All Forum Posts by: Rick H.

@Rob K - I don't have any idea why some cultures do certain things (or avoid certain things).

My observation is that a behavior, trend, belief or value that is based on a demographic or psychographic is not necessarily racist, let alone pejorative, and here is intended as a unbiased assessment or a market trend.

Now, being of primarily Irish ancestry, if someone were to make a comment about Irishmen and, say, whiskey and fighting. I might be tempted to fight over it, maybe even get drunk over it, because that's obviously intended as a pejorative comment.

Of course, from a marketer's standpoint there's little demographic to be learned about that statement, except that it might be smart to position your alcohol product as "the whiskey to drink when you want to fight."

Some consumer behaviors appear peculiar to those of us outside the culture. For example, why do members of a certain religion have a fondness for homes with exterior brick facades? I haven't a clue why, but it seems to be the case.

As to the concern over the cemetary issue, the point is probably that some people -- and cultures -- care a lot and would not consider the purchase.

Quiet, pastoral and expansive to some, proximity to a cemetery is likely to have fewer buyers in some areas where prospective buyers with cultureal biases run strong.

@Leon Yang - you pretty well nailed it. However, unless Asian buyers are the only demographic buying in an area (sometimes that's a fact where I live in So Cal) it's just to take longer to sell.

I've only have one property right next to a cemetary, an older post war SFR near Oakland. I got it via one of my probate loan deals when admin couldn't keep the payments up. It backed right up to an older cemetary. Thought it was going to be harder to sell, but the market was strong at the time and the buyer was more interested in getting a fixed house.

This house certainly qualified as a fixer. Truth be known, I never went inside, didn't need to, didn't want to.

Are the any other demographic groups that would have a problem based on spiritual, phylisophical or other considerations? I'd sure like to learn of any.

Probate typically involves the administration of a decedent's estat however it can be much more than just that. In CA, we use probate court to administer conservatorship and guardianship estates, most trust litigation and some trust administration and even related quiet title actions.

When someone posts a very generalized query concerning laws that are very State specific and case-by-case, I wonder if it almosts does more harm to respond, given that what we do in CA may be 180 degrees different than that of an Eastern State, for example.

In a very general way, our system provides that estates requiring court supervision also require an Order Confirming Sale (or encumber). Executors and admins who are appointed under our Independent Administration of Estates Act can sell via a Notice of Proposed Action without affirmative consent by heirs or other interested parties. However, any objection requires a court appearance to obtain Order Confirming Sale, but still no affirmative consent is required; just the judge's approval.

Your state may well be very different. While practical, CA probate law practice, legal statutes and local rules of court can sometimes be burdensome. So,I just try to make these things work in my favor (lemons into lemonade). If your state requires everyone to sign, you know that it's going to be much harder for an estate with lots of heirs to get everyone in agreement. That CAN be a beautiful thing, if orchestrated properly!

@K. Marie Poe - Hey Kristine! I thought you bailed out of this thread? Wouldn't blame you at all. Lots of strong opinions but little that's definitive, conclusive or exploitable. Darn!

Just came back from sushi with another Bottomfeeder friend who's forcing the probate of a $500k property that went to sale on a CA HOA lien. 90 days is up in a couple of days and my friend and I discussed the finer points of lack of marketable title, working the surplus vs. redemption and lots of fun stuff like this. We're in violent agreement...certificates are not yet standardized by statute in CA and all you get is a piece of paper from the foreclosing Trustee. That isn't passing title. We also discussed another case whereby the successful bidder on an HOA lien was very aggressive in taking possession and is now subject to an Illegal Ejectment suit. Been in one of those myself and got my ears clipped (and nearly neutered, too).

Also, I've had this very conversation with the owner of one the nation's largest foreclosure trustees, a friend of over twenty years. Same conclusion. Buy at a CA sale but you don't get title until the statutory redemption period runs.

As I read some of the posts I felt like I was witnessing a conversation between an American tourist - in a foreign county - attempting to communicate with a street vendor by speaking louder and with ever more passion. Never very effective or persuasive.

