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What is a Self Directed Individual Retirement Account and Why Should You as a REO Professional Care?

First, you need to know what an individual retirement account is before you can truly appreciate what a self directed individual retirement account is.

Per the Internal Revenue Service, you basically have two types of individual retirement accounts. Those are Traditional IRA or Roth IRA.

A Traditional IRA is just a way for you to save money for retirement with tax advantages. Some of those advantages are tax deductions for contributions and the fact that generally speaking, you aren’t taxed on those earnings and gains till the money is distributed. For more information on IRA, please visit the IRS website here: http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Traditional-IRAs

A Roth IRA is a IRA with a few exceptions. Some of those are…..

  1. You can’t deduct contributions to a Roth IRA

  2. You can contribute to your Roth IRA after age 70

  3. You can leave amounts in your Roth IRA as long as you live

My list of exceptions above is not a complete list. For a complete list of exceptions, visit the IRS website link here: http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Roth-IRAs

Now, the biggest single difference between a IRA and a SDIRA or Self Directed IRA is the fact that a IRA is set up with a bank, life insurance company, mutual fund or stock broker whereas with a SDIRA, they are set up with a Trustee. This difference is very important for you to understand because, this difference goes t the very nature of what makes a SDIRA so different than a IRA.

You see, with a Traditional IRA or Roth IRA, the bank or organization you set it up with manages the money for you. Your bank will have different funds that you can pick from and those funds have all kinds of disclosures, prospectus and degree of expectations on performance. Sure, no investment is ever 100% safe and anytime you invest, you really should know your risk however, my point is, you aren’t doing any leg work. The bank you set up your IRA is doing everything for you and all you had to do was pick the fund to put your money in. This is where a SDIRA is different.

As I said before, with a SDIRA, you set up your account with a Trustee. This Trustee is nothing more than a place to hold your money. They do not offer you investment advice and they don’t make investments on your behalf. They aren’t going to send you a list of funds you can choose from….because they don’t have any. You aren’t going to get a prospectus telling you what to expect when you invest because, they have nothing for you to invest directly in. Think of the Trustee as a holding house for your money. That is really all they are. There purpose is to be a middle man between you and your retirement money. The reason they exist is to provide transparency, accountability and to enforce regulations over your money.

Finally, with a SDIRA, you don’t make money unless you get out there and invest it. Like I said, the Trustee is nothing more than a holding house, they don’t make investment on your behalf so, if you don’t get out there and find opportunities to invest in, your money will not make gains, it won’t grow. This is the attraction for many because it gives the owner of the money much more control of what gets invested in and likewise, the possibility for much greater gains……with much greater risk.

For many who decide to get a SDIRA, the typically already have substantial experience in one of the areas of allowed investments. For example, I am a Realtor and I have access to many different tools and substantial experience that allows me to assess value on real property pretty accurately. I can use my tools and experience to invest my SDIRA funds into real estate. That’s right, real estate is just one of the many SDIRA investment options. As a Realtor, naturally I would be drawn to invest my retirement in real estate that will create gains and grow my retirement funds, using my own knowledge and experience. The reason I do this is because, I realized I can use my expertise in my career field and create gains for my retirement much more substantially than some bank, insurance company, mutual fund or stock broker every could.

Granted, some people don’t have any experience in one of the approved investment areas however, those people partner with experienced investors in the field of interest they want to invest in. For example, maybe the only experience you have in real estate is buying and selling your own home however, you would like to invest in real estate. What you would need to do is find a real estate investor who has a proven track record of success and let them teach you. Maybe you know a Realtor who has a proven track record of success that would be happy to get out there and find you money making opportunities to invest in? My point is, just because you may not have experience in a particular investment opportunity, don’t let good opportunities pass you by. You can always find the expertise you need, just stand up and look around.

Finally, it’s important to know that I am not an Investment Advisor, Attorney or Tax Professionals. I am a Realtor who has used my own SDIRA to invest in real estate. What you have read above is my own experience and opinion and you should not consider it Investment, Legal or Tax advice because, it’s not. If you need Investment, Legal or Tax advice, go seek out licensed and insured professionals in your state.

To join a social network of other like minded investors, visit www.MatherNetwork.com

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Are you paying attention to the Federal Reserve?

Realtors, be warned. The Federal Reserve announced that it will begin drawing back the bond purchasing program called Quantitative Easing. This is extremely important for us Realtors to know and understand because; this will have a dramatic impact on buyers or those considering buying a home. Let me explain.

In the past few years, we have seen traditionally third world countries see a huge growth in development. For example, did you know that Mexico is now one of the worlds largest producers of aircraft? Yeah, I didn’t know that either but, it’s true. In fact, countries Africa may be one of the continents with the largest expansion of unprecedented wealth. South Africa, Nigeria, Angola, Ghana and Ethiopia were all named 2013’s countries to watch and invest money in due to rapid expansive growth.  So, you may be setting back and wondering, what does these countries have to do with Mr. Jones’s property down the street….well, just keep reading.

The growth these countries have been seeing has been unprecedented and I wanted to know how this was all happening so, I did some research and found that it’s in large part due to the US Federal Reserve. The Quantitative Easing policy of the Federal Reserve has been blazing a trail for the other central banks across the world by essentially manufacturing trillions of US Dollars to buy bonds and drop interest rates around the world. By doing this, the US Federal Reserve has made it easier and more attractive with larger returns to allow investors to move money into third world countries. Investors like those large retirement firms that hold the cash of American retirees. Ok…..so, are you seeing it now, are you starting to understand where I am going? If not, no worries, just keep reading.

So this week, the Federal Reserve announced it was going to draw back and end Quantitative Easing in 2014. It will taper off the amount of purchasing it does monthly and in effect, buying less and less bonds. So, in other words, you are going to see less developed countries that saw huge developments in the past two years begin to have much less cash flow coming in. You will even see Investors pulling out of these countries because, instead of developing more sound political and economic infrastructures with governmental policies, these countries did what any other country would do when they all of a sudden were rich from a windfall, they partied like it was 1999. In short, these countries will not be prepared for the withdrawal of funds and will do one of two likely scenarios. Either they will simply watch their country “ease” back into third world status or the will put in place protectionism policies that will strangle further growth and severely limit investors from moving cash out of the country. In essence, locking up American retiree cash in a third world abyss. I predict that the first two quarters of 2014 will see dramatic cash pull out of third world countries, currencies and, bonds. This will be the start of a mini global recession due to a lack of demand for goods and services.

If that isn’t enough, let’s not forget about inflation. Oh yes, the big bad “I” word. Inflation is the elephant in the room that most people are trying to desperately ignore. Even the Federal Reserve stated that the QE (Quantitative Easing) drawback would have to be timed perfectly to negate the real risk of inflation. In fact, the Federal Reserve said that the reason it’s thinking of doing this drawback now is because, they believe the timing is correct. Now, how they come to that decision, I don’t really understand but, it’s primarily based on the ideology that our economy is growing and the country if financially doing better as a whole. Well, try telling that to the 53% of Americans who are on some form of government assistance right now.

