Andy's Blog

It Is What It Is...

Lately I've been hearing this phrase a LOT.  I don't know if people are saying it more or if I'm just more cognizant of it because I'm more aware (I even saw it in a TV show over the weekend!), but what I DO know is that every time I hear it the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and I want to hit something!

Here's the scenario: Somthing has just popped up in one of your deals, you call the other agent to try to brainstorm a solution and they say "It is what it is."  They basically just told you "I don't care enough to try to change it"

Where would our world be if that was our answer to every challenge?

Problem: Caveman #1 "Caveman Starving!"   Caveman #2 "ugg...Is what Is"  Both Cavemen DIE!  

Alternative Solution? Learn to hunt, fish, farm and gather berries!

Ancient Times Quote: "The World is Flat"  Everyone's response? "It Is What It Is"

Alternative Solution: Get on a boat anyway and discover America... where I live today!

Problem: Hitler's killing everyone he doesn't like... not just the Jews.  Can you imagine the world today if everyone had just said "It Is What It Is..."

YOUR ASSIGNMENT, SHOULD YOU CHOOSE TO ACCEPT IT:

The next time you hear someone say "It is what it is..."  I want you to correct them and say "It is what you make it" or even "It is what you let it be"

The real estate market's bad... "It is what it is"

OH YEAH?

Then why are some people doing just fine in this market... I personally closed 24 transaction sides last year WHILE running the office AND teaching CEU classes throughout Florida... all without an assistant!  So when people lay down and say "It is what it is" I GET MAD!!! And so should you!

Thanks for listening to my rant.

Another Loan Mod bites the dust!  My New Listing (again!)

Back in the summer of 2010 I listed a home.  It was a HAFA short sale deal where the bank had already given us the price and approved the seller, I just had to find the buyer.

We got a buyer within the first week, but before the seller could even sign the contract, an attorney contacted her and told her that he would be able to do a loan modification for her and let her keep her house at a payment she could afford. (remember she had already been turned down for a HAMP mod, that's why we were in the HAFA program!).

Well, guess what? Friday I got a call from her, and Monday evening I re-listed her home.  Want to know what the attorney was able to get for her?

Her old mortgage payment was $1,650 per month.  The Mod that the attorney negotiated?  If she sends the bank $3,200 down, they will lower her payment to $1,634.  Yes, you read that right.  She gives them $3,200 and they will lower her payment by $16 per month.  Wow, that's really a help to her budget I bet!

Don't get me wrong... I think that GOOD modifications are a great solution to what we're experiencing in our market, but some of these attorneys are feeding a line of crud to home owners and giving them false hope.  How much did this false hope cost her in this case? $2,500 to the attorney!!!  They take people's money and tell them "we'll try" and then when they get no results they say "we tried"

Use this example when you're talking to clients and share with them the success rates that you've personally seen clients have with modifications.

Please share with us what success you've seen in people getting loan mods, also, do you know of ANY non-owner occupied homes getting loan mods?

Andy's Foreclosure Interview Reunites a Family After Years & Years!

Wow, this is a story you probably don't hear every day.  Yesterday I was contacted by email by someone stating she was a relative of someone I had interviewed about losing her house.  Through some back searching I found the article she was referring to, and it wasn't me that had interviewed the lady, I just happened to be interviewed in the same article.  I never met her relative.  In several emails back and forth though, I explained that I had never met her, but did a quick Google search and sent her a link with some local contact info including an email address and place of employment (all public records here... not disclosing any secret info!).

Well, today I just got this email:

"Andy

You have just been used by God to help two sisters fine each other and to discover that there are two more sisters My daughter and her sister are so happy right now it is unbelievable. They are both Managers and have two children thanks thanks and more thanks

My The Lord bless your life and family

Pastor Nissi"

Isn't that unbelievable?

Out of the tragedy of this young lady losing her home, a single mom and her 2 kids are now reunited with their family because of the story that was written about her.

And I had the honor of bringing them all back together.

Wow.

That's all I can say right now.  Wow.

Is it safe to buy a foreclosed home?

Right now that is what's on most of America's minds... Is it safe to buy a foreclosure home?  Several of the large lenders have frozen foreclosure proceedings because of possible mis-steps in the filing of the foreclosure case file.  Some people argue that the entire foreclosure might be invalid, even on some homes that have already been resold to a new homeowner!

