Georgia FHA Home Loans - (& Opinion)

When:

Tuesday, June 26, 2007, 10:00 AM EST

Click Here To Reserve Your Line

 

Where:

ON LINE
Your Home

 

Event fee:

$39.95 per line

 

Description:

ONLINE - requires internet and telephone access and some type of spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel
PERFECT FOR AGENTS AND PROPERTY MANAGERS TOO!

The first in the series "The Numbers Game" is designed for new and experienced investors to gain a full understanding of how to calculate the gains or losses on a prospective deal and make an offer based on those numbers. If you have a copy of Microsoft Excel you will learn how to use that application to create and use your own spread sheets. While this work shop does not deal with other applications most spread sheet programs have the power to do the same as Excel.

This ONLINE work shop will include information on:

How to properly estimate the current value of a property
How to determine rent range
How to determine the future value after rehab
Discovering the neighborhood limit for sales value
When to refinance
Creating a spread sheet for rehab estimation
Using an ROI spreadsheet you create for your specific needs
Using spread sheets to track your property holdings
Learning to say "NO"
Determining what will most increase the sales VALUE (not price)
Renting for higher than the neighborhood (this can be done and I do it)
And Much MUCH More!

About The Speaker

Ken Cook is definitely not your "ordinary guru". In fact if you ask him, he's not a guru at all. He's learned from the mistakes and successes of himself and others while facilitating real estate transactions through his mortgage company and real estate company which are dedicated to real estate investors.

Ken is Director of Operations and Co-founder of Novation Mortgage and Co-Founder of USA Home Dreams Real Estate. He is a member of The National Association of Mortgage Brokers, Georgia Real Estate Investor's Association, National Association of Realtors, Atlanta Board of Realtors, National Real Estate Investor's Association and holds several certificates and diplomas in Mortgage Banking including Fraud Prevention and Detection which helps keep you out of trouble!

Novation Mortgage is tops in the investor market niche in Georgia. You've heard about them from John Adams as well as other true gurus in the industry. Novation has funded over $150,000,000 since 2001.

Ken and his team recently participated in the Learning Center's Wealth Building Expo along side of Donald Trump, Robert Kyosaki and Suze Orman.

Ken's father, Ken Sr., was a developer and builder (Cobb-Metro Construction and North Georgia Rigging and Construction) through the seventies and eighties in the metro Atlanta area. He and his partners built hundreds of contemporary homes before moving into almost exclusively commercial development and construction when they won the contract with Southern Bell (BellSouth) to construct all of their Central Offices in the metro area.

Ken's uncle Ben Hale is a 96 year old real estate guru who, until his passing last November, was still active in the industry and recently published his first book, available on Amazon.com, entitled Prepare Yourself for Success. Ben has been in the real estate industry since the 1930's. He has been a broker, closing attorney, developer, lender, author, lecturer and radio talk show host.

Ken has another uncle Jim Elkins who has been a real estate investor since the 1960's. Jim is now in his early 80's and is divesting himself of his holdings. Jim acquired many of his properties through tax sales and sheriff's auctions.

Sticking to a policy of not buying mortgage leads for several reason, not the least of which we are busy with real leads, I never had any intention of participating but I did have a lot of questions about the phone call I received in February 2007. Normally I tell the caller I am not a good prospect and attempting to persuade me will be a waste of your time and mine. This call started something like this, "Hi, this is Steve from ____________. We know that mortgage leads are a joke but would you pay $300 for a lead if the loan closed?"

My response was quick and to the point, "Absolutely not. I would never pay for a referral. This is a direct and blatant violation of RESPA."

Steve's response was very interesting and certainly convincing to the less skeptical and more starving mortgage companies and loan officers. "Ken, you never pay us directly for a referral. You would deposit $2000 in an escrow account and when you close a loan you let us know and it is not until then that we would take the $300 from your account. Our legal department has assured us this is not a violation of RESPA."

Really? Wow. I don't believe it. In fact I still have little doubt this is a direct violation of RESPA and I refuse to be the first one to try it out in Federal Court. Due to the fact that these advertisements are not secreted and the websites make it plainly obvious what the lead companies are doing I would imagine it is only a matter of time before charges are filed, defenses are planned and mounted, hundreds of thousands of dollars are spent on legal defense and prosecution, only to have the judge say, "Which part of payment in exchange for a referral is a violation of RESPA?"

