I couldn't believe the high level of professionalism and quick turnover time with a recent short sale negotiation from National City. In less than 3 weeks of recieving the package the mitigator faxed us a near unbelievable response letter.

This was a second mortgage of $100,000 and they settled at $8,000!!!

In brief the house was once appraised for $410,000 back in 2005. In 05 the owners refi'd to pull out $100K in cash. Meanwhile, they had a first mortgage through BOA for approx. $280K.

Today the home has dropped value but can sell at a quick sale price of $315K. We are still waiting for a response from BOA on the first mortgage short sale negotiation but even if they dont budge I think we did the homeowner well by knocking off $92,000 in debt to National City.

Please share your experience with a 1st mortgage company like BOA accepting a short sale after the 2nd mortgage company folded like a beach chair?

Anthony

This post is actually a modified comment that I made on David Britt’s blog, http://activerain.com/blogs/dbritt.

You must read David’s blog post!

David’s post and Fred’s comment on the post addresses an important and disenchanting issue in the realm of pre-foreclosures, foreclosures, and REO property.

David’s post should be read by anyone considering becoming a member to any one of the many guru-esque foreclosure websites.

It is true, preforeclosures, foreclosures, and bank owned, is all the buzz right now and the consumer must exercise caution when putting down their credit card information.

I was regional director for www.jerseypreforeclosures.com and one of the toughest hurdles I have when marketing clients was to overcome the bad experiences many investors, mortgage brokers, and Realtors previously had with similar websites. 

When shopping for a preforeclosure website membership please consider the following points:

 1. What does “up to date” preforeclosure data really mean? Compare their data with what you can get for free at the local courthouse or on the county website. The data available on the preforeclosure website should be as fresh as what you would find in the local courthouse that very day. Request a trial membership that is really free, no commitments, no ridiculous cancellation policy, and no charges at all to your credit card.

2. Make sure to ask what types of lis pendens will be posted? You are not interested in irrelevant lis pendens files such as mechanics liens, dog bites, petty lawsuits, etc. Most sites do not make this distinction and what ends up happening is that the subscriber ends up wasting money and time on marketing to homeowners who are actually NOT in distress. 20% of lis pendens filed are not relevant to foreclosure proceedings.

3. Ask about forwarding addresses? Many homeowners in default move and leave their distressed home vacant other times the distressed home is a rental home. You want both the home address and the forwarding address so your marketing efforts will reach the homeowner.

4. Ask if you will be receiving the homeowners phone number? This info is readily available and should be offered by every preforeclosure data providing service. If they don’t offer it you have to wonder why not. 

5. Is the data available to download into Excel? This is crucial to your direct mail program. If you have to waste your time extracting the data yourself you could be losing your marketing position. 

6. Is the company locally based, will you ever actually meet a company representative? What happens when you need customer support? Make sure to find out this process ahead of time?

7. What are the costs? Some websites charge upfront fees, cancellation fee’s, and/or large annual membership fees. Also, some websites charge what appears to be a small amount of money per month but they only offer basic information; if you want more detailed information you must pay extra. Other websites charge upwards of $20 per county per month. In New Jersey we have 21 counties think about the cost if you wanted all 21.

I hope this information helps. Please feel free to contact me just to consult in general even if your from another state. In about 20 minutes I can explain to you what it took me about 5 years to learn.

Sincerely Yours,

Anthony

In short, my main suggestion is to print out a map from Google of where you live and draw a 1 square mile box around it, this box will represent your farm territory.  Get to know this 1 square mile like the back of your hand and make sure this 1 square mile knows you. Research it from top to bottom. Build rapport with everyone!

Long drawn out...if you have the time version:

General contacts: Talk to everyone about what you do including the US postal workers, crossing guards, UPS/FEDEX guys as these people seem to know everything going on locally. Right now everyone wants to “yap yap yap” about the foreclosure buzz so talk to them—and pass them your business card! Go to your local sheriffs sale auctions and get to know the players. Who are the regulars—these guys could be your buyers on the back end. If you specialize in the preforeclosure market you are different…your not the average agent selling the same bag of tricks anymore.

Residential: You must track all real estate activity in your square mile because your goal is to be the go to person for your farm market—nobody should know more than you. Plot out all homes that are listed through a traditional agency/brokerage (track data such as: how many days on the market, how many expired, average sq. footage, difference between asking price and sale price, concessions, etc.), plot all FSBO’s, plot all homes using budget-non full service listing companies (these guys usually end up on my website as preforeclosures), plot any new construction going on, plot property looking distressed and/or abandoned, but most importantly for you must plot the homes coming up as in default. The preforeclosure/notice of default category will be your most motivated seller in your farm territory…websites like www.njlispendens.com are good sources for preforeclosure/notice of default data.