Last week I was interviewed by the New York Times for an article on this very topic!  Writer Ron Lieber asked me what were some of the things that someone thinking of buying a home needs to be aware of when buying a bank owned home.  Here's some things to watch out for:

• Right now in Central Florida there are about 400 homes that were recently pulled and coded as "temporarily off the market" in our MLS system.  I can't say they were all a part of the freeze, but it's probably a good guess!  If the home you're interested in was NOT pulled off the market, it's most likely not one that is affected.
• There is often a lot of damage to the homes, both from neglect and being vacant for so long and from vandalism and even sabotage.  Some people take their anger out on the house and you might be buying the result of their anger.  Make sure you hire a good home inspector to check the property out thoroughly before closing.
• If you are getting a mortgage to buy a home, a bank owned home may have challenges in the condition of the house.  If it needs repairs it may not be financeable by a traditional loan and you may need an FHA 203K rehab loan that allows for the repair money to be included.
• The seller, in this case the bank, has the right to dictate the terms under which they will sell you their house.  The banks are taking this to the extreme and will put numerous restrictions on you such as:
  • You can't resell or refinance YOUR house within a certain time frame
  • They won't pay certain closing costs that a seller normally pays.  This means you will pay more to buy the house
  • If you don't close on time they will charge you $50-100/day for an extension
  • If you don't close they can keep your deposit (which by the way THEIR attorney will be holding)
  • They won't even give you a written contract... you will need to start your inspections and other costs based on a verbal acceptance... the written will follow in a week or two.
  • With your written acceptance, they will send you the "bank addendum" which changes all of the terms of the original offer.  These can be a few pages to over 20 pages long.  You must review this very carefully before signing.  Once you've signed it you've accepted it.
• Often the properties are priced very low to drive competition and after you put in an offer you'll be told that there are "multiple offers" and they are asking you to come back with your "highest and best" offer.  Often these properties will sell at or above the asking price, sometimes even 20-30% OVER asking price!
• Make sure you buy title insurance to cover any possible mistakes in the title.

I don't want these things to scare you from buying a foreclosed home.  Many of my clients AND myself have bought foreclosed homes and have had no problems with them.  It is intended to just make you aware of some of the things to watch out for before buying a bank owned home.

As you can see it is very important to have a Realtor® working for you that knows the ins and outs of buying a foreclosure home.  Ask them how many buyers they've worked with and how many years they've been buying foreclosures.

If you're in the Central Florida area, I'd love to answer any questions you have about buying a bank owned home, either as a home to live in or as an investment property.  Call me at 407-260-8800 ext. 107 right now!

Can One Player Really Blow the Whole Game?  Short Sales Broken Down!

This past Saturday I watched the Florida Gators play Mississippi State.  It was painful to watch, all the way to the very end where we had a few seconds left and a field goal would have tied the game and given us a chance at redemption.  Kicker Chas Henry steps up and... MISSES!!!  Game over. Gators Lose.  Cameras focus in on the defeated face of Henry and you can see in his grimace that he knows he just lost the game.

Or did he?

You see, he's actually not a field goal kicker at all!  He's a punter (and a really good one at that!) who's filling in for the regular kicker who's out with a back injury!  Besides... could he single-handedly have lost the game? NO WAY!  He missed the chance to pull it out, but the whole team together lost the game.

What does this have to do with a short sale? 

Sometimes we as Realtors feel like that replacement kicker being brought in at the last minute to try to save the day.  When you're brought into the game just a little too late and a client is hoping that you'll be able to pull some miracle out of a hat, is it YOUR fault if the property goes to foreclosure?  (well, maybe, but that's another story! J)  Did YOU stop paying your mortgage a year ago and wait until the very end to get help?

When an agent that understands short sales is brought into the "game" early enough, and a good "coaching strategy" of pricing, marketing, file submission and follow up is used, the closing rate of short sales is actually quite high.

If an agent doesn't understand this strategy and prices the property too low or too high, doesn't market the home aggressively to get a reasonable offer early in the process, submits a shoddy financial package and doesn't follow up with the lender regularly and escalate when needed... then it doesn't matter how early they're brought into the game... they're most likely going to lose anyway.

However if the property already has had a hearing and an auction date has been set, no matter HOW great you are at your job... that last second field goal attempt is going to miss most of the time. 

Don't take it personally.  Don't dwell on the failure.  Focus on the families that DID come to you early enough that you WERE able to help.  Focus on next week and the new family you'll meet that needs you.  You're not a last minute kicker... you're an important part of their team that needs to be in on the coaching decisions BEFORE the game even starts!

