About 18 months ago I started hearing the term loan modification.  Being a Mortgage Agents, who had suffered due to the sub-prime mortgage debacle.  I was looking for a way to utilize my experience, and rebuild my income.  I sat on several webinars, where the speaker spoke of the abundance of “Riches” in this new and growing industry.  One company wanted me to pay $ 3,000.00 to learn how to be a “Loss Mitigation Specialist”.  Another wanted $ 1995.00, and yet another wanted $ 995.00 and nearly $ 400.00 per month for my supposed training and marketing website.  I steered clear of those companies and decided to start doing my own research.

 My research led to another 20 Loan modification companies that did not charge a fee to get involved.  I found one that sounded good and decided to start submitting deals to them.  I sent 3 deals in to them, however they had absolutely no customer service.  Upon submission I started calling my Account Executive to see if they had been approved.  I finally got back in touch with her 2 weeks later, only to be told   “oh they look fine now have the client make a check out to your company and then send us in our portion”.  That took me a bit off guard…as If anything with the loan mod got messed up, my companies name was on the clients check.  Not the kind of liability that I was looking for in this new found venture.

 So I continued my search and found a company that had many of the right answers for me. Believe it or not, but a GOOD Loan modification company can be worth their weight in gold to a homeowner facing foreclosure.  Problem is that 90% of the companies offering these services were Scams, Unethical or just uneducated in the area of Loan Modification.  I became a 1099 contractor with them and even built a team of brokers.  We had some very good success early on and had some successful modifications done. I even had some brokers submitting as many as 5 or more modifications per month. That is until the owner of the company got greedy and started brokering out the work to a  sub-par company.  We started getting lots of complaints from clients who had yet to hear  from a litigator after submitting their application and Fees..  Again I resumed my search and to my amazement, I found a company that appears to be doing all the right things.  They are one of the Few Loan Modification Companies still in Business in California after the Passage of Senate Bill-94.

 California Loan Modification companies are dropping like flies, however some companies are still taking on clients for residential loan modification, but the list is getting shorter each day. Between the fraudulent companies, incorrect stories in the media, and the dishonest borrower looking for hand outs.  What I mean by that is borrowers who get a satisfactory modification, and then have the gaul to ask for a refund because the Government states that they could have done the same thing for free. One company I have found is building a business model that will both benefit brokers, clients and protect themselves against frivolous lawsuits and complaints. They have succeeded in complying with every piece of legislation in California to remain in good standing with the DRE, Attorney General and even the Federal Trade Commission.  My list has now grown to nearly 295 Loan Modification Companies, representing well over 100 hours of research. The fact is that Loan Modifications can still be a great way to created added income for a displaced mortgage broker or realtor.  However it can be a nightmare for both you and your clients if you get associated with a bad loan modification company, just out to line their pockets. Because of the bad press, and regulations concerning residential modifications, I have actually moved into doing commercial modifications.  I have aligned myself with one of the top Attorney's in this area of Law in California, and his resume' is impressive.  Here are some bulletpoints of why I have moved to Commercial Mods

1. Currently there are at least $ 750 billion dollars in commercial loans initiated between 2005 and 2007 with a 5 year due date

2. Nearly $ 73 million worth of commercial real estate loans are in some level of financial distress

3. Credit Markets Remain Frozen

4. Slashing Rents, Incentive offerings, Demanding Concessions.

5.  Delinquency rates and defaults on office and retail buildings and hotels have more than doubled in just six months

6.The losses from commercial real estate loans could hit $ 53 billion, or 8.5 percent of their overall losses over the next two years.

7. Empty Storefronts, Office Buildings and Warehouse Space are great lead sources

8. No advance fee restrictions, unlike residential modifications, in fact way fewer restrictions overall

9. Our company modifies loans on a Nationwide Basis

10. Unique program available to show clients how to recoup the cost of the modification services

11. 5 to 10 times the income potential of Residential Modifications

These are just some of the reasons I am going to Concentrate on Commercial Modifications.. And with our program we can show the owners of these office buildings how they can recoup the cost of the modification thru another program exclusive to our Commercial Mod program.