So, just a quick note on inflation, we get inflation when we have too much money in the system. In short, when everyone has a tone of dollars, how much is a dollar really worth? Well, it’s not worth much if everyone has them. So, it takes more dollars to make a gallon of milk or loaf of bread and thus you have inflation. Remember me talking earlier about all those trillions of dollars that the fed has been pumping out into buying bonds….well, those trillions of dollars have got to go somewhere and guess where they are likely to go, right back home, here in the good ole USA. In fact, we are already seeing it happen. Why do you think the stock market has been on FIRE, lately. Those dollars are coming home to roost. When all that cash starts looking to escape Mexico, Rwanda, Honduras, South Africa, Angola, etc… it’s going to all come here and the value of the US Dollar will start falling. In fact, the dollar has seen some of the most recognizable loss of value against the Euro since 2011. Back then, 1 Euro was worth 1.29 dollars, in August of this year, it was worth 1.33 dollars and right now, as of today, it’s worth .73cents. Are you stumped? It took years for the euro to rise .04 cents from 2011to 2013 but, it only took months for it to lose almost half its value…wonder why? You know why, I just told you, all of those dollars….those trillions of dollars through the Federal Reserve QE program is coming home and like any bubble, it’s got to bust at some point. The Federal Reserve is gambling that our economy will be strong enough to handle it when it does but, I am not so sure.

When this bubble burst, it will mean run away inflation and we as a country aren’t ready for that. 2007 will pale in comparison and in fact, I have read many analysis say The Great Depression will pale in comparison. Unfortunately, it isn’t like we are navigating uncharted water here. This has happened before around the world just ask the Weimar Republic….or what used to be the Weimar Republic.

Go visit this wiki site, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weimar_Republic about the Weimar Republic and then ask yourself, do you now understand how this will impact Mr. Jones’s house down the street?

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Im getting orders from many portals.  This reminds me of 3 years ago when everyone was trying to do loan mods (what a joke)  Anyway, orders are coming faster than I can handle them and Im having to turn some down. Ive noticed that there is a higher percentage of very hard to do properties as compared to 'the old days'.  Many are not worth the time.  After 3,000 BPOs Im tired of the entire thing. Yeah, kept the light bill paid but I dont have a new sailboat anchored off the coast of Greece so Im getting out.

 

Thing is, what is al this activity and will it last?  Its because lenders had been standing back watching supreme court decisions and different government agencies that were wading into the fray to put protection measures for consumers. Joke number two. Now the lenders, who had been changing to judicial foreclosure to get around laws designed for auction foreclosure, are brave and starting to fight. They do not and NEVER DID want to loan mod. They do want full non judicial foreclosaure so they can make use of any mortgage insurance and get government backed money thrown at them to keep them healthy.

 

ANd now another ugly face of theirs is showing---REOS , instead of being placed in the market through real estate brokers, will be sold in bulk as securities to big money concerns. We are becoming a rental nation with huge corps as the landlords.  This new flurry is mostly short sale and some full FC, at least thats what mine are with more full interiors than Ive had for a long time.

 

Going to last? No. Nope. It will start to decline. We also have a few million owners, especially those who actually got loan mods, going back to default but not in numbers weve bee used to. Even FARVV is cutting back and reducing fees to brokers. They see the writing on the wall. These are the beginning death throws, my friends. If you aregoing to depend on BPOS for a living, better have a backup job in plan.

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Just a heads up for everyone, Mark to Market has stopped paying for work that you have completed. I have BPO's that date back to July. That is over 150 days. I have tried to contact them, and the only person I have been able to contact has been rude, and they canceled my access to the web site. Made it sound like I was a bad person . Don't do work for M2M BECAUSE THEY DO NOT PAY!!!!

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Thinking of Short Sale Flipping?….Think Again.

In an Article in the Los Angeles Times Business paper, written by E. Scott Reckard published on-line 10/16/2013 @ 6:15am cst, he reports that a former Bank of America Corp. employee Kevin Lauricella was arrested on federal charges for accepting bribes in the amount of $1 million to allow homes to be sold far below their market value.

Based on the report, it appears that Kevin is indicted on 18 properties where he allegedly allowed them to be sold far below the price the bank would have accepted. These alleged transactions took place in 2010 and early 2011. To get the sales through the BofA system, Kevin is accused of falsifying bank records.

The buyers who bought these ridiculously low priced homes would then turn around and sell them for market value or even refinance them at market value, pocketing the profits. To better understand the allegations, see an example of a possible scheme below, not related to the specific allegations of Kevin’s.

Homeowner owes ………………………………………………………………. $100,000.00

Based on Sold comparables, his home is worth……………………… $75,000.00

Which means homeowners is upside down…………………………....$25,000.00

Buyer / Investor makes a low ball offer of……………………………….$50,000.00

BofA completes an appraisal and the home is worth……………..$75,000.00

Now, here is where it get’s fishy. Instead of BofA countering the buyer’s $50,000.00 offer with a counter of $75,000.00, someone at the bank has to do something to allow the $50,000.00 offer to be approved, even though it’s $25,000 less than what the bank could get on the open market. So, to more the story along, the bank approves the fraudulent $50,000.00 offer and the buyer / investor closes the deal on Monday. They then turn around and close the 2nd deal….that’s right, the deal they had in their back pocket from a buyer who was willing to pay $75,000.00 for the property on Tuesday morning, making $25,000.00 in profit in less than 24 hours.

Now, the really sad part of this, the opportunity for fraud is rampant. It doesn’t take a cooperative bank representative to pull this off. In fact, I have seen this strategy myself, in play, here in my local market with corrupt appraisers. I have even been pressured myself, by buyers / investors to tell them when the appraiser is scheduled to be at the property so they can meet with them and give them their comparable analysis. These buyer / investors make it sound so reasonable, they say things like, “well, we want to write up the offer” or “we want to negotiate our offer with the bank direct” or “we can meet with the appraiser so he can see our comps”, etc…  however, it’s fraud!

In fact, this is happening so rampantly in my own market place, I was contacted by such a buyer / investor’s Realtor back on Sat 9/21/2013 @ 10:06pm cst through my email. That’s right, these fraudulent buyer / investors are enlisting Realtors to now do the dirty work for them, offering them “double commissions” or higher splits, playing on the agents greed. Sadly, the agent that contacted me is working with a well known Principal Broker in a very well known firm however, the firm is one of those 100% firms and they offer very little to no mandatory training and chances are, after drilling this agent via email about his actions, he may actually believe what he is doing is “the American way” of buying low and selling high.