It reminds me of a former President who is infamous for saying, "it depends on what the definition of 'is' is" And later, "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Ms. Lewinsky."

Basically their pitch works like this, "You place the deposit with us and you get 100 leads. If you call all of those and do not close a loan you get 100 more ... until you close a loan. Your money just stays on deposit until the loan closes and we trust you to tell us when you've closed a loan. Simple, right? Ready to get started? I can put that deposit on your credit card ... "

Uhm, no. 

And, imagine this, I found a mortgage company with an advertisement online saying they will pay 25% for every lead that closes: "We will pay you 25% of every deal that closes. All leads must be exclusive to us. We DO NOT pay per lead, so don't ask. Only bid if you are serious, and have experience in this calling area." 

This article is Copyright©2007 Ken Cook

So it's just a little "gray" area that will never harm anyone. Maybe I'll just let it slide so I can get the commission from this deal. After all, how will anyone ever know?

For those of us serious about eliminating fraud and mitigating the damages to our industry and indeed our nation a statement like that is a Call To Action. Younger ones may have a more difficult time controlling their zeal when explaining how gray is not harmless and how it is just that attitude of letting things "slide by" for the sake of a paycheck that help perpetuate real estate and mortgage fraud.

Let me go back a few years to Mr. Velázquez, a former employee for some four years. Mr. Velázquez was trained in the industry by a real pig. I mean this broker treated his employees like yesterday's trash, threw items around the office, and *alledgedly* allowed and participated in mortgage fraud. (This was later evidenced through the revocation of his license. Unfortunately he somehow got that license back under a new name. Never quite figured that one out. But I digress.) 

Mr. Velázquez had been working with a client  to get a loan closed for about two months. The client had been shopping for a home and had finally found one. Mr. Velásquez's wife was the buyer's agent and this had all been disclosed. The couple stood to make about $7500 total commissions from the transaction and they had literally put all of their eggs in this basket. This paycheck meant they would be able to go to Mexico City so Mr. Velásquez's mother could see her grandbabies for the first time. And he had not seen his mother for seven years. This was a big deal.

It was the morning of the closing and Mr. Velazquez came into my office and said, "I have to tell you something. This morning the man we are closing the house for called me and said he is afraid to go to the closing. I was trying to tell him not to worry because all first time home buyers get a little nervous. They get cold feet. Then he said to me, 'That's not it Mr. V., I made up my social security number that I gave you. I made it up five years ago.'"

My heart sank and I was so proud of this young man at the same time. He knew what it meant to tell me this. The loan was approved and the funds were already with the closing attorney. He could have closed that loan but he did not. He did the right thing even though it was hard. It took his family's entire months wages away from them but he did not feel saddened by that part. He felt saddened that this perpetrator had committed fraud that had stolen from the mouths of his children. In this particular case I allowed the LO to sit in my office as I filed the FBI report. 

Today we can quickly check a social security number and see if it is valid and registered to the person who presented it to us. Back in those days if it could be done we did not yet know of it. Today we would have discovered this long before this young couple literally poured their life into this deal. 

Now let me tell you how people discover things even when there are no confessions. If the man who had committed this fraud had gone through a divorce it would have been discovered. If Mr. V. had closed the loan and the client's cousin became angry because the client had a new home but Mr. V. turned them down the cousin could have reported it. If the client defaulted on the loan it would have been discovered. If the attorney who presided over the closing had been found involved in an entirely unrelated fraud but all of their files were seized and a team of prosecutors began their forensic journey it would have been found.

Today it is easier than ever to catch a fraudster. There are tools available today which were not yet a dream when the story I described happened. Know this: If you are working with a broker and that broker is working with a mid-level mortgage lender like my Novation Mortgage and that mid-lender is selling the loan to a bigger investor and that investor is selling to Fannie Mae, every transaction goes through quality control. So if the broker doesn't catch it or commits it we'll catch it. If we don't catch it our investor will catch it. If our investor doesn't catch it, FNMA will catch it.

Then there are random QC's on closed files. That's right, when we're "not too busy" I will personally pull some random closed files and we'll scrub them again ... sometimes just for training.

And here is the last rule that contradicts that old "honor among thieves" belief: they squeal. There is always a weak link and somebody is always going to start naming names and singing a song. If one birdy sings the whole flock is exposed.

And the prosecutor's method? Indict them all and somebody will sing.