I'd mail irrespective of the Holidays. In fact, the Holiday period is the most stressful period for many if not most an the greatest number of deaths occur during or just after this period.

While I like your analytical thought process, it's also easy to outthink ourselves. I prefer to have people contact me rather than pursue them (unless it's a skiptrace situation). So, just because I have the target's contact info, I'm not very likely to call them, and certainly not fax. Nothing to do with do-not-call list either (actually, as a buyer, I would not be trying to sell them something, would I?).

If you put yourself in the shoes of the person answering the phone, it's not only annoying to get a call from a stranger but intrusive. Then you have to go thru the deal about how you got their phone number (I always say "Internet" when Skiptracing). And maybe, just maybe, they'll open up to what's really going on. However, I'd much more rather have a prospect call me. On my terms. During my higher energy time period. At my desk, not on my cell phone, not driving the all, and with no competing distractions.

As to inherited property, most heirs/beneficiaries take only about 18 months on average to hate landlording. Pretty rare that the parents have trained their offspring in the art and science of property management.

BTW, most all of the posts that I've read in BP concerning direct mail involves someone going after absentee owners. You really ought to think about some other targets or continue thinking thru the filters on the list that you are currently working. Look for catalysts (triggers) and build your USP's around those. I like those that cause people to not want to deal with the problem (evicting relatives, bad memories, etc.). Got any good horror stories that you could incorporate into you copywriting?

I'm not a copywriting expert however I can shall some basics that have served me well for several decades. My first lesson was the importance of understanding my target audience.

I like to think of myself as a fisherman. Knowing what species of fish is important. I'm not looking for fighting fish, sharks, or sardines, for that matter. Salmon, Trout and catfish are tasty and fit on my plate. Trout and salmon are exclusive to fresh water, so I don't need to fish in deep open ocean waters. And the bait and hooks are more specific to their liking.

Fishing for deals using paper (direct response mail) is similar. I want to use the right bait for the right species, and repel the little stinkers that steal my bait (unmotivated sellers).

Personally, I like working with sellers with big problems that I have experience in solving. I started in the late 1970's doing equity purchase deals. Using paper default lists I'd mail to folks with what appeared to be good equity prospects and qualify them when they called.

That's where you are now, trying to handle the lead calls your letters produce and balance the time you spend handling these calls with your non-real estate duties. Since I don't like being rushed and don't like wasting my time with unrealistic peolpe, the challenge is to design a marketing campaign that meshes well with a sales conversion process which attracts the sellers I want and resells those I don't want. Some call this "self-selecting."

My most effective strategy has been to position myself as an expert in specific areas (probate, foreclosure, title), market to experts (attorneys and other trusted advisors) and use well-placed articles and other value added information within the view of those who would benefit from the knowledge.

In letters, I like to spell out the types of situations or scenarios that are my forte in problem solving. I tell would-be clients or sellers that I'm not not a price leader and have no interest in competing with people and companies who put themselves out on the cheap. After all, cheap is cheap. If everyone was concerned most with price point, we'd all be driving Smart cars (or Yugo's).

Another way of approaching thesis to list out the U.S.P.'s that would only appeal to the sellers that you wish to do business with. As an example, you could go after people who've recently had a negative experience with another real estate pro and market to them with an appropriate USP based on trust or a "Plan B" offer. Match the proposition to the problem you intend to solve and make the reader understand on an emotional level that you are unique in your understanding of the issue.

And don't be afraid of blowing off time wasters early. You can do this by both educating your reader/target and give them examples (or even testimonials) of the species of how you've helped others. And examples of who should NOT contact you.

Sounds like you're off to a good start.

At the risk of becoming redundant on this thread, I'll tell a little story about about how title problems changed my life, even my lifestyle:

For the first 5 or 10 years in real estate I would occasionally stumble on a title problem, typically a judgment lien, and would frustrate me to no end. After all, wasn't this the title company's job to catch these things and "fix" them? In truth, in my early days I would buy properties based solely on a title profile, usually without a prelim or insurance, nor even a trip to the county recorder's office. And, candidly, they baffled me as to why title companies didn't catch them and provide them in the profile. I've paid for several $5,000 "training courses" in the form of missed liens that I ate. We did not have internet, so easy access to data was about twenty years in the future.