This topic always seems to get a lot of response and most of the time, I am demonized and vilified saying that I have no business being in Realestate or, I have no clue what I am talking about however, you don’t have to take my word for it. If you really believe what you are doing is above board, legal….and some investors package you bought for $999.99 gives you a indemnity clause or a release of liability statement that says you can do what you’re doing, then I have one thing to say to you. Take your package you bought, take your forms you use and call my friends over at the HUD’s office of the OIG and ask to speak with the Lisa Gore, Assistant Special Agent in Charge or Harvey Wayne Martin, Special Agent. I know they would love to talk with you and answer all your questions.

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HSBC Bank Policy Designed to Destroy Homeowners who want to Avoid Foreclosure.

I currently have a client who has two liens on his home. The first lien is with HSBC and it’s a conv. fixed rate 30 year mortgage. The second lien is with US Bank and it’s a Home Equity Line of Credit. In order to avoid foreclosure, my client originally approached both lenders and requested a Deed-in-Lieu however, the lenders advised him to complete a short sale. He finds me, we list the home for sale, and get an offer that pays off the first lien in full, as per the HSBC pay off letter and pays the second lien nearly 60% of what they are owed. This past weekend, we received notice that HSBC has decided to set a foreclosure sale date of 10/24/2013. We notified US Bank of the pending HSBC foreclosure and they have opened an Expedited / Assist request in order to escalate our offer through their system for a quick decision on the short sale. We have contacted HSBC to notify them of this development with US Bank and requested HSBC to postpone the foreclosure 45 days in order to give US Bank enough time to complete their process. As of right now, HSBC is refusing to postpone the foreclosure any length of time.

The baffling part of this issue is that it appears, by HSBCs actions, they would rather incur the cost of foreclosure, attorney fees, court cost, preservation cost, disposition cost and REO cost in general in order to purposely avoid the short sale and avoid getting a pay off in full. So, my question is, why would a bank do this? Do the bank’s executives know this is how their short sale / foreclosure / loss mitigation departments are being run? Do the bank’s executives know that they have policies in place that hurt themselves, hurt the homeowners, hurt the local communities, creates a situation where no one wins?

I suspect that if an Executive at HSBC saw my clients case, they would step in and fix this. I suspect that if an HSBC investor saw what was going on here, they would step in and do something. In fact, I suspect that if anyone at HSBC would stop, look at this situation, evaluate their policy and see how this doesn’t make any sense what so ever, they would step in and help us but, so far….no help at all.

In order to bring national attention to this issue, I am going to use my network to its fullest capability. I am going to list the names and dates of the people I spoke with at HSBC in hopes that someone…anyone who can do anything….even if it’s nothing more than some advice, will step in and help.

A list of HSBC employees who haven’t been able to help us or haven’t been willing to help us….

10/8/2013 @ 8:11 am cst called into 1-855-698-7627, Got a call from Mrs. Mantra who was calling me on behalf of Mrs. Danielle Paschale. I was transferred to Sandra Scott who transferred me to supervisor Dania. Call ended with no resolution other than I needed to talk with Foreclosure.

10/7/2013 @ 4:06pm cst I called HSBC 1-800-395-3489 and spoke with Sandy, who said I needed to talk with my Single Point of Contact Danielle Paschale. Danielle wasn’t available so I was transferred to Chris in Modifications. Chris said I needed to speak with Danielle Paschale or someone in HSBC’s customer relations department. Transferred me to customer service who gave me Danielle’s number and said I need to call her.

So, the end result, no one was able to give me an answer, no one took accountability for the file and in fact, I am back to where I started, with a call into Danielle Paschale who is likely going to have Mrs. Mantra call me to tell me she can’t help me so, who can? Better yet, who will?

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Future is Certain, REO to Rent to Become Stable Market Segment

A recent article by Amilda Dymi published on 9/12/2013 @ 2:24pm ET titled “The Single-Family REO Asset Class is Here to Stay” brings up a very interesting set of questions for the REO industry.

Amilda’s article sources are Jade Rahmani of Keefe Bruyette & Woods believes foreclosure to rent properties are growing and perhaps are already considered a growing segment of the REO market which will be with us for the long haul.

Jade reports that the next 12-24 months will see growth in this market so, as a REO agent, I stop and ask myself, what does that mean to my REO listing inventory? Well, I can safely assume we will see more of the same. More specifically, we will see more and more REO agent portfolios shrink and in many cases, become non-existent. This will further weed out the REO agent specialization and further teaches agents that keeping their ear to the pulse of the industry and being able to change focus will remain paramount to the success of high producing agents.

Before 2007, agents were all a buzz with certifications, designations, training courses, etc.. to sale new homes, stage homes, learn about new home green features, etc… After 2007, agents started seeing classes, certifications, designations, training courses for REO and foreclosures. In 2009, we saw a huge emphasis on foreclosure prevention, avoid foreclosure, modify, refinance, etc… 2012’ish, we saw the huge push for short sales and all kinds of seminars, certifications, designations, training courses, seminars, etc… were on every corner. Now, with this whole REO-Rent segment, guess what we are seeing, all kinds of courses, certifications, designations, seminars on how to be a REO Property Manager.

The big push of this “new” type of segment is due to positive cash flow. The truth of the matter is, unemployment is forecasted be high for the foreseeable future and with high unemployment, comes high distressed homeowners. These homeowners will be forced into the rental market, one way or another and if they can stay in the home and just rent it….at least the asset is performing and in most cases, the bank can still get a positive cash flow, even if it’s considerably less if the occupant was paying their mortgage. In other words, it’s not going anywhere, anytime soon and per the article, it’s going to grow like gang busters the next 12-24 months.

So, what do we REO Agents do? We endure, as we always have. The only thing now is, we need to ensure we are diversifying our own business to ensure we continue to endure. We all know NAR has done little to nothing to address our REO woes and therefore, it’s on us to ensure our business survives and if God willing, thrives and the name of that game is diversification.

Yeah, that means we are likely going to be jumping on and off the “education” wagon for all kinds of new certifications, designations, etc… but, we also should be looking closely at our revenue streams and ensuring that REO…in all it’s forms….isn’t the sole majority of our income. Truth be told, in this political climate, it’s just too risky.

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How to Buy Investment Properties with an IRA - Step by Step (Part 4 of 4)

Using a self-directed IRA to buy real estate is a sound investment strategy for many people. The ability to buy assets that can provide strong returns is appealing to a wide range of people. Listed below are the basic steps necessary to buy a property in compliance with the IRS rules governing the use of an IRA account.

photo credit: roberthuffstutter via photopin cc
photo credit: roberthuffstutter via photopin cc

1. Contact a financial firm that has experience with self-directed IRA’s. Working with a firm that is familiar with these accounts and the real estate transactions is the most important step.

2. Understand the IRS rules. A property bought via the IRA must be an investment home. Second homes, vacation homes and primary residences are strictly prohibited. Furthermore, distributions from the account are not allowed until the owner of the IRA is at least 59 ½

3. Deposit funds into the account. One of the important rules about buying property with an IRA is that all funds for the purchase as well as any other expenses has to come directly from the IRA. The owner cannot chip in extra money to help cover property tax or replacing the roof, in example.