So the next time you are sitting at a closing table staring at your commission check and you just spotted obvious fraud or the next time somebody is making an offer that seems too good to be true, do the right thing. Report it. If you're too afraid to report it yourself tell me, I'll report it.

If you THINK it may be fraud, email me. One of my most favorite parts of my job is Fraud Detection & Deterrence. I'll be happy to look for flags for you! 

This article is Copyright©2007 Ken Cook

I have been teaching and doing short sales for several years. Recently they have become the "hot topic" in the real estate investor market and suddenly everyone is an expert. Another edge I have over the "guru" world is that I am not only an investor and a trainer but my "day job" is as Director of Operations for Novation Mortgage and part of my job is as Quality Control and Loss Prevention Manager. That's right, I get to approve or deny short sale offers.

When we receive an offer on a property that is in the Default period the offer comes to my desk. Now unlike large national lenders I don't have thousands to review, I generally have one. But here is one of the steps that makes the process seem like it is taking forever. 

The Broker Price Opinion or BPO. Some lenders actually use a listing agent to go view the property and give their evaluation. Others use an electronic AVM which some smart data providers like First American have started labeling as BPO's.  My preferred method is an experience, reliable, licensed real estate appraiser. Regardless of the method used by the lender you are offering to this process will take at least a couple of days and sometimes as much as a week.  This is one event that is beyond the control of the lender's Loss Mitigator as to how fast an answer is delivered. So no, we're not always just sitting on our duff's playing online golf at Nabisco.

Here is something YOU as a buyer or buyer's agent need to know and use about the BPO. You can contest the value. For example, if you know that there is a water leak in the roof that the evaluator did not discover you can show proof and possible get the value lowered. Same goes for mold or termite damage that may not be discovered during the evaluation. When you submit your offer to the lender make SURE you detail all of the disclosures from the homeowner to establish a more accurate value reflective of the condition of the property. 

Still don't know about Short Sales? Still missing this fantastic opportunity? Well, what are you WAITING FOR?

When:

Wednesday, June 13, 2007, 8:00 PM

Email KEN for more information

678-946-0100

Where:

ON LINE

   

CLICK HERE TO RESERVE YOUR LINE NOW - You need a phone and a web connection. If you want to have 10 friends come over and participate it's still only $39.95 because the fee is PER LINE.

 

Description:

Unlike most First Time Home Buyer's "seminars" this online EVENT is not designed just to get you to use the services of one particular individual. Over the years Ken Cook has been keynote speaker, trainer and host of hundreds of training events and has been providing First Time Home Buyer TRAINING AND SUPPORT since 2001.

Because Ken is in the industry every minute of every day and because he and his team are constantly speaking with and providing services for first time home buyers, and because Ken has been a first time buyer, a first time investor, a first time builder, and a first time jumbo home buyer, he has run the gauntlet and teaches with professional and personal experience.

While the inhouse events are booked with no charge the small fee for the ONLINE event is to ensure reservations are kept. The good news is your small fee can be credited to you in the event you do use the services of one of Ken's companies within the following 90 days. And we're only talking about $39.95.

THIS EVENT IS FOR HOME BUYERS (there are seperate events for mortgage brokers and real estate agents).

What you will learn from the comfort of your own home:

How to find the home right for you
Whether or not to use a licensed real estate agent
Choosing the TYPE of home (construction and designation) right for you
What an agent does for you
What to do if you change your mind after you make an offer
What to expect for home maintenance needs
Deciding whether or not to buy a home warranty
Unexpected expenses you will almost certainly encounter
What do you mean I have to buy the curtains and rods?
Sniffing out problems such as mold and termites
Indepth explanation of the LOAN PROCESS
How to know if you are getting the right loan at the right price for you
How mortgage brokers and loan officers get paid
How credit affects your interest rate and loan terms
How the property type, price and condition affect your interest rate and loan terms
Why some mortgage companies advertise really low rates and the dangers of those loans
Understanding your credit report
Building or repairing your credit situation
Guarding your credit during the approval process
Understandint the appraisal process and how it affects my purchase
What happens at the closing table
Whether or not to demand your closing attorney of choice
Much MUCH more!

The online event is very fast paced and requires approximately one hour of your time. It begins at 8:00PM Eastern time so most of the nation can participate. You will be able to "raise your hand" and ask questions at the end of the session.