Please email me and I will be happy to send you a copy of my list and the reason I created it.  I am actually looking for serious brokers looking to supplement their income doing Commercial Modifications. I still represent an ethical company for residential modifications, but that is no longer my main focus. If you are a client in need of residential modification or broker wanting to refer clients, you can find out more on the website listed below. www.homerescueprogram.net/thargreaves

 

If you would like my list of 295 loan mod companies that I researched or some information on Commercial Modifications or Both please call or email me and I will be happy to send it to you

For Brokers Commercial Loan modifications is going to be much larger deal than residential, as the demand will be higher over the next 2 years and there are no rules about up front fees.  If you would like information on referring commercial loan modifications, email me and I will send you information on the Law Firm we are using.

Thomas Hargreaves

agentshelper@gmail.com

Phone: 541-844-1830

 

Hello Active Rainer's.   For the past 14 Months I have been diligently investigating Loan Modification / Loss Mitigation companies.  The reason for my investigation has been due to the large number of Foreclosure and Loan Mod scams that I have found.  And I was wanting to add loan modification to my services.  My list became a list of 30 companies when I found the company I have been with for the past 5 months.  My list has now grown to over 295 companies throughout the United States that Offer loan modification services. I am continuing to add to the list as my hope is to keep consumers from using the many scams, unethical and uneducated loan mod companies in the marketplace.  Here is what I looked for during my research.

Type of set up - Were they backed by attorney's etc.  More did they have attorney's licensed in various states.  For instance an attorney licensed in California can not do loss mitigation for a client living in Maryland.  It has to be done by an attorney licensed in Maryland

How long have they been doing Loan Modification?   Many companies  Real Estate Firms, Debt Settlement Firms, Mortgage companies have just jumped on the bandwagon trying to offer these services.  An for the most part they have no clue what they are doing.

How willing they were to answer my questions and return my calls ( I left several messages with many of them and got NO return calls.  One even set up a conference call with me on my  conference call line and then never showed up.  Not all of them have an affiliate program.. in fact many do not.   I point out the ones with an affiliate program and ones without.

Did they have an affiliate program and what was the cost?   Many are just making money charging brokers $ 50.00 to $ 150.00 per month or large fees to become an affiliate.  (Not Necessary, as many will hire you and train you for free)  Especially the legit ones.

The cost to the consumer to go thru  the Loan Mod Process

If they did short sales along with Loan modification  (short sales are a lengthy process and do not help the client stay in the house)

if they had contracts for the clients

if they had written agreements for the affiliates

Contact names and numbers

If they had a training program.   and some other items

     I put this and other information into a spreadsheet and then listed them Good, Procede with Caution, Avoid, and those that are no longer in business, have disconnected phones, or no longer have websites.  Now this is only my opinion and anyone I send the list to is more than free to contact any of them they wish and make  their own decisions.  I spent 7 Months working for one I felt was very good and ethical, However about 5 months ago their service really started suffering.  It forced me to continue my search and led me to over 295 Loan Mod companies.  I now feel that I have found one of, if not the Best Loan Modification company in America for both Clients and Affiliates, however personally I am moving into the Commercial Mod Arena.  I still think that residential modifications have their need, and I think I found a very good company for both broekrs and clients. They are one of the fastest growing Loan Mod companies in the United States, Have a great success rate among clients. They have a company that will do a full forensic loan audit, package all the paperwork, and underwrite the deal with everything needed for a homeowner to do a modification themselves. Or they can refer the client to another company that will do all the mitigation for $ 500.00 paid at the completion of the modification.  They are transitioning and changing their business model to accomodate new legislation in the area of residential loan modification.  If you would like information on the company that I have found, send me an email and I will be happy to send you information.   Here are some of the other features with this company