4. All revenue received on the property must be deposited to the IRA account. The revenue cannot be given to the IRA owner or relatives.

5. Take time to preview multiple properties. It is wise to enlist the assistance of a real estate agent who has knowledge with these types of transactions. An agent can recommend properties in areas that have strong rental history. Furthermore, the agent can help calculate the return on investment based on average rent payments for the area.

6. Once you have picked out an investment property it is time to put down an offer. Contact the custodian for your IRA account and tell them you want to buy a property. The custodian will then fill out the necessary forms and sign all real estate documents on the behalf of your IRA account.

7. It is a wise idea to get a contract with a property manager to handle the finances of the property. This will prevent you from collecting the rent payments and making any necessary repairs yourself. A property manager can keep all the transactions clean and legal and free you from the headache of property management.

It is important to understand the rules concerning using an IRA to buy and manage real estate investments. Failing to follow the rules can lead to penalties and possibly loss of the tax advantages associated with an IRA account. When in doubt consult a tax professional before making any decision or transaction with the IRA funds.

This is Part 4 of a 4 Part Series.

Part 1: How a Realtor® can help you invest in your IRA

Part 2: Purchasing Investment Properties for your IRA

Part 3: How to invest in real estate using an IRA

Part 4: Step by Step Guide to Buying Homes with your IRA

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How to Auto-Post Your Blog to REO Pro

Want to promote your ActiveRain, Twitter, WordPress or other blog on REO Pro? Want to do it automatically? Here's how:

 

You can build readership for your ActiveRain or other blog by adding the RSS feed to REO Pro. It'll automatically get posted on all of your REO Pro blog & discussion posts, which is good for the search engines and also great for building readership. Also, it will update automatically with your latest stories as soon as you post them!

 

First, find the RSS feed you want to add. In this case, since the URL for my ActiveRain blog is "http://activerain.com/blogs/timventura", then my RSS feed for ActiveRain is "http://activerain.com/blogs/timventura/rss".

 

Feeling confused? Here's an easier way to find it: You've got an ActiveRain user name, right? Mine is "timventura". Well, replace the capital letters in the following url and that's your ActiveRain RSS feed: http://activerain.com/blogs/USERNAME/rss

 

Test this URL to make sure it shows a valid page, and then copy URL for your RSS feed to notepad, or write it down so you don't forget it. Don't use ActiveRain? I'll give you some more example feeds you can use below.

 

Second, login to REO Pro, then go to the "My Page" link in the main menu bar. This takes you to your profile page - this shows your picture & vital stats on the top left hand corner of the page, and shows all your user profile info in the middle of the page. My profile page is here: http://reopro.ning.com/profile/TimVentura - so you're looking for a page that looks similar to this one.

 

On your profile page, scroll down, down down - and look for a box called "RSS" on the left-hand side of the page. It's right above the "Gifts Received" Box, and looks like the picture below. Click the "Edit" button once you find it.

4359178749?profile=original

 

Third, enter a name for your feed into the "Title" box, and then paste your RSS feed URL into the "URL" box. Click "save" and you're done! It may take a moment to show up, but if it doesn't show up with a list of stories, then you might want to test your RSS feed here. If the stories DO show up, then congratulations - you're all done!

 

4359178886?profile=original

 

Here's a bonus: AFTER you've clicked save, you can click the "+Add RSS" link again and add a second feed to your profile! That might require showing a fewer number of stories per feed, but it lets you add stories from multiple sources to build readership for all your writing.

 

Some Useful RSS Feeds:

Replace the capital letters with your own specific information, and make sure to test your feed here if it doesn't seem to be working.

 

Twitter: https://api.twitter.com/1/statuses/user_timeline.rss?screen_name=USERNAME

ActiveRain: http://activerain.com/blogs/USERNAME/rss

YouTube: https://gdata.youtube.com/feeds/api/users/USERNAME/uploads

WordPress: http://www.MYWEBSITE.com/feed

Other Feeds: Click here to see directions for lots of other feeds, including Facebook.

 

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Working with Non-Profits to Generate Short Sale Leads.

After my last two blogs.... (See Links Below)....

http://reopro.ning.com/profiles/blogs/the-liability-of-a-preferred-short-sale-agent

http://reopro.ning.com/profiles/blogs/the-short-sale-tsunami

I had a couple request for some more information on just how I work with non-profits to actually generate a short sale lead. So, this blog will do just that. It will be a longer blog than what my readers are accustomed to but, it's going to be full of good information.

First off, I have to admit, this idea really isn't unique to me. In fact, this method was manifested between myself and a friend of mine who was already working with a home crisis center here in Tennessee. You see, they were having a problem  with helping their homeowners who didn't qualify for any modification or home rescue program they had. Most of these people just ended up going into foreclosure and as many of you know, that wasn't what this non-profit wanted to see happen. In fact, their methodology, ideology and general operating standard was to move non-qualifying persons into short sale. They, themselves saw the benefit of short sale vs foreclosure and as such, elected to move these non-qualifying persons that route. The specific problem they were having was they couldn't find competent Realtors. In fact, it had gotten so bad and they had lost so many homeowners to foreclosure, they almost gave up the entire non-profit or at the very least, was debating to just dramatically reduce the number of people they were willing to help. This is where I came into the picture. To make a long story short, we turned it around and now, it's working very well for us all and in fact, we will be dramatically expanding with the help of a local bank.

So, based on my experience, you have two schools of thought. You can either start your own 501c3 based on rescuing people from foreclosure or, you can partner with a non-profit who is already doing just that. Now, the problem you will run into is, many of these non-profits will tell you that they can't have a preferred agent list or that they can't solely recommend you and that is for the most part, true however, not in all situations.

You see, many Realtors come to these non-profits with their hands out, like little birds waiting to be feed "free" leads and as such, these non-profits get nothing back in return. In essence, they are not willing to enter into an exclusive relationship because they have no benefit ...monetarily speaking. What I ended up doing was figuring out how these people got paid and from everything I saw, the grants they got were based on the actual number of people helped so, instead of coming to them asking for a lead handout and came to them giving them a lead handout. That's right, I flipped the script, which by the way, I am told I am good at.

What I mean by flipping the scrip is, I brought them leads. What I would do is, send out post card direct mailing to at risk neighborhoods...about 1000 - 2000 post cards at a time, so I was spreading a large net and out of those leads I captured, I referred them directly to my partner non-profit. This was great for them because, it ended up bumping up the number of people they helped and in return, increased their grant money. The deal was, every lead I send you....you must send back. Now, granted, I stayed in touch with my lead...I worked it, I emailed them, I called them, asked them how the loan modification was going or how the housing counselor was working with them so, they really didn't have to "send" anything back to me but, none the less, they knew if it was a Jesse G. lead, whenever the question came up about Realtor or real estate matter, the name Jesse G. flowed from their lips like milk and honey. In their mind, they weren't referring a Realtor, because the homeowner was already working with a Realtor (ME) when they sought out their assistance to save their home. So all they were doing was stating the fact back to the client, "Your Realtor, Jesse G. can help you with that." or "We will call your Realtor Jesse G. and let him know you are ready for short sale." etc...etc.... The best part was, they were happy to do that.