You will get:
A copy of the presentation in PDF format
Access to the audio recording of the event
Email updates about changes in the market
Ongoing support via email even if you do not use our services

Event fee:

$39.95 per line

This is the long awaited follow up, nearly 24 hours, to the posting Three Reasons to Sell NOW!!!

But first a bonus story ...

I found a funny today while I was out driving for unlisted distressed properties. It was a home for sale, by the owner none the less, that has been for sale since I purchased a fixer-upper around the corner last September. My wife was riding with me which is a rare treat since she has no affinity for fixer uppers. When we approached the home I said, "I bet they want $165,000 for that property. That's why it is FSBO and still available." She noticed there were some fliers on the sign and asked me to stop so she could get one.

This neighborhood comps between $85,000 and $140,000 depending on which street you are on. This one does happen to be on the $140k street. Asking price? $179,000. Reason? A major misconception on the part of the seller, or rather a GROUP of misconceptions. 

The first misconception is that their home is worth more than any other home in the neighborhood. The home lacks curb appeal and is outclassed by at least one other home withing eye's distance. There is no landscaping, the grass is browned, the soffets and eves need attention, the trees and shrubs are growing wild. It is, to say the least, unattractive to any prospective buyers.

The second misconception is discovered far too frequently and difficult to explain to an open minded buyer much worse to a stubborn buyer. Rooms below grade do not count as rooms - they count as finished basement. So this 5 bedroom, 3 bedroom home is, in reality, a 3 bedroom, 1.5 bath home with a finished basement. 

The third misconception is that just because DiTech loaned them more than their home is worth that they can sell it for more than it is worth. In fact, if they don't sell it for $165k or more, they'll be bringing money to the closing table. Actual value of this home is about $135,000 and the payoff is $162,550. So if you are in this shape and you need to sell bring cash because it will cost you to sell. If not, however, here are three ways I have used to move properties in depressed neighborhoods for a price the other sellers were glad to see!

LAW NUMBER ONE - Curb appeal. If they don't like what they see when they drive by or see the photos online you'll never get YOUR offer. What you will get is an investor like me offering you pennies on the dollar.

LAW NUMBER TWO - Prepare the property for sale. We've been doing this for years and finally someone started calling it staging and put a trademark on it. Call it whatever you want but get a handyman out and repair all those little things. Hire a professional cleaning company with experience to clean every crack and crevice in the home. Get one of those resurfacing companies to do the tubs, caulk and stainless. Paint everything that has a custom paint color on it. And for Pete's sake, keep some FURNITURE in the house!

LAW NUMBER THREE - Don't try to sell your home for what YOU think it's worth. Sell it for what it IS worth. If you obey the first two laws the third law will happen pretty much automatically. But the biggest error I see from most sellers is ...

BONUS!!! LAW NUMBER FOUR - Use a Licensed Real Estate Professional to sell your home. But don't just pick any old agent and expect them to get the job done. Interview them. Get referrals. DO NOT USE YOUR COUSIN'S, HUSBAND'S, BOSSE'S DAUGHTER just because they are referred! Interview them. See if they are on your team or if they just want to have a listing to get more phone calls from buyers so they can convert them to clients, too. 

Before listing your home I would strongly urge you to pay for an appraiser to do an appraisal on your property. Here again, find a reputable appraiser with a lot of experience in your area. While real estate brokers may give you an opinion on the price it will not be acceptable to the lender. If the lender will not make a loan on your property to the value you have determined there will be no sale unless the buyer has cash or really bad financing. 

If you have never read my writings you may need to do so after reading this so you will better understand the horse to which belongs this mouth. More specifically I am writing from My Own Little World. In other words what I write here is applicable to many areas in which I operate, but not all, and possibly applicable in your area as well. So, sin embargo, here is the dope on Three Reasons to Sell NOW!

1. Interest rates are going up. They have been trending up for the last few weeks and one key FNMA product that has helped many people qualify who may otherwise not have done so is going up at least one percent in rate. This means even less people will qualify to purchase your property.

2. Housing values are in a correction cycle which means, in most areas, housing prices are declining. Here again this means if you do not sell now you may not sell in the future, will certainly have to make additional mortgage payments or have to even more drastically reduce your listing price.

3. There is plenty of excess inventory on the market today. In metro Atlanta alone there are nearly 110,000 LISTED vacant units. In addition there are thousands of UNlisted properties. If yours is one of those you need to sell NOW!

Having viewed over 2000 appraisals in the last couple of years on homes that have sold I can, and will, provide Three Tips on HOW Sell NOW!

