Buying Distressed Properties

There are 3 main ways to buy distressed properties.

Foreclosures, short sales and real-estate-owned (REOs) are all distressed properties but aren’t all the same.

The three types of distressed properties do have similarities. For instance, most short sales are foreclosures, however not all foreclosures are short sales. To further complicate matters, REO’s are not short sales but some intended short sales can end up as an REO.

Here are the basics about these distressed properties:

Distressed Properties-Foreclosures:

A foreclosure is official when the notice of default has been filed in the public records. It means the owner has stopped making mortgage payments (usually behind 2 or more payments) and the lender has given notice that unless the payments are brought up to date, it will sell the property to the highest bidder.

Not all homes that fall into foreclosure go to public sale because owners have the right to make up back payments up to a point, the time which varies from state to state.

Foreclosures are typically profitable real estate deals because investors and home buyers buy the distressed properties for the amount owed, picking up the home owner's equity for free.

As an investor, before you decide to buy a home in foreclosure (in California) by making up the back payments to the lender, giving the seller a few dollars and recording a deed, call a real estate lawyer.

Distressed Properties-Short Sales:

A short sale is when the lender agrees to accept less than the amount owed on the mortgage for distressed properties. This happens after a distressed property goes into foreclosure but before the distressed property goes to public auction.
Investors can typically buy the home for even less than a foreclosure because investors are not paying off the existing mortgage or paying back payments.

Sellers don't need to be in default and it isn’t necessary for the properties to be distressed in order for a short sale to occur. For a buyer who wants to occupy the home, buying a short sale makes financial sense.

Distressed Properties-REOs - Real Estate Owned:

REO or real estate owned distressed properties are similar to short sales except the property has already been repossessed and is by the lender.

Lenders usually end up owning distressed properties if nobody bid high enough (to cover the mortgage owned on the property) when the house went to public auction.

Generate real estate leads using direct marketing

The are endless types of direct marketing that can all be used to generate real estate leads for real estate investment companies. Each type of direct mail is used to attract different types of real estate leads and to market different types of real estate solutions.

Direct mail can create real estate leads fast if used effectively. However it can also be a huge waste of money if you chose campaigns that don’t work.
Some common types of direct marketing are: direct mail (post cards, mailings, all in one mailers), direct email, personal selling, and telemarketing.

In order for direct mail to be effective at generating real estate leads it has to make an impact. You want potential customers to look at it, not think of it as junk mail.

Once the homeowner reads it, you need them to take a specific action. The direct mail should make it easy for the motivated seller to respond to the offer. Follow up is integral either by sending additional mailers or telemarketing.

To perfect your direct mail marketing plan geared towards generating real estate leads you need to answer these 5 questions:
1. Who will you target?
2. What do you want to say?
3. What format should you use?
4. How will you follow it up?
5. How will you track the results?

All marketing should be tested in smaller markets to learn the return on investment. If you can’t seem to perfect your marketing system or if you want to save time and money have Wehavehomeleads.com generate quality real estate leads for you.

To learn more visit www.Wehavehomeleads.com.

As a real estate investor looking to generate real estate leads what option is the best for your company

Most real estate investors are guilty of avoiding marketing or putting it off because they don't know where to start. A lot of companies start by "branding" in the hopes of getting more business, only to be told that they must do even more "branding" to be successful. A focus on generating real estate leads means getting results from every ad, mailing piece, or website page that is placed. Real estate lead generation doesn't have to be difficult, as long as you have the right ideas to put into action.

Real estate investors have lots of options when it comes to motivated seller lead generation marketing. Part of your real estate lead marketing strategy should be to put into action ideas that you know will generate leads. Take time to understand your market and how you can contact motivated sellers that need your help, using the right messages. Take into consideration the following marketing ideas to generate more seller leads and start closing more deals and making more money.

1. Place ads on transactional words- Instead of placing pay per click ads on generic words like "real estate leads" consider placing ads on transactional words. These keywords are often over looked and will result in leads who will act quickly. Adding transactional related keywords like "buy" and "purchase" such as “buy my house” or “purchase my house” will help you to focus on motivated sellers who need to sell now.
2. Send a postcard around a popular listing - In any market there are motivated sellers that receive multiple real estate investor offers. Send a postcard to the closest 200-300 homes in the area. Don't send a postcard that states that you are a "neighborhood" expert; rather send a postcard that focuses on avoiding foreclosure and avoiding bankruptcy.

3. Place a new magazine ad - Magazine ads are often one of the quickest seller systems that you can implement. Don't place the traditional magazine ad about your company; rather, put a series of homeowners that were able to sell their houses to you. Include powerful wording that will compel motivated sellers to pick up the phone to get help. 100 phone calls can easily be turned into 6 or more deals when you use the right scripts.

Real estate lead marketing doesn't have to be expensive; it just has to work. Too often ads are placed without the concern for what the return will be.

If you don’t want to worry about real estate lead generation or marketing, you can have Wehavehomeleads.com send real time leads from your area to your inbox daily. There are no contracts to sign or long term commitments and they guarantee your success. To start getting leads immediately visit www.wehavehomeleads.com.

What is a good investment?

Just this week I was chatting with a business associate and friend of mine that owns a real estate lead generation company about a potential business opportunity that I have in the works. After spewing 10 minutes of details on him, he responded, “Your first sentence answers your own question.” Once I thought back about my first sentence, I realized that I could easily make back my investment money immediately-so yes it was a smart decision. I could save exorbitant amounts of time and have a much better chance at success for a small monthly fee.

All too often we think or stress about particulars that really aren’t necessary when making intelligent business decisions. Keep it simple.

He told me he keeps it simple when explaining how his service can launch real estate investors into unparallel success. His company offers a completely different product than I was looking into but the investment decision is the same. He offers motivated seller leads for a low fixed price that allow investors to make deals and profit that immediately exceed the cost of the service. For his customers the equation is: (real estate investor + endless motivated seller leads from www.wehavehomeleads.com) - low month to month fee = huge profit and success that exceeds the cost of the service