Commercial: Talk to all business owners and find out how you might be of service to them. Tell them that you work the preforeclosure market and that you specialize in working with homeowners facing foreclosure. Give them data on how many preforeclosures have been filed so far this year in town, this will generate conversation. Tell them you can help sell houses even if the amount owed is more than the value or if repair costs exceed the homes value. They will listen, and in turn they very well might tell you about their Aunt Peggy Sue who cant seem to make a mortgage payment and needs to sell.

Remember right now, everyone wants to talk about preforeclosures. Visit all mortgage companies, lending institutions, credit counseling service agencies, attorney specializing in divorce, probate, and even bankruptcy and tell them to refer difficult clients to you. Also visit all your competition to tell them to refer their preforeclosure clients to you (remember, most agents do not know what to do with people in preforeclosure and especially if they need a short sale done, even attorneys don’t know how to do these).

Anthony

anthonyh@gardenstateinvestors.com

Since I began posting on activerain I have become quite busy with emails, and calls about the preforeclosure market. Its clear that licensed agents want to gain knowledge on the subject from a practical source not from a philosophical point of view. This is great for me because it means that the buzz must be out there that the preforeclosure market is “the next best thing” in real estate. While I am thankful to the activerain network and its members for the increased business I am very surprised to find out about all the inaccurate and downright false information there is out there about the preforeclosure market. I would say 70% of the agents who contact me really do not understand this market at all.

I hope to be a source of accurate knowledge on the subject of pre-foreclosures and how this market is a legitimate source of business for licensed real estate agents. This market is so full that its needs simply can not be met.

Problem: My personal statistics indicate that out of 10 contacts I receive about 3 only partially understand preforeclosures from a book smart point of view and only about 1 of 10 tell me that they actively work with distressed homeowners everyday.

In New Jersey we are on track to hit about 50,000 foreclosures by the end of 2008! Think: 4 preforeclosure deals this year (1 per quarter) can yield about $18,000 considering the current average sellers agent commission according to the NAR is about $4,500. Why would anyone turn their back on that whopping sum? Worst case scenario you will need to short sell all 4 properties…is completing 4 short sales per year not worth an extra 18K?

My plea: We all must stay current with the times if we expect to be most effective in the preforeclosure aspect of the real estate field. How many agents are really ready to learn short sale transactions and specialize in what is now more commonly known as “the pre-foreclosure” market?  At the rapidly climbing rate of foreclosure filings in my state I wonder if soon we will be left without a choice.

In conclusion, I can not think of a better resource to gain this preforeclosure training than right here on the activerain network. I have personally found several real estate agents on this amazing board that practice working the preforeclosure market everyday across the entire nation. I urge anyone interested in the preforeclosure market to reach out to these people.

Anthony

Let me preface this by saying that even though New Jersey allows for deficiency judgments the state statute actually frowns upon deficiency judgments. Consider the case law below. Correct me if I am wrong but the majority of mortgage companies provide for short sales it appears because they would rather cut their losses up front and they would rather be in accord with NJ's feeling on collecting deficiency judgments from a default borrower. However, some institutions like IMB seem to frown on Short Sales and it looks like they are placing deficiency judgments on default homeowners once the foreclosure proceedings are over. I have heard from some of my partners that they actually have an anti short sale policy. 

I am also hearing that a number of New Jersey courts are now refusing to confirm the foreclosure sale unless the lender agrees, as part of the confirmation, not to sue the borrower for a deficiency greater than the difference between the fair market value and the balance owed on the loan.

Also, consider N.J.S. 2A:50-1. which forbids a personal deficiency judgment in a foreclosure action.  A foreclosure proceeding is an action quasi in rem; the relief granted is against the land itself.  Usbe B. & L. Assn v. Ocean Pier Realty Corp., 112 N.J. Eq. 580, 582 (Ch. 1933).  An action on a note [or bond] is in personam.  Ehnes v. King, 41 N.J. Super. 429, 433 (App. Div. 1956).  A foreclosure judgment is res judicata as to the amount of the debt, 79-83 Thirteenth Ave., Ltd. v. DeMarco, 79 N.J. Super. 47, 55 (Law Div. 1963), aff'd 83 N.J. Super. 497 (App. Div. 1964), aff'd 44 N.J. 525 (1965), but not as to the defendant's liability for any deficiency.  Weiss v. Pelton, 132 N.J. Eq. 248, 249-250 (Ch. 1942).

Thoughts on IndyMac Bank?

Feedback on NJ’s position on deficiency judgments?

Anyone else picking up a correlation here?

Real estate investor glossary of terms:

Preforeclosure sale: Buying a property in preforeclosure involves approaching the borrower or homeowner and offering to buy the property outright. The borrower/owner can walk away with the equity in the property and avoid a foreclosure or sometimes a “charge back” on his/her credit report. The buyer has time to research the title and condition of the property. Often times a buyer can purchase a home in preforeclosure for at least 15-20% below market value, conservatively. In rare cases buyers can realize discounts of 40-50% below market value.