Now, the benefits to working with a non-profit that is already established seems pretty obvious to me but, let's go over some of those just to make sure you and I are on the same page.

Benefit # 1: No Cost

I had absolutely no out of pocket expense to get the full benefit of a certified, designated, industry respected home rescue non-profit to help my homeowners.  This was by far the biggest benefit, it cost me nothing.

Benefit # 2: Risk Management

Honestly, short sales will always have risk to the Realtor doing them however, because I am not involved in any of the Loan Modification aspect and hence, the realization on the homeowners part that a short sale is their best option, my risk is dramatically reduced. You see, I don't find myself having conversation with homeowners as to why a short sale is the best option and that is because, they have already exhausted all their other options through the non-profit. In other words, I don't get into sticky conversations or strange situations where the homeowner may feel that I am out to just short sale and make a quick buck. This way, my risk is managed through the use of the non-profit.

Benefit # 3: Ready, Willing and Able to Short Sale

By the time the non-profit is done working with the homeowner and it's come to the fact that they will have to short sale, by this time, the homeowner is ready, willing and able to list the home. In fact, when working with a non-profit, my short sale listing average is about 97%. Yeah, that's right, 97%. This is because the homeowner is much more ready, willing and able once they have spoken to someone who doesn't have a financial interest in the sale of their home and still end up being told, you need to short sale. At this point, many homeowners see it as a no brainer. Now, granted, some just don't get it, about 5% are simply going to stay in the home, not cooperate, get foreclosed on, get an eviction notice and about 3 months later, the Sheriff and the REO Agent move all their stuff to the lawn and lock them out. This is rare but, not so rare that I haven't seen it happen. None the less, 97% of the time, I get the listing.

Benefit # 4: Banks Cooperate

Because the non-profit has already worked through the banks home rescue programs and because most of these banks have policies and procedures that benefit homeowners who work with non-profits to save their homes, these banks cooperate. In fact, most of the time, my homeowners who have worked with the non-profit almost seem to get preferred treatment from these banks in the short sale process. Now, I haven't figured out completely why but, I really think it has a lot to do with the fact that these banks are regulated to "help" homeowners and if the homeowner works with a nationally recognized non-profit, like the one I work with, all of a sudden, they look good. So, when it comes time to short sale, they have all the necessary documents, they have crossed all T's and dotted all the I's. This was by far the biggest surprise to working with a non-profit, banks cooperate with them better than they did me on my own.

Benefit #5: No Additional Commission Splits or Referral Fees or Membership Fees

Because I am generating these leads myself, through my own marketing, I don't pay anyone for being a member of this network or that network, I don't payout a referral fee, I don't additionally split my commission.....all that I make is all mine.

Benefit # 6: Additional Leads Direct from the Non-profit

After a while, the non-profit and I had lunch and we talked about helping out the leads that I didn't bring in but they end up getting on their own marketing. Now, granted, for these leads, I couldn't be their exclusive agent, they had me on a list of 2 other agents but, guess whose name was at the top of that list.......yep, it was mine. Now, granted, I had to go out and win the lead but, it wasn't hard. Now, I can't say that the non-profit talked my up because, I really don't know, I am not a part of those conversations with the homeowner but, that 97% listing ratio includes ALL leads, mine and those exclusive to the non-profit....you following me?

So, that's the jest of how I work with an existing non-profit in my area. Keep in mind, your success still depends on you and the marketing you do. Granted, my marketing is something I keep close to my chest but, if you want to learn a little more about what I use for marketing...and yes, I only use one marketing strategy right now and yes, it works well, email me directly and I will talk to you about it. No, this isn't a solicitation by the way, I will share my strategies for free, if you can do the same.

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I just heard an incredible story that I don't know is true or not but, the point the story makes is going to be a key to any aspiring REO agents success and that is what I want to talk about.

So, Lisa the REO Listing Agent calls me wanting to know if I had ever heard of Rodger the REO Expert. I told Lisa yes, I had heard of Rodger. She stops me mid sentence and ask me if I think he is any good. I wasn't sure exactly what she was referring to so I asked her, good at what? Lisa tells me that Rodger is selling a program where he can get you into REO Bank of North America and he only charges $20,000.00.

After I picked up my chin from the floor I started laughing, it's only $20,000.00, I would charge more than that....I thought to myself. She asked me why I was laughing and I asked her, if Rodger guaranteed she would make her money back. She said on yeah, he told me he could get me in to REO Bank of North America in a couple of months when I join him and a representative of REO Bank at the conference in Dallas later in July. So, I asked her, did he give you that guarantee in writing? She said no however, he was sending over documents via email. I told her to call me when she got the documents.

So, a couple days go by, I heard nothing back from Lisa so, I called her. She got the documents, she was all excited, she was finally going to be in at REO Bank of North America in just a couple of months. So, I asked her, did he give you a guarantee. She said yeah, it's right here in these documents so, I asked he if she wouldn't mind letting me look them over for her, what could it hurt, having an extra pair of eyes, right? A few minutes later, I have the agreement .....and.....well, I didn't see any guarantee.

I called her up and I was like, Lisa, Lisa, Lisa, can you tell me where the guarantee is. She says, yeah, look at page 3, first paragraph......

I read it over and I didn't see any guarantee but I did see, a statement on their commitment to doing all they can to help her get introduced to a Bank of America employee.

I explained to her, what my thoughts on the agreement were and I told her, Lisa...one part of this you are not catching is something the Bank refers to as "Business Need". The bank, regardless of how experienced, nice, bubbly, and charming you are has to have a business need in your area before they are just going to add you to their ranks. Without that, regardless of how much you pay for access, you won't get in. Well, she just didn't want to hear that. Rodger the REO Expert had this big, nice agreement, had a nice car, was at all the conventions speaking, he had to have the inside scoop. In fact, Rodger even gave her references of others he had helped, 2 in fact. So, against my advice, off to the races she went. Paid the $20,000...all up front and now we are about 8 months down the road and she still isn't a REO Listing Agent...with anyone, Rodger is telling her that he is going to shop her out to a couple other banks.

Needless to say, she is beyond pissed off, that $20,000 she paid was her 401k she cashed out and here we are in the midst of tax season and she doesn't have the money to pay the penalty. She can't do much about Rodger, the agreement she signed was very clear and specific, all he was doing was selling access to one person....one bank and if that didn't work out...for whatever the reason, he would shop her around to others.

I guess she got what she paid for.

