Since the beginning of the boom there have been many "one stop shops" to spring up across the nation. Not surprisingly many of these originated out of California, Florida and Texas where real estate investing was the largest. It is possible that this posting is moot with the sudden decrease in real estate investments and real estate investment lending guidelines being cut to the bone.
There is one group which appears to still be growing but I doubt their sustainability based on their business model even though their founder and CEO is an experienced financial industry participant. What disturbs me is that I have spent nearly a decade teaching people the RIGHT way to invest in real estate, spending hundreds of thousands of dollars doing so and now this newbie is coming to town stirring up the same old mess I've been combatting for years. So I shall continue, at my own cost, protecting the prospects I value so highly.
Let me state it plainly so I can later say "I warned you."
NEVER buy a property, get an appraisal, borrow the money, and hire the company to manage your real estate when all services come from the same company. Why? Simple, you'll be had one way or another. There is a reason the feds are all over one-stop shops such as builders who have in-house brokers and closing attorneys.
So before you fall for the wholesale release of your freedom of choice ask yourself how wise it is to choose the same representative to handle ALL of your transactions.
Just a little heads up, I'm not mentioning the company by name for obvious reasons but I will say they are out of California, are now in about 4 or 5 states with most locations in California, are opening in Georgia, are headed by a man with good credentials on the finance side and have a fairly slick presentation. They depend on excitement and emotion to get you involved, they claim a MUCH higher number of participants than they actually have active and consider you a crop to be harvested.
Copyright(c)2007 Ken Cook. Ken is a real estate investor, trainer and author as well as a prolific real estate blogger and Director of Operations at Novation Mortgage. Novation specializes in real estate investor financing, FHASecure Refinance, Georgia Home Mortgages, Florida Home Loans, and small commercial lending nationwide.
Ken "Yes You Can" Cook
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Sadly, Ken, some of the new agents are drawn in by these companies and they wind up very poorly trained and breaking the Code of Ethics at every turn. They are new enough to the business that they don't know better and may or may not begin with integrity, but soon are discouraged and will do anything to make a little money! One just can't finish the real estate course, pass the exam and dive right in--you still need more hands-on training and I'm afraid that these one-stop shops are not preparing them for the real world of real estate! Great post!
Debe in Charlotte, NC