Short Sale, Agent Referral Fee?

[Aaron Foster]

While driving for dollars, I came across a boarded up house in a decent neighborhood with code violations. After a bit of digging, I was on the phone with the owner of the home, who lives in an apartment in another city. I did not speak with her long, but it seems that she owes more on the home than what it is worth.

I am not very familiar with short sales. I vaguely recall reading that you need to establish a business entity in order to submit an offer to a bank. I have also read that an individual may refer this type of deal to a real estate agent for an agreed fee. I am very interested in how to go about this, not only so I can try to get this lady's house sold, but also so that I can more effectively monetize my direct mail marketing.

In summary, do I need to have an LLC to submit a short sale offer to a bank? And can anyone tell me how they would go about selling leads to real estate agents?