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What it takes to be a REO Listing Agent.

 

Here recently, my business has been going well enough that I am now at the point that I need to start looking at expanding the task I complete to another agent.....a co-list agent. In thinking about this, I did have a agent in mind however, I am not exactly sure he is a good fit for what it takes to do the things I do. That got me to wondering, what exactly do I do? Yes, that may seem like a silly question but, it got me to wondering even further about what exactly it takes to be a REO Listing Agent and thus, this blog.

So, before we get to talking about the day to day task, let's talk about some larger concepts that need to be realized by any REO Listing Agent.

First off, let's talk about commitment. Yeah, yeah, you know what commitment means but, how many of you actually put it in to practice daily. I suspect that many of us have so many commitments that sometimes we feel overwhelmed and can't actually get to all of our commitments in a day. In these cases where we put our commitments off till tomorrow because today was so busy, I have to stop and ask you, is what you put off till tomorrow really a commitment? To me, it sounds more like a obligation but, nothing like a commitment. The way I distinguish a commitment from an obligation is by using a time line. More specifically, if my Asset Manager gives me a task and says they need it completed in 48 hours or less, I am committed in that I no longer have the option to complete the task in 48 hours and 1 second later. This is different to me from an obligation because in my mind, an obligation doesn't have a timeline...a deadline. I am obligated to do something but, I can do it in my time....hence, my difference between a commitment and a obligation. In other words, are you committed to doing the task at hand in the time provided, regardless of other obligations you may have? If you are not because of priorities, ie.....I can't complete the assigned task because I have to pick up my child from school, then I would tell you that you may want to reconsider being a REO Listing Agent. At least my Asset Managers are looking for commitment from me and that means when they tell me at 3pm on Friday that they need a monthly marketing report completed no later than 4pm the same day.....it gets done because I am committed.

Secondly, let's have a discussion about priorities. Once again, I know you know what a priority is however, do you prioritize daily? Of course you do, we all do however, the better question is, are you prioritizing your commitments correctly. You see, many of us don't and it's not because we don't know how, it's because in many ways we have too many obligations. For example, I have a priority in my life to spend more time with my family however, that priority doesn't out weight my priority to my clients. Yeah, you heard me correctly, I said it, my family isn't a greater priority than my clients. Pick your jaw up off the floor and breathe. If you are going to be a REO Listing Agent, you need to know that your clients needs and priorities are more important than yours. As such, your clients priorities will always trump yours. For many of you, this is a problem because when I said that my client takes priority over my family, I am sure a lot of you bristled at the idea and some of you may have even said, HELL NO! It's for this very reason that you will not make a great REO Agent. Why? Because people like me will be ready to pick up your slack, show your Asset Manager that we are committed and that they are a great priority in our daily lives. Now, put yourself in your Asset Managers shoes, who would you want to work with? That's what I thought.

Thirdly, let's talk about balance. Believe it or not, you can be fully committed and, have proper priorities and still keep your life in balance. It's not easy....let's be real, it's almost impossible but, it can be achieved. You can give your client all they need....and more, as well as complete the task of other commitments, obligations , and or priorities. What does it take on your part? An incredible amount of attention to details, planning ahead, open dialogue with others, understanding your own limitations and most importantly, knowing when to ask for help. For me, balance is achieved by having the right people around me who share in the heavy burden that being a REO Listing Agent is. Team work is the only way a single person can achieve being a REO Listing Agent who close multiple millions of dollars in deals a year. Now, not all of us have the inventory on hand that would require us to have a team but, if you aren't there yet in your business, trust me, when it comes, this may be the most important thing you take away from this blog and that is Team Work.

Finally, I could go on with this blog and talk about trust, task, following instructions, etc...etc...etc... however, I have a sneaking suspension that for many of you, you never got past the second point I made....lol

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Clear Capital Rocks

With all that is said negatively about BPO Mills I wanted to send a shout out to Clear Capital.  Not only do they pay a fair fee for their service they pay quickly.  I did three BPO's for them recently and got a check for all three within about 10-14 days.  If they can do it why can't the others?  I often wait for 60 days.  Personally I think many of these companies are living on the float like a famous one last year that went under owing hundreds of thousands of dollars to agents all over the US.  They sent out a "we are so sorry" blast email stating they were "just behind" and promised to get us all caught up only to never be seen or heard from again.  Be careful out there you guys if a BPO company owes you too much money you may never see a dime of it so make sure you check with all here to make sure they are legit.  The list provided on REOPRO is the most reliable one I use. Also be sure to Google them to see if any other agents complained about non payment, and please for goodness sakes NEVER pay to get on their prefered platinum certified list it is always a scam.
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Here lately, I have noticed a lot of AMP binding the hands of their AM's with policies that come down from upon high. One policy in particular just absolutely amazes me and that is, always counter first with the list price.

Believe it or not, I have been told, witnessed and experienced some AMPs that are telling their AM that their first counter must be at list price. I know....you are taken back because, as experienced agents, we know that this policy is in many instances an immediate reject by the buyer. There in is the problem.

You see, I have had several AMs tell me, we can and will negotiate but, we can't do that till we have satisfied the policy that we must first counter with list price. Ok...so, does that mean I can tell the buyer's agent to ignore the first counter?

People expect to haggle and when you counter at list....on the first counter....or any counter for that matter, it appears you aren't going to haggle so, instead of staying in the fight, the buyer walks. The reality is, competition for homes isn't happening and if it is, the property is well priced or highly desirable and with as much inventory on the market...I would say it's likely well priced. None the less, the days of a seller playing hard ball for the sake of playing are over.

For the AMP policy makers, let me give you some good advice..........STOP RESTRICTING YOUR AMs. If your AM team isn't good enough to haggle on their own without you making some silly policy, then fire them and get you some new ones.

Yeah...yeah, I am sure the hate mail is going to flow on this post but, the reality is, between the experienced Realtor and the experienced AM, you should be able to get FMV (FAIR MARKET VALUE) and if you are not.....stop and ask yourself why. If you think the answer is that you need to add policies to tell direct your AMs reaction or to show them how they should be doing their job, then I have to ask....are you sure you got the right AM? Are you sure you got the right Realtor? Better yet, are you sure you got the right BPO / Appraisal?

Let's start having an honest discussion on why you can't get an offer at your list price before you start thinking you need to tie the hands of your liquidation team.

Just a thought.

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I have been doing short sales for about 3 years, I have seen a lot but I am still learning. I known that banks sometimes might denied a short sale in the following cases:

  • 80/20 they can agree on how much each one is getting, sometimes the 2nd mortgage wants more than what the first mortgage is willing to approve.
  • Contract price is too low or property is so ugly and has to many issues that no one is interested to pay what the bank has approved.
  • Too many liens on the property and bank wants seller to pay for all or some of them and seller doesn't have the money to do it.
  • Strategic short sale, the homeowner is comfortable making payments but because they are upside down they want to sell, but there is no real hardship.

 ar131301136680891.jpg

This is the new one. Homeowner bough property with FHA loan back in 2007, got married and move out of the house and rented the property from 2008 to 2009. Husband loss his job and they moved back to the house in 2010. She was denied a loan modification, Wells Fargo send her a letter advising her to short sale the house. Then when I sent the concent for the bank to release information to me, they told me that FHA rejected the short sale because she used the house as a rental for a period of time and that she can't even do a deed in leiu.

