents perform to. Maybe we didn't take you class or sell lots of listings but what you get is dedication!

the discussion went on and I concluded with some more info:

Christine, I guess life is different in Texas. Based on that concluding commentary about LOSING money on a listing, I wonder why anyone would want to manage it? I would think that in any case about being party to a contract...you are representing the interests of the seller (investor or AM) and at least out here I have run into a few that run their operation like a machine in a factory and I do not think that has changed anything...and yes I imagine the AM's are just like any other seller...I have had them dispute my BPO a time or two before (why do they need my opinion if they think they know better anyway?)
Among the more glorious things I have noted in my REO travels,is that one agent uses a message board: upon offer submission, he gives a logon and password and we can view a message board that has commentary about the process at any given time...never a need to call.
Another uses something called RapidLInk that gives us the code to any of her listings...we just register once on her website and after our info is verified, we can type in the listing address and get the code asap!...again no phoning or texting! I would never report someone to their AM because I feel that at one time justice will serve itself acccording to one's merits.
I sometimes too, Christine would like not to be a buyer's agent since we are glorified tour guides at times and I would rather have a professional realtionship with A person. Yet AM's always ask " how many properties you have listed?" Apparently selling them doesn't count and that is part of my frustration. For the record Chrsitine,I am sure you are one of the good ones that actually do what you are supposed to do as I imagine it is a struggle to just 5 REO' to list consistently.

In summation we can tell this:
Communication is paramount between agents on both sides of a transaction.
Don't bother the other agent for obvious information.
Seek feedback about your listing
Be diligent even as a buyer's agent when in escrow (real life: had an investor/agent tell me he appreciated how diligent I was and was more than willing to advise me of his current and upcoming inventory and have priority on open houses..looks forward to my next offer!)
Can anyone add something?

YES CAN ANYONE HERE ADD SOMETHING?