When I began lending in 1989 and focusing on probate estates I'd find lots of problems with title, largely due to the long time windows of ownership. About the same time, I perked up to title search related topics in the now-defunct John Beck Forced Sale Newsletter (long before he became known as a tax sale guy). I studied how documents are recorded and indexed, and how title companies use a parallel (but not identical) repository 'plant' system and why a profile does contain most liens, and what prelim are and what they are not.

I also studied in earnest how to not only spot these problems but the remedies. And then it hit me: title problems could be a GOOD thing! I realized that they weren't my problems unless or until I made them mine. Further, most home owners and real estate investors alike abhor any form of cloud on title. After all, anything that stands in the way of marketable (insurable) title stands in the way of a seller receiving money or other benefits.

Today, I've come to believe that what's bad is good and title problems, liens in particular, can be very profitable. Since I've assembled a pretty effective repertoire of tools, I'm not afraid of acquiring defective interests that others, if not most people, would run away from.

And here's the real kicker: I've made an incredible number of friends who I've made along the way because of mutual interest in spotting, assessing and resolving these title problems. Would have never expected that, too.

Impressive! I'm an old school marketer now trying to implement new technology and thinking. I only recently became aware of PURL and have yet to implement in a campaign.

That being said, I'm very interested in understanding what technology you use to track your responses so accurately. Also, same question as to your ability to track conversion between steps inside your sales funnel. The closest that I have seen is via Infusionsoft.

Care to share how you track (in a general way)?

Since we're getting in some murky water, I suggest we get clear before proceeding. In this deal, Ibrahim wants to purchase a property whereby:

"A" once owned the property and there spears to be judgment liens in their name, however it's a common name, and we have not affirmatively determined that these are/were A's debts.

"B" then acquires the property in 2006 with title insurance for buyer and presumably for the lender, too.

"C" (our friend Ibrahim) wants to buy this property, which was once damaged by fire (not really a title issue).

Title companies tend to 'shoot first and ask questions later' when it come to naming exceptions to their offer to insure (prelim). It's up to the selling/buying parties to either find satisfactory evidence to convince the new insurer to eliminate or accept the insurance as offer or further negotiate an acceptable compromise.

In CA, most all of our title companies are very large, corporate affairs, typically divisions of national insurers (since the entry fees are about $2MM+ to become licensed here).

So, Ibrahim, when I said "company" I wasn't referring to a closing agent (we often use a separate 'escrow company' as closing agent). As I stated in prior post, if the deal is right, there are ways that you can take on the risk, get insured on the more important part of the ownership, and have no real issue when you go to re-sell the property.

I have a procedure of getting a Statement of Information completed upfront by the current owner or their family ("B") however in your case, this would not help you as the debts are from the time of "A"'s ownership.

I still say, just live with the exception(s) if the deal is fat enough. Another possibility is to have seller carry back a purchase money note with terms that state that , in essence, they don't get their money until the liens are satisfied. I say there'd be a high chance you'll be able to negotiate that carry back note later on when "B" comes back to the money well.

@Ibrahim - here's how title insurers normally work : Title company goes to last insured transaction, called a "starter." If the title that you use is the same as the last one, they will bind based on that last point forward to the date that you record and close on the new transaction.

If the last insurer was a different company, most all title companies have mutual reciprocal agreements whereby they honor the last company's policy and insure the 'new risk' portion. If the prior company is out of business you may be either S-O-L (an multi-industry term), or...

You could go back to the prior insurance company, identified on the recorded transfer deed, and ask them to insure your transaction, or...

Offer to personally indemnify the insurer of the last transaction, if you believe you have about a zero % chance if one of the lien holders sticking their head up and making a claim.

I've discovered that insurance companies, in any form, are much like banks, in that they will happily accept your money and charge you fees when you offer to eliminate their risk.