We learn something new everyday.

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AIG tries to payback the bailout money and the fed says no?

Federal Reserve Bank of New York and BlackRock (BLK: 196.10 -0.95%) sold $1.3 billion of subprime mortgage bonds the Federal Reserve acquired from AIG upon bailing out the insurer three years ago.

The sale of the bonds came after the Fedearl Reserve rejected a bid from AIG to repurchase all of the assets in the Maiden Lane II portfolio for $15.7 billion.

 Richard Fisher, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, said the central bank's "duty is to get the best returns on any investment and to do that in a responsible way."

 According to the Fed's website, it announced an offering of $1.5 billion in former AIG securities assets this week.

The Fed chose to have BlackRock sell the assets off in smaller pieces under the notion it would produce a higher profit for taxpayers.

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To Brag or Not To Brag

First off, let's all agree that at some point in some random conversation with some random person, we have all done it. We have all bragged about our success but, to be arrogant and bragging....well, it's stomach turning.

 

I just got off the phone with a local agent who wanted to know the status of one of my short sale listings. Well, if you are an avid reader of my blogs, you know....i don't play that game so, I asked her specifically what she would like to know.

 

Instead of asking me a question she proceeds to tell me how she doesn't like showing Bank of America short sale listings. Because I didn't hear any question in her statement, this strange awkward silence fell onto the conversation like a lead balloon and then she pipes up and ask, "are you still there?"

 

I replied, "yes, I was waiting for your question." Ok.....maybe it was a smart ass response but, I knew what she was wanting to know and, to be honest, I didn't and will not provide that information so, unless you specifically ask, I am not going to volunteer it. Anyways, she asked, "Is this with Bank of America". I honestly replied with a "I don't know" because at that specific time, I didn't. You see, I have over 25 listings currently, all in different stages of sale and it's not practical or even within my ability to know details on every single file just off the top of my head.....that's why I have files.

 

So, she huffed...just like a little girl who has been told she can't have another cookie from the cookie jar...she actually huffed, I heard her huff. Well, this action on her part almost caused me to go into a death spiral of laughter but, I held back...with a tear in my eye, it was hilarious.

 

She then asked me how it was possible that I didn't know. Ok.....well, the thought crossed my brow like a news ticker in times square, "WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?" but, I didn't say that because, I am sooo above that...right?

 

Anyways, I answered her question, "I have 25 listings at the moment and my buyer's team is handling over 100 leads so, for me to keep track of every file off the top of my head isn't practical." Yes, I was a bit snobby when I replied but, who the hell does she think she is to ask such a question?

 

She then replies with an arrogant and condescending, "Well that must be nice?" Not sure if that was a statement or a question, I replied, "It is."

 

After this point, her tone changed and she started talking in some weird alien language that i couldn't understand. It's that same tone your mother or wife uses when they are just about to hit their stride with nagging you about everything you didn't get done over the weekend. Women, just a word of advice, when working or dealing with a man, if you manage to hit that magical, nerve wrecking, skin crawling, hateful thought evoking tone, we men....even us "non-traditional" men.....SHUT DOWN! At that point, nothing you say is being heard or even understood so, go...take a nape, wax your upper lip, shave your pits....do whatever it is you do and then come back when you can talk more reasonably. Just a thought.

 

Now, I can't really recall what she was saying but, I did hear some key words. They were,"don't like Bank of America, takes too long, my clients don't have a year to wait" so, i got the idea and I interrupted her and informed her that even if the property was with Bank of America, with Equator and the new style of customer service in Bank of America's Short Sale Department, no reason why we couldn't get a deal done in 60 days or even less.

 

She then seems to have ignored everything I said, I guess women have a tone threshold as well, and started telling me that she knows all about Equator and that Bank of America called her once to offer her to be a agent for them and she turned them down.

 

Ok, for those of you REO agents who are experienced...or maybe not even ever sold a REO, if Bank of America calls you to offer you a job to list their assets and you turn them down either you are an absolute fool or you are just an absolute idiot.

 

At this point, I knew this woman had no clue, she just wanted to waste my time with her stories of how she knows all about short sales and I realized that she had no clue who she was talking to.

 

Yes, I had to brag a bit at the end....did you catch that?

 

Stay Safe, Stay Funny and don't forget to be Fabuloustastic!

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What does it take?

With a new year, comes a fresh group of REO Agent hopefuls, scratching at the door of the industry ready to eat their own just to get that first listing. With this feeding frenzy comes all the questions like, “How do I get my first REO?”

Almost like tradition, each year I have tried to write a blog answering just that question yet, I don’t find myself invited as a keynote speaker to any conference, or quoted in anyone else’s blog or better yet, asked for my advice on some cable television news network yet, here I am, writing away and sometimes, I feel it’s into oblivion.

None the less, let’s sit down together for just a moment and discuss what it really takes for an Agent to get that first REO listing.

Now, before I share the secret to my success, we need to build up the reader with suspense and excitement. One way you can accomplish this is by talking circles around the actual answer causing the reader to build excitement through the anticipation. The reader begins to wonder will the next line hold the secret but, of course, we have to let the reader down and say something that leads the reader on another path, which may seem far away from the answer. Just another way to build up excitement, ooooh I just love this, don’t you?

Well of course, let’s remember what the REO industry is. We need to understand that the REO Industry is all about money. Yeah, yeah, you most likely already know that but, what you don’t know and why you keep reading is because you don’t realize that the REO Industry is all about MONEY!

Ok, that last paragraph may sound a bit silly but, let me explain. Many of these Asset Management companies see these vacant properties not as vacant properties but as non-performing assets. We call them that because when we say “assets” it reminds people that the vacant house isn’t just a vacant house, it directly represents a dollar amount, money. It keeps it real for us.

Let me ask you a question, who would you trust with your money? Seriously…..think about it for just a second, who can you actually trust with your social security number, your pin, banking account numbers, credit cards, debit cards (for those of us getting out of debt), etc…? Many of us may be able to answer that question with just one or two names. I bet most of you would say spouse and possibly your parents, that would be it……no one else? Why not? Ok…..I know that answer and you do to, it’s a rhetorical question. We don’t trust anyone with our money because it’s our money. That is the exact same mentality of the REO Industry and if you haven’t clued in to that yet, that is likely why you are still waiting for your first REO. Maybe I am being a bit harsh and cruel, maybe I have upset your sensibilities but, you asked and more importantly you continued to read this blog. J

Ok, so now, let’s move from the metaphorical to the realistic and ask another question, a more appropriate question and that is, “How do I get a Asset Management company to trust me with their money?”