In many cases, homes in preforeclosure are left in deplorable condition due to the financial state of the borrower/owner. Also, often times borrowers/owners in preforeclosure are not inclined to work with investors, bankers, or real estate agents until days before the actual sheriffs sale.

Even worse is when the borrower/owner leaves the property vacant. I have observed homes stripped of anything and everything worth selling. 

My next few posts will be entries to a glossary of useful real estate investor terms. Please feel free to add terms, comment on definitions, and/or give examples. As always I welcome constructive feedback.

Lis penden:

(1) Latin for "a suit pending." The term may refer to ANY pending lawsuit. (2) A written notice that a lawsuit has been filed concerning real estate, involving either the title to the property or a claimed ownership interest in it. The notice is usually filed in the county land records office.

    This is interesting because not all lis pendens are relevant to preforeclosure or notice of default however in many circles the terms are used synonymously. Essentially, a lis penden can be a mechanics lien or a lawsuit such as a mailman suing a homeowner over a dog bite.

    Also, note that lis penden notices are “usually” filed in the county land records office. This does not mean that they are required by law to be filed there. It also implies that not all lis penden files will be found in the county courthouse. In fact, only lis pendens in which the court requests will be found at the courthouse. So what happens to the others? Your guess is as good as mine.

I have been blogging lists of all my favorite real estate websites but these are just general websites that will help you save money so you can buy more real estate.

Enjoy!
 

http://slickdeals.net/ This is one of my personal favorites!

http://www.shoplocal.com/Default.aspx? This one works by location.

http://www.pricegrabber.com/ This one is great for cameras and other electronics

http://bluefly.com/ Top line designer clothes at huge discounts.

http://www.dealio.com/ great for TV’s

http://www.shoebuy.com/ I will only buy shoes from this website.

http://www.ebates.com/ find rebates they don’t want you to know about.

http://www.couponcabin.com/ Find coupons to stores like Kohls, Petco, Target, etc.

http://www.keycode.com/ don’t buy anything online without checking this site for a discount key code first. I have saved lots of money using this site.

http://www.couponmountain.com/ Get discounts on Dell and HP computers

http://www.couponcraze.com/ Find coupons and coupon codes for online stores

http://www.wow-coupons.com/ This is another one of my favorites..all sorts of employee discounts, coupons, and codes for just about any place that you can shop.

 Lets keep this list going...please add your discount sources.

http://www.treas.gov/auctions/irs/ IRS auctions

http://www.ustreas.gov/auctions/ US Department of Treasury auctions

http://www.hud.gov/ US Department of Housing and Urban Development

http://www.usmarshals.gov/assets/sales.htm US Marshal Auctions

http://www.bid4assets.com/storefront/index.cfm?var1=3252&level1=1&sfid=21#-3 Many states use this company to conduct their surplus property auctions

I have only used auctions once and it was to purchase land lots through a tax lien sale in Sarasota Florida. I was involved with a group of investors and I was not directly involved in the bidding process. However, we ended up winning 7 of the 30 lots that we bid on. It was worth it but it was a huge hassle to get the financing because the auction lasted over a few weeks so we won our first 4 lots early in the first week of the auction and then we won the final 3 in the last day of the auction. We wanted one loan for all 7 lots but the timing hurt us a little.

 Any experiences with auctions such as the above? Planning on it? Pros and Cons?

Please feel free to email me: anthonyh@gardenstateinvestors.com 

http://www.domania.com/ Quick property valuation tool. Its not the best but its quick and Free.

http://www.zillow.com/ The contravercial property valuator. 

http://www.doityourself.com/ If your heading into a fixer upper this is a great tool.

http://moving.move.com/move/tools/movingcalc.asp?poe=homestore This is a moving cost estimator. Pretty cool.

http://www.homeplans.com/exec/hspos/hsnet A great resource for blueprints.

http://www.forsalebyowner.com/ Not a bad place to look for clients. Many of these people are distressed homeowners.

http://letsrenovate.com/ Renovation estimator.

http://houseblogs.net/ Self explanitory

http://real-estate-law.freeadvice.com/ Free legal advice

http://www.schoolmatters.com/ Learn about local school districts

http://www.iii.org/individuals/homei/ learn about homeowners insurance

http://www.clubflyers.com/ This is the cheapest source for marketing material I have ever found! 5000 double sided glossy postcards for like $150.00

https://www.plaxo.com/ Excellent for managing your contacts. It works with Outlook. A trial is free.

http://www.creonline.com/ Wealth of real estate investor information from the practitioners point of view. Check out the message boards.

http://www.bankrate.com/ This site has a ton of free mortgage calculators on it. 

http://newjersey.craigslist.org/ I know this one is obvious to most, but you never know.

Lets add to this list. Please leave a brief description and a link to the web sources that you find helpful. 

Anthony

anthonyh@gardenstateinvestors.com