The cameras should have focused on the whole team and then Coach Urban Meyer.  They lost the game as a team.

p.s.  If you're a HOMEOWNER in the Central Florida area and would like to talk about having me on your team, call me right now at 407-842-7700.

Hmmmm..... many of us come to AR to learn the lates tips, tricks & techniques for improving our real estate businesses, especially in the field of marketing and now "social" marketing...

Can you imagine if someone used those same skills for EVIL? Like taking over the world?

What if they used those skills for GOOD, like helping their community?

Well, a few of my friends have gotten together and that's exactly what they've done! (for good, not evil :)

I know I usually write blogs full of content on how to build your business and how to live a great life, but today
we're turning the tables a bit.

I want you to join me in helping others live a great life, specifically, kids with special needs and in my typical fashion
of always wanting to bring you the most value possible, in return there are some very powerful bonuses
that you will receive as well.

A few of my friends put together this amazing, short, 7 minute film about a little boy named Jacob, who is 4 years old,
plays baseball, and has Down syndrome.

I think you'll find his story very inspiring and you'll want to share it with your friends.

https://marketersforgood.infusionsoft.com/go/home/g8rpit

All of this has come about because we as marketers, feel we have been blessed and have come together to rally around this project and raise support for Jacob and the 2.8 million kids who live with special needs
every day, in the U.S. alone.

To add some extra motivation to you for helping support Jacob and this cause, we've all put together some very powerful gifts and prizes to get you to support the cause too.

In other words, we've got thousands of dollars worth of bonuses donated by some of the best
known Marketers in the business, just for you and others willing to donate any amount at all

(even just $1. Literally, every dollar will help these kids!).

And they are all yours if you make a donation and most importantly, take a few minutes to check
out this very inspirational story that will make your day better in many ways, I think you'll be
glad that you did and when your friends see it they will too!

Go watch it now!

https://marketersforgood.infusionsoft.com/go/home/g8rpit

Gratefully,

Andy Tolbert

P.S. The bonuses will only be available for
a short time.

Please help out kids with special needs right now.

https://marketersforgood.infusionsoft.com/go/home/g8rpit

Today Fannie Mae launched a new consumer education website on foreclosure options.

The way I found out about it was when I received a call from the Orlando CBS affiliate, Channel 6 News asking if they could interview me about the new site... www.KnowYourOptions.com

So while he was asking me questions about the ramifications of a foreclosure on your life (credit, jugdments, etc.) I pulled the site up quickly to take a peek!  It's actually a pretty good site!

A lot of the information they are sharing is similar to the info I put on MY info site, www.BeforeYouShortSale.com which is for Orlando Short Sale Homeowners info.

They cover the options for when you want to keep your home, including something they call "Deed-for-Lease" which is where you deed your home to the lender (called a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure or dil) and then they will rent it back to you for a specific period of time for current market rent value.  The other options when you want to stay in your home are: refinance, repayment plan, forebearance, and modification and on the site they explain what each of these are and the benefits.  But remember... if you want to stay in the home you will need to be able to qualify for the payment, so if you are without income you will most likely not qualify to keep your home.

They also cover the options for when you can't or don't want to keep your home.  These include Deed-in-Lieu and Short Sale and cover the what's, how's, and benefits of these options for your family.

Within an hour of my "phone interview", the reporter from Channel 6 was here in my office with his camera guy to do an interview and find out more about what options a homeowner has in Orlando if they are facing a challenge with their mortgage or facing short sale or pre-foreclosure.  The spot will run tonight on Channel 6 between 6-7pm and I'm figuring will be re-run on their website www.clickorlando.com

If you are a homeowner facing trouble with your mortgage, check out the site: www.KnowYourOptions.com it has some really good information that might make your decision easier.  And if you are in Seminole County or the Orlando area... give me a call!

If you are an agent, check out the site and consider using it as a tool to share with your clients.  It will answer most of their questions and the info is coming from a 3rd party credible site.

How to take back control of your time... in meetings and other interactions!  

This morning I made a BIG change in our property management meetings here at the office.  On the big plasma TV we have in the conference room to show listings on... I set up a 15 minute countdown timer (just google it).  When everyone came in for the meeting I said "we're trying something new today, from now on our meetings will last 15 minutes" everyone laughed, but guess what... we were in and out quicker than we've EVER been (we took about 20 minutes, but that's because we decided to revamp our filing system so that took a few minutes longer). 