Now, it’s important that you understand something, every single agent who currently has REO inventory can answer this question differently. This phenomenon is because, most of us got into the business uniquely. Truth be told, very few us got in just because we were selected from a list of random applicants with shiny resumes that smelled like Chanel and were written on pink paper (name the movie if you can?) It’s true, some REO agents can regale you with stories about how they just got a random call from Joe Schmoe Asset Manager Extrodinare however, most of us, I guess about 90% of us, are going to have a much more interesting story about how we met an Asset Manager at a conference or were referred to one by a friend or….something like that.

Ok, this blog it getting to be a bit longer than ususal so, let me cut to the chase. I know my readers and they are already wondering why I have taken so long to just get to the damn point already…..aren’t you?

If I have said it once, I have said it a thousand times…..it’s Networking!

Ok, so the secret wasn’t so much a secret after all but, let me explain why so many of you aren’t working your Networks, building your Networks, making your Networks successful for yourselves.

First off, when you get up in the morning, you aren’t thinking about writing a blog, your thinking of getting the kids washed, fed and off to school, the husband / wife up, washed and off to work, yourself 1 hour on the treadmill, wash, fed and off to the office. By the time you reach the office, you are thinking of voice mail you have to return, which continuing education classes you need to take, how you are going to pay your office bill this month, explaining to that homeowner why you haven’t sold their home in 5 months or explaining to that buyer why he can’t get a loan. My humble point is, none of you make time to network or don’t have time to network or can’t network for this or that reason. This is exactly why you aren’t successful because no one important enough know you well enough to trust you with their money.

Let me say that last line once again because, I know many of you missed it.

NO ONE IMPORTANT ENOUGH KNOWS YOU WELL ENOUGH TO TRUST YOU WITH THEIR MONEY.

Granted, it’s not just that simple but, that one line drills down to a foundation that answer the question you posed earlier and that was, “How do I get my first REO listing?”

I have written many….many blogs on how to network, where to network, when to network, what to say, what not to say and, still….I look back at some of my blogs and I see it appears they have been lost to the vastness of the blogosphere. Better yet, I get the wonderful question from the “default professional” who just joined REOPro and says, “How do I get a REO listing?”

Dear God, was I the first email you wrote on this network, was I the first name you saw, did you even bother to read some……3…..2…..or at least 1 blog?

No, you most likely didn’t, you most likely saw that I owned the network, assumed I was a fount of free flowing information, thought you would be bold and a go getter, sat down at your desk and wrote me a one line email, “How do I get my first REO listing?”

Let me just say, you would not be one I would trust with my money…..why on God’s green Earth would any Asset Manger trust you with his?

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This week’s Ask the AM really spurred me into action. I hear moans and groans all the time from agent s who just don’t like social networking. They gripe about how time consuming it is or they were never successful or, it’s too monotonous, or……….whatever else and all I got to say is, SO BAD, SO SAD, AINT YOU GLAD YOUR MOMA AINT YOUR DAD!

As Ned points out in the article, someone is using Social Networking and taking your business. This mysterious agent has become savvy enough to create a LinkedIn profile or Facebook page and is now using it with maximum force.

You see, while your setting back, accepting those listing assignments, this mysterious agent is sharing tweets or swapping emails or learning about your Asset Manager’s terrible weekend because they lost their dog Sparky (thanks Ned). Before you know it, this agent and your Asset Manager are developing a friendship vs. a business relationship. So, when the next assignment get sent out, who do you think is going to get it?

Granted, I know social networks take time to create…..I created REOPro for goodness sake however, I can’t stress to each of you, your lack of involvement is at your own detriment. Now, you may never have a social network of a thousand or more or ever have a goal to reach twenty five thousand but, a well oiled social network of a few hundred and make a huge difference.

Here is the stark cold truth. Asset Managers are loosing their jobs, getting re-assigned or simply dropping out and all this is happening because the business is changing so, what do you think these Asset Managers are doing when they are no longer Asset Managers? Well, let me tell you, they are getting real estate licenses and taking over territories for their friends back at the Bank or Asset Management Companies. My point is, if you aren’t on a first name basis, dirty joke telling, birthday card sending, meet up at the conference having drinks relationship………………..someone else is or is trying to be.

Now, as many of you know, I try to adhere to a high standard of morals and ethics so, don’t misconstrue what I am trying to say. No, you don’t go put in hardwood floors at your Asset Manager’s vacation home or send them a Visa Gift Card worth $5,000.00 to their P.O. Box , hopefully if you did they would refuse it but, you do call them regularly if nothing more to just shoot the breeze or say “Hi”.

Let me put this another way, hopefully it will ring true to you. REOPro currently has over 18,000 invites to join our network that are outstanding. In other words, these are members who downloaded their address books in to our system and REOPro system each person an invite to join. By now, we should have blown though our goal of 25,000 member however, I am still only getting maybe 15-20 new members a day. This is contributable to the fact that many of the people who received an invite never got a follow up saying, “check out this network”. Social networking is a lot like that follow up. If you don’t follow up and say “Hi” or learn about people, then why would anyone want to invest in you?

I will leave you with a quote, who it came from, I have no idea but, here it is…….

“A lead will make you some money, a follow up will make you rich”, I like to change that around a bit and say……

“A lead will make you some money, a active social network will ensure your kids don’t have to work”

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As of July 1, 2010 PNC REO is using offersubmission.com for buyer agent's to submit offers directly to asset manager, by passing the listing agents. I think this will bring more transparency to transactions. With this buyer's agents wont blame LA for not presenting offers, and they will be responsible to submit a complete offer. in the other hand the buyer must pay $300 at closing for the service. This will definitely expedite the offers and counteroffers, and will level the playing field for buyer and their agents. I will keep you posted how it works for me soon.



The good:


To the Listing Agent:

  • No more wasted time receiving, entering and submitting unacceptable offers on behalf of other agents
  • No more telephone calls from cooperating agents seeking status of offers.
  • Reduced paperwork
  • You will still see all of the offers received on your listings in real-time, and you will always know what offers have been accepted, rejected or countered.
  • Increased marketability of properties for faster sales and quicker commissions.
  • The only offer you ever need to deal with is an accepted offer.

To the Buyer’s Agent:

  • Agents receive an immediate confirmation that their offer has been received 7 days a week, 24 hours a day.
  • Agents receive notification of acceptance/rejection or a counter-offer by the next business day.
  • Buyer’s Agents negotiate online directly with a decision-maker for the selling financial institution.
  • Agents can include comments regarding the property or the buyer and be assured that the decision-maker considers them when evaluating the offer.
  • Agents download all of the required addendums themselves once an offer has been accepted. :


BUYER PAYS $300 FEE AT CLOSING


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