1. 4 years of doing Loan Modifications

2. One of first companies in California to have advance fee agreement approved by the DRE

3. An affiliation with a proven Debt Settlement Program

4. Credit Restoration Services

5. Auto Loan Modification Program  (one of the first in the industry to offer these services)

6. Complete Online Tracking and submission

7. Replicated Websites available

8. The owner of the Company has met with members of Congress in Washington D.C. on 4 seperate occasions to talk about 3rd party loan modification services

No complaints with the DRE, Attorney General, FTC or the Better Business Bureau

I do residential loan modifications with this company, however my focus has centered towards providing Commercial Loan Modifications thru an Attorney with 25 years of transactional commercial real estate sales, aquisition and legal experience here are just some of the reasons I will be focusing on Commercial Mods

1. Currently there are nearly $ 750 billion dolars in commercial loans inititated between 2005 and 2007 with a 5 year due date.

2. Empty storefronts, Office Buildings and Warehouse space  (make for great leads)

3. Slashing commercial rents, incentive offerings, demanding concessions

4. The losses from commercial real estate loans could hit $ 53 billion, or 8.5 percent of their overall losses

    over the next 2 years.

5.  5 to 10 times the income potential for brokers than residential loan modifications

6. Overall, some $ 270 billion commercial property loans are expected to come due this year along

7. A program Unique to our company that can show the Commercial property owner how to recoup all the cost of doing the modification.

6. NO ADVANCE FEE RESTRICTIONS   Like there are with residential loan modifications

This is just a few of the many reasons.

 

The whole purpose of loan modification is to help reduce debts and help a client recover from an unexpected financial Hardship.  All of the services of the company I work with are geared toward that goal.  My goal is not necessarily to get you to work with us, but to get you to avoid working with the unethical scams that are in the marketplace.  If you want to earn an income from a pretty good loan mod company then I would be happy to hear from you.  If you just want a copy of my spreadsheet listing the 295 loan modification companies that I have researched, feel free to email me or contact me at the email and phone number listed below.  Or if you would like information on providing Commercial Modifications please email me and I will send you some information.

www.homerescueprogram.net/thargreaves    (residential loan website)

Please let me know if your interest is in residential loan mods, commercial loan mods or both

Thomas Hargreaves is a Financial Planner and Insurance Agent, And understands how education fits in to the practice of building wealth and saving taxes.  you can contact at:  Phone:  541-844-1830    email: agentshelper@gmail.com    

 

   

 

I have found a website that is absolutely incredible at educating you and your clients on your rights under the "Fair Credit Reporting Act".   The site offers a multitude of self help articles and template letters that you can send collection agencies, credit bureaus and creditors.  There really are ways for people to repair thier own credit as long as they take the time to do some research and follow up.

Here is the website and again it is  FREE!!!!

 www.creditinfocenter.com      And if you adbsolutely need someone to do the credit repair for you, they have a list of reputable credit repair companies they have researched.  You really can do alot for your own credit report on your own if you take time to learn how.  This website is a wealth of information.

Don't get conned into spending hundreds or sometimes thousands of dollars to have someone do for you what you can do on your own.  It really is not as hard to understand how as many of the credit repair companies would like you to believe

 

Thomas Hargreaves is a Financial Planner and Mortgage Broker, And understands how education fits in to the practice of building wealth and saving taxes. at:   541-844-1830    agentshelper@gmail.com     www.dreambizpro.com/tristarteamusa

     

 

   I have been researching Mortgage Modification for the past few weeks, as I want to add the services to my business.  I beleive extra income can be produced as well as great service to homeowners who have come on hard times due to the economy, job loss, divorce, Real Estate Market and various other reasons.  However I want to make sure that any company that I get involved with is both ethical and has the best interest of both myslef and potential clients.  I am compiling a spreadsheet of all of the companies that I have been researching, with the following information.

