All Forum Posts by: Mark Limke

Principal Financial Group, my former employer, is an international firm with offices all over the country/world. They are serious about protecting their brand, and will vigorously defend against infringement. I'd pick another name, rather than start a fight you'll probably lose. But who knows, maybe the Principal name has magical powers in your neck of the woods. From here, it's just a name.

Hey, Bill. My approach would be to contact him in person and let him know about the surprise lien, and that it has to come out of his end, or you'll split it, or whatever works for you the buyer.

He may know about it, or may not. He may be thinking he's pulling a fast one on you. It's tempting to let him move all his stuff out, and then spring it on him as a done deal at closing, but that wouldn't seem ethical, to me, and is not how I'd operate. I only mention it because you included that fact.

Give him the facts of life, let him know what you'll do, and move on to the next deal. Maybe you'll be surprised, maybe not.

My experience in a different state is that much of the material IS on the test, but doesn't show up in real life. How to learn it? Depends on you, and how you learn. A good tip would be to get to where you can explain any of the concepts to another person and it makes sense. When you are fuzzy on something, focusing on explaining it can help your brain untangle the fuzzy parts.

Good luck!

@Daria B., thinking about what was said earlier, I wonder if the other parties on the mortgage as "borrrowers" must not also be on the related promissory note that outlines the payment structure. Not being an attorney, I can't think of any reason the lender would have them on the mortgage otherwise. I am wondering if the two documents go hand in hand that way, so yeah, co-signers due to weak credit, maybe. That's what I think you mean by the statement about family thinking it wise to put themselves on the mortgage.

As far as the lender thinking the others might have some obscure interest, they wouldn't cure that by putting them on the mortgage. They'd do a quit claim deed, in my experience, renouncing any interest that may or may not exist.

I do still think the person on the deed has the sole power to convey the property.

Consult a real estate pro or attorney in your own state to be sure, but my understanding is that the deed specifies ownership of the property, and the mortgage deals with security for the loan taken by the property owner (and others). The mortgage is a pledge in support of a loan. I imagine the mortgage has provisions that enable the lender to pursue any of the named parties in the event of a default, in addition to the property itself being on the hook.

I believe that if the seller can pay off the mortgage loan, it doesn't matter how many names are on the mortgage. The owners on the deed control the property's sale. The others on the mortgage will probably be happy to be clear of the obligation, but I don't believe they can affect the sale if they aren't happy.

That's my take on it. I'm not an attorney and know nothing of the law in your state.

My personal plan in this regard is to tailor my message more specifically to my audience. If I'm mailing to near-foreclosures, hammer the points they care about. If it's to landlords sick of being landlords, mention their pain points, which are likely different from a probate seller or other variety. I plan to study some copywriting resources to pick up tips.

Great question, Bob. I have the same interest. Feels weird to sit on funds and pay to borrow someone else's cash. But I know there are a lot of rules and limitations, and concerns about having to take minimum distributions once you get to age 70 1/2. Researching this is still on my to-do list, so I have nothing more to add yet, but will stay tuned.

@Roy N. - Thanks for the info about TVS, I'll file that away. They must be subscribers to the credit bureau(s).

@Michael Noto - So, there must be a process where a court-involved eviction gets picked up by the credit bureaus. That's good to know, thanks. And you're right on, if they are stiffing service providers, they won't hesitate to leave the rent unpaid. If you want to judge someone, watch what they do, not what they say.

Great question, Roy. You got me wondering. I pulled up an article from Experian, one of the credit reporting companies. 

To summarize, if you're a small business owner, you probably won't be able to report the tenant directly. You'd have to be an credit bureau subscriber, which is said to be expensive, and meet all kinds of rules. Makes sense, you don't people randomly smearing your credit history, right?

But, you can try to collect from a collection agency, and they may be able to get the report in, after the fact. Also, if you win a judgment against them, that can be a lien, apparently, which may be a public record. 

That's my impression of an article, not expert advice, so wait for someone who knows for sure, or ask your attorney!

@Wesley Abbott, I PM'd you on that sidebar question.