When people know they have a deadline or a time frame, they say their piece very concisely and cut out all the fluff!   Here's what I like about this:  meetings suck! Everyone hates coming to meetings.  But they're also important!  We all need to know which properties are gone, what's new, rent price changes, legal updates, etc.  I want our meetings to be a HELP to our business bottom line, not a distraction from what you should be doing!  I foresee that this change will do several things:

• They'll get to the meetings on time because they know they'll be short
• They'll be prepared with the updates they need to give because they know they'll only have a short time
• They'll advise us in advance of any major thing they need to go over in case they need more time
• They'll LOVE the meetings because they know they'll get in and out quickly and get the info they need to go make money

How can you use that in YOUR business or day to day life?  I can see a few ways for you to take control of your time...

How about that customer/friend/co-worker that tends to turn what should be a 2 minute call into a 30 minute blah-blah-blah and on and on... (go ahead, laugh, I know you've got one or two of those people in your life!).  The next time they call you can START the conversation with "I'm glad you called, but I've got a (conference call, client meeting, webinar, etc.) that starts in 5 minutes so we'll have to make it a quick conversation".  This sets the rules for the call right up front so if they DO talk on and on it won't appear rude when you say "oh, it's 2 minutes until my webinar and I've still got to log in!"  

Also, when I meet with Central Florida real estate buyers or sellers they will often say "how long will it take to do the papers?" and my answer is "that depends on you and how many questions you ask and if you want to chit chat or just get down to business!  I've got some clients that have bought lots of houses before and they don't want me to go through every single document, those take about 15 minutes, other clients want me to read every single line to them and that can take an hour or more... how long should we allow for your appointment because I'm OK either way?"  Their answer will give you a good idea of what type of client you're dealing with.   (Note, when I meet with a short sale seller in Central Florida, I don't need any extra time because I've already answered their short sale questions before we even meet through my marketing pieces!)

Lastly, If YOU run a meeting... ANY kind of meeting at all, respect the start and end time.  In my women's networking group that meets once a month, everyone gets 30 seconds to stand up and do their "info-mercial" and we have a timer that beeps at 30 seconds, but many of the ladies were ignoring it and would continue talking even after it beeped.  If you say something during or after the presentations, then it looks like you're pointing a finger at someone in particular and may create hard feelings.  I've started now telling them the "rules" of the 30 seconds BEFORE anyone takes their turn and it goes something like this:  "Please keep your introduction to 30 seconds... each lady will get the same amount of time.  Just to let you know up front... if you keep talking after the beeper goes off, nobody even hears what you say because they now are just wondering if you didn't HEAR the beep or if you are just that disrespectful of their time"  It's amazing how EVERY SINGLE intro stays under the 30 seconds when we do it that way!  And nobody is embarrassed because you didn't mention it AFTER they took too long!  (yes, it's very firm, but when you RUN a meeting, you are expected to keep the meeting on track.  That's your JOB!)  

Next week I'm going to implement the time clock in both my Sales Meeting AND my career night presentation!  Can't wait!  It's going to free me up so much more time to be productive! (or just some more ME time to work out, grab some sushi with friends, or maybe play some Wii!) 

I like to report what's going on in the Seminole County foreclosure market (which includes short sales and bank owned).  Whether you're considering selling your home or you're looking to buy a home (first homes AND investment properties) The knowledge our office has of the Seminole County market can help you meet YOUR goals!!!

In the first quarter of 2010, there have been 1,210 sales, of those, 282 were short sales (23%), 445 were bank owned (37%), and 483 were "regular" sales (39%).  Also, median home prices are broken down the same way: Median Home price in Orlando Area was $110,000, short sales were $115,000, bank owned was $74,000 and "regular" was $166,500.

Ready to see for yourself?  Here's the link to see the 729 homes: Click Here

What's Homeownership REALLY Worth in Central Florida

Homeowners have seen a decline in their homes value in the last few years. That's a fact.  If you bought your home in 2004-2008, it's probably worth less than you paid. However how is homeownership in the LONG RUN?

The National Association of Realtors has just released statistics that go back and show you how your net worth has been impacted by home prices if you had bought your house 5, 10, 15, and 20 years ago.  It's kind of interesting!  Here's the links:

Orlando Area Report

Link to see other area reports

If you're in the market to purchase a home, whether it's your first home or you're adding an investment property... call me for a no-obligation appointment to see if we can work together! 407-260-8800