Name of company

contact name

Phone numbers

email contacts

web addresses

If they offer Affiliate programs  Yes or No

Affiliate cost to get started

approximate costs to homeowners

addresses

and some notes after speaking with marketing heads and sales people

       I will be happy to send my findings to anyone that is interested.  My list has grown to over 295 companies. I have color coded the list.  Those companies highlighted in Green are ones I beleive are good companies to work with. Those companies highlighted in yellow are ones that I would use caution in using as I have found red flags about them.  And those highlighted in Red I have found either complaints on the internet about them, or to many other redflags to feel comfortable using them.  Again it is based only on my opinion after speaking with reps of those companies and researching them on the internet.   I will also let you know what company that I chose along with a list of reasons why. I am still adding to the list.  Those interested can either call me or e.mail me.  I am sure there are many very legitimate companies to represent, as there are also many scams out there looking to make a buck on Real Estate Agents, Mortgage Agents, and Homeowners.  I only want to make sure that I am affiliated with a company that has integrity and has experience doing loan modifications and short sales.  I am also writing a report on my findings of foreclosure scams and legit foreclosure help options.  I will use it in a Free Report marketing campaign.  I beleive I found the absolute best company to work for as an affiliate.  No fee to get started like  Freedom Forclosure wants, and much better training.  Send me your request and I will be happy to send the spreadsheet to you.  Or you can check out the company I am affiliated with.  It is at the top of my list for a reason.    www.homerescueprogram.net/thargreaves        My list of Loan modification companies is the most extensive on the internet.  I have spent over 100 hours compiling it and contacting these companies to find the few that are very good and help people avoid the ones that are inexperienced or just down right scams.

Because of the enormous number of fraudulent loan mod companies, changing legislation, and sheer number of loan mod companies closing their doors, I will be focusing more on Commerical Modifications. I have chosen a company to work with and if you would like information on that company I will be happy to send it to you.. there are no advance fee restrictions for commercial modifications, and the income potential to brokers is 5 to 10 times larger than that of residential modifications.

residential loan modifications    www.homerescueprogram.net/thargreaves

Thomas Hargreaves    agentshelper@gmail.com    Phone: 541-844-1830

 

     A month or so ago I wrote a blog about another blog that I saw about a guy selling a software that creates fake paycheck stubs.  Apparently this guy is ALL OVER the internet with this software.  Now it is not against the law to make fake paychecks or paycheck stubs, for novelty use.  But it is against the law to use them to acquire a loan from a lending institution.  I have done some investigation concerning this and found out from a lawyer that if you use fake information such as "fake paycheck stubs"  to acquire a loan you are guilty of fraud.  This type of fraud can be punishable by huge fines and long term jail time.  So if you see one of this guy's website offering to sell you software to make fake paycheck stubs, beware.

     As I said selling the software is one thing, advertising the use of it to commit a felony is something else.   I even heard comments here on Active Rain by mortgage agents and realtors alike, that they would use this technique to get a client a loan.  Shameful of you people.  Well if that is what you need to do to write business then go ahead.  But BEWARE, if caught you can spend time in prison. 

 Thomas Hargreaves is an Identity Theft Expert and has attained the CITRMS Designation (Certified Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist TM) as issued by the Institute of Fraud Risk Management, and markets the ADRS  (Affirmative Defense Response System) program to Business owners concerned with identity theft as it pertains to the workplace.   For more info contact Tom at    541-844-1830  or

Visit     www.prepaidlegal.com/idt/thargreaves        thargreaves@prepaidlegal.com

I embeded my first you tube video into a blog.  I first wrote the text explaining a little about the information in the video. Then I inserted the video, but when I posted the video and went back to the blog, all the paragraphs and structure of my story had been pushed together.  Now there are NO paragraphs or indents or periods in any of the text.  How do I fix this situation.  I want all my blogs to be of some good quality, and this one now looks like a 3rd grader wrote it.  Please Help

