All Forum Posts by: Steven Crosby

The best advice I could offer is find a credit union or Community Bank with which you have a relationship with or can establish one with. Another good piece of advice I read in here is about looking to invest in multi-family units with others. Because of the situation and especially the risk of your job it will be difficult to get approved by any large bank but I'm sure there are several Community Banks and Credit Unions who would gladly work with you

Obviously where the money went is a concern but that will be shown up on any financial analysis getting approved for a loan. 

Yes Jay, that if for closing. I agree completely with the moral compass situation especially when you're dealing with somebody in the aspect that directly affects their personal life on enormous proportions.

Originally posted by @Jay Hinrichs:

@Steven Crosby as long as your actually closing and not assigning the contracts then I think your letter is fair.. if your just using it to enter into a contract with say a bogus pre qual from a HML who will give them to anyone for a small fee or for free then no I think its right back to the old bait and switch routine which is well let your moral compass guide you on what it is.

if your closing then I like it.. when I did pre foreclosure work before they basically made it illegal or unprofitable out here on the west coast.. many of the letters I would see in peoples homes that they shared or when I bought them at court house steps people would leave the letters on the counter.

if someone is in foreclosure at least in that time period they got no less than about 200 plus letters and post cards..

the ones that make you gag are the ones that come off..

" Mr. home owner I was just like you I too was in foreclosure so therefore I know what you going through.. blah blah blah.. " and when they see about 20 of those with the same message even the dullest tool in the shed can realize 99% of the direct mail are not people out to save the day for this poor unfortunate family.

It's quite unfortunate a major league baseball player is a hero and star in the eyes of so many people, especially children, and yet it's hard to obtain a loan. I would recommend establishing personal relationships with smaller Community Banks or credit unions. While seasonal income, especially in a risky environment where injury can quickly eliminate long-term income, is a bit of a downside to the underwriter there is always a major factor to consider. Any underwriter is going to plug in multiple numbers and factors but one of the biggest ones that are commonly overlooked especially in the terms of a community bank or smaller Bank is the emotional evaluation. I would highly recommend establishing relationships with smaller Banks and seeing where it takes you from there.

I should also say those seminar guys 10 to be used car salesman in style lol. next they will have an amazing seminar for only $500 that will teach you how they make $50000 per flip. after that seminar they will work with you one-on-one for an additional $10,000.

After flipping multiple houses and comparing with the national averages I would not base it off the $50,000 average. it's very dependent upon where you live, how much actual work it is entailing and the time spent. if it's absolute minimal stress and time required and you can make a secure 10,000 dollars in profit for flip I would prefer that before a more time-intensive and stressful 50000. your average is going to vary significantly in different markets. another thing people tend not to include in their averages is time of holding and securing investment. I have found all of the revolving factors tend to bring that "profit" margin down significantly.

I use the company Vistaprint online for most of my printing. They do good work although you may pay a bit more.

It's very cliche and does not tell much about yourself. The core of the message is to make them comfortable. it also helps to dig into research and find out why they are absentee. is it due to being out of town? death in the family? divorce? Emotions for a homeowner are always attached to their property so it's important to know the background. for something that has a lot of potential I send a bit of a more detailed letter. Here is an example of a letter I would send for a foreclosure that has responded to my initial letter or call. Dear MR Doe I would like the opportunity to make an offer on your home at (address). I understand you are facing foreclosure and would like to help you as easily and quickly as possible. I am prepared to pay cash for your home and can close in five days after the contract is signed. Please see the attached letter of commitment from my lender stating they will provide the funds within five business days of my request. I operate a business that buys houses, rehabilitates them and sells them for a profit. If I purchase the property I asked me I will need $xxxxxxx to renovate the House to updated standards. (I will then make a short list of what needs to be done) During the four months I will hold the house I calculate I will incur $xxxxx in closing costs, loan interest, real estate agent commissions, property taxes, Insurance, utilities and maintenance. If everything goes as expected I hope to make about $xxxxxx when I resell the property after the initial approve minutes. For you to sell the property to an investor, you would need to take on all of the repairs and some of the updates referenced in the cost to both. Keep in mind let's do this you will also need to get a real estate agent to list the house, be prepared to wait the typical time it takes to sell a house and pay your own selling costs. please consider my offer. I'm willing to buy the house and its current condition and do all the work required to sell it to a non investor. I believe it is a fair price for the house given its condition and your desire to sell quickly. I look forward to your reply and if you have any questions please contact me. In community xxxxxx While some may not agree with this letter it has worked fairly well. it's forward and honest and tends to comfort somebody facing foreclosure that they do have a way out.

Investing out of state is always a tricky situation because your eyes can only be on it minimally compared to in State. Myself, I will not consider investing out of state unless I have a trusted partner near the potential investment. You can do it with a good management company or with a lot of traveling but you have to factor in cost of holding, traveling and stress factor. It increases the risk with you not being closer to the investment and the risk may not be worth the additional return when comparing to nearby Investments