All Forum Posts by: Brandi Paul

I recently heard about the "Open Road" software program and it appears to have some great automating systems for real estate investments and especially short sales/rehabs.
Does it work as great as it sounds?

Welcome to BP Jaclyn! It is great to see others from Orange County.

How far out of state did you go for your property? I know many people in CA still stick relatively close by purchasing in AZ, NV, CO, etc. Just curious if that is still a trend of if people are going ahead and venturing farther across the country for income properties.

Brian,
Thank you for the information. It does seem as though many Real Estate Agents shy away from short sale flips. I know there has been some information coming out from CAR regarding Realtors and their roles in this whole thing. I think there is a lot of confusion between the duty to the homeowner/seller and some interpreted duty to the bank/lender.

I really appreciate getting and researching so many informative responses based on real experiences and deals so that I can determine what will work best for my area/situation/goals.

Thanks again!

Now, I am a newbie to the investment side but have been involved in a few short sales in California. From my experience, you do NOT have to be a Real Estate Agent/Broker or Attorney to negotiate a short sale. Many former mortgage brokers, transaction coordinators, processors, etc have all negotiated short sales. I haven't heard of a bank refusing to speak with a negotiator because they are not a real estate agent or attorney.

Thank you all for the great information and examples of techniques that have worked for you! It is very informative and appreciated.

I tried a Craigslist ad but got only spam back. I am excited to try again with some of these examples along with some of the other ideas.

Hi J Scott-

I am new and am I correct to believe that the fact that your wife has a license but it is hung in a separate company eliminates any possible conflicts in the transaction for all parties involved? I have a my broker's license but seem to have found in most research that most investor's don't wear both hats so to speak when they do an investment deal. I would love to be able to fully control a deal from all sides but wasn't sure how to make that happen.

Thank you,
Brandi

Hi Vito-

Does the homeowner in this scenario already have the home listed or are you contracting with them first?

It seems as though many investors contract with the homeowner first and then they get an agent to list the property. The offers brought forth would then be to find the ultimate end buyer.

I have recently seen quite a bit of marketing to agents (I actually received one today via email marketing) to encourage them to bring company x their short sales as they have cash offers, short sale negotiators, etc.

I believe it would be beneficial to contact a real estate agent or the local Realtor Association to find some agents to get some comps prepared for you. Unfortunately with this current market mixed with such a high percentage of distressed properties as well as standard equity sales it is difficult to just rely on general home appraisal sites you may find on the internet.

Definitely worth it to contact some people in the field to get a realistic view of the property value.

Hi David-

Welcome to Bigger Pockets! I am also new to the site and have found it to be a great resource for both information as well as networking.

Best of luck to you!

Brandi

The Lender's main concern is that the homeowner does not profit from the short sale. While they do not like an investor coming in and making a quick profit off of their loss, I have found that many will still do them so long as everything is properly disclosed.

I have seen some lenders place something in their counter offer regarding the property not transferring title for 30 days or something to that nature but it can be taken out and other terms can be agreed upon.