To learn more about selling, buying, investing, leasing, short sales, REO's, cash flow, etc., visit my new calendar for online and live presentations, classes, work shops and webinars. 

My grandfather was born in Sebewa Township, Michigan in 1880. I was just thinking of him last night and of how many people there were on this planet when I was a boy who were born in the 1880's, 1870's and even a few from the 1860's. Now there is barely a soul left from the 1890's but there are a few.

It was a time when words were shared more personally. There was no television, no radio, few magazines and newspapers were thinner and less frequent. So when a person spoke it meant more.

My grandfather was a "wild one" in his younger years but when he was about 45 he became a Christian and then a pastor. He helped build his denomination, Church of God (Cleveland Tennessee variety) throughout the midwest. He was a great speaker and was called to speak on many occassions throughout the midwest and beyond.

He had some advice for a young boy born nearly 80 years after he had been born and it was simple and it stuck. Three "ups" that echo in my mind every time I prepare a speech, address or presentation. 

Stand up.   Speak up.   Shut up. 

There is at least one thing every person I have ever met has in common: we all have to eat. Like the commercial says, "You gotta eat. Who do you think you are? You won't get far. You gotta eat."

Agreed! I eat about four times every day. Breakfast, lunch, dinner and a late light snack - usually. My wife eats three times a day. Everyone who works for me eats at least once every day that I know of and they probably eat two or three other times as well. All of my clients eat and sometimes we eat together. Every Friday my staff eats lunch together. Today I went home and grilled dogs-n-burgers. We ALWAYS have a great time at lunch. Right after lunch I hand out paychecks and the people are free to go or stay and work. It's just one of those things you don't want to leave.

When I do a seminar there is always food there. Almost always we have cheese, crackers, cold cuts, grapes, apples, tea, soft drinks, and water. The same goes for my monthly Real Estate Investor's Meetup. It's just one of those things you don't want to leave.

Then there is that once per year open house where I go all out. I usually grill about 24 pork chops, 5 or 6 full racks of ribs, 6 chickens, some corn on the cob, and a whole load of sides and drinks. Agents, investors, appraisers, office neighbors and more show up and we always have a real blast. It's just one of those things you don't want to leave.

At Christmas we have an office party and invite agents and clients. We exchange gifts (White Elephant - if you've never done it do. It's a hoot!) Of course there is more food than you can eat. We have ham, turkey, salad, the whole spread. It's just one of those things you don't want to leave.

Then there is the Christmas party at our house. Catered by a fantastic local restaurant with chauffeur driven limousines to deliver our guest right to the door. Food. Oh my word ... food for miles. Agents, friends, family, co-workers, attorneys, appraisers, and clients all tossed in there together. And we have a BLAST! Party starts at 7:00, dinner at 8:00 and the last people leave around 1:00 or 1:30. It's just one of those things you don't want to leave.

So the next time you are having a "meeting" try to include a little "eating". Don't worry too much about what to have. If people want whatever you put out they will take it. If they don't want it they will more than likely say, "Oh, I wish you would have had some tofu and orange peels. But this is great!"

Unless of course my attorney is there and then he would walk around saying, "I can't eat that. No, I can't eat that. I can't eat that either. Now you KNOW I can't eat those." But he would still say, "Wow, Ken. Awesome spread!"

It's just one of those things you don't want to leave.

Of course it's really nothing new but it's new to a lot of people doing short sales. Once upon a time there was a very hot real estate market pretty much across the nation. If a home went into foreclosure it went all the way to the courthouse steps because of many reasons - mostly lenders really didn't have to sell short.

So What is the Change?

Talk has been going around on the lender side for weeks about starting the bidding short at auction. In other words where auctions on first mortgage foreclosures were generally started at the first mortgage payoff price more and more lenders are going back to The Old Way and opening the bidding on properties short of the payoff. Now for those of you who have been in that side of the industry for a while (a decade or so) you'll know this is nothing new. But for the past 4, 5 or even 6 years most auctions were opened at payoff of the first mortgage balance.

A Word Of Caution

Don't let this change your approach to short sale investing. Firstly if you can successfully negotiate a short sale pre-foreclosure you're helping the lender and the homeowner by preventing that foreclosure. You will also be helping yourself because there will be no bidding competition - just you, the homeowner and the lender. 

Still don't know about Short Sales? Still missing this fantastic opportunity? Well, what are you WAITING FOR?