Much is being said today about the problems with Identity Theft. Identity Theft is the fastest growing crime in the world. It is also one of the most misunderstood crimes among the general public. People I have spoken to tell me "I don't need Identity Theft Coverage" because of several of the listed excuses. I Don't have credit I Don't need credit I have bad credit My identity is not worth stealing I get my credit report once a year from annual credit report.com These and many other excuses have been told to me when either talking about Identity Theft in one of my seminars, or when marketing one of the best Identity Theft Protections to a potential client. The problem is that most people associate identity theft with credit cards. Credit Card I.D. theft only amounts to 23% of all idenity thefts. There are 4 other types of identity theft that people need to be aware of. Medical Records I.D. Theft - someone goes into a hostpital and has your I.D. or insurance information and they have a medical procedure done in your name. When the bill comes it comes to you, and you say " I did not have a hernia opertation". Con artists are actually setting up free clinics in the hope of having people come in for free bogus medical treatment in order to get information on you. Once they get the information they sell it to the highest bidder. Drivers License I.D. theft. This is really big among criminals. People are finding companies off shore who are experts at counterfitting ANY Identitfication out there. Drivers Licenses, social security cards etc. a criminal sends in a digital picture and what info they want on the I.D. and the company sends back a duplicate of your drivers license with the criminals picture on it. Now when the criminal is picked up for committing a crime, they are picked up as you, not themselves. They are bailed out and never seen again for trial. Next thing you know you are being pulled over for a burned out taillight and when your license is ran by the officer, he cuffs you and says "did you know you had a warrent out for auto theft"? Social Security I.D. theft. - This one is HUGE among illegal aliens. Someone takes a job and uses a fake social security number. They earn $ 30,000.00 under your social. Next thing you know the I.R.S. is sending you a bill for taxes on $ 30,000.00. This exact same thing happend to an 82 year old retiree in Florida. Aparently several illegal aliens took work using her social security number. One day she was informed that she owed back taxes on almost $ 1,000,000.00. She had been retired and living on social security for almost 15 years. Attached below is a short video on one of if not THE BEST identity theft coverages in the U.S. I say that not only as an Identity Theft Specialist, but as a user of the services. Thomas Hargreaves is an Identity Theft Expert and has attained the CITRMS Designation (Certified Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist TM) as issued by the Institute of Fraud Risk Management, and markets the ADRS (Affirmative Defense Response System) program to Business owners concerned with identity theft as it pertains to the workplace. For more info contact Tom at 541-844-1830 or Visit www.prepaidlegal.com/idt/thargreaves thargreaves@prepaidlegal.com

I have found several videos found on youtube that I feel are very good information for Active Rain members.  I would like to know how you insert a youtube video into a blog on AR.  I have seen that these videos are allowed to be shared, but I am not sure how to insert them.  I would appreciate any help I could get from Active Rain Members.

         Ever wonder what the best way to recuce your income taxes is?  For those of you are still considered employees and not business owners, you need to check out this free website to see why you should own a business instead of be an employee.  An author named Rober Kiyosaki explains in his book "The Cashflow Quadrant" that there are 4 income quadrants.   Employee, Self Employed, Business, and Investor.   The key is to work in the Business and Investor catagory, as that is where the most monies are made.  The other reason is due to the enormous tax deductions given to business owners.

      A website I found will allow you to determine just how much you will save in taxes, by becoming a business owner.  Even setting up a business at home via the internet and your computer can save you literally thousands of dollars in taxes.  I know for me that since becoming a business owner, I have never paid less in taxes than I do now.  I know of serveral legitimate business opportunities the average person can set up at home.  For a list send me an e.mail.  

here is the website.   www.thetaxgame.com   

 Thomas Hargreaves is a Financial Planner and Mortgage Broker, And understands how education fits in to the practice of building wealth and saving taxes. at:   541-844-1830    agentshelper@gmail.com     www.dreambizpro.com/tristarteamusa

FREE ONLINE SERVICE

I found a great FREE SERVICE.  It is called  YOU SEND IT.  It is an e.mail service that allows you to send very large files.  Many times I have large powerpoints or other files I want to send thru my e.mail provider, but the service usually only allows 10 MB.  With you send it you cas send files as large as 100 MB.   The service is FREE, All you need to do is go to www.yousendit.com and set up a free account

 

Thomas Hargreaves is a Financial Planner and Mortgage Broker, And understands how education fits in to the practice of building wealth and saving taxes. at:   541-844-1830    agentshelper@gmail.com     www.dreambizpro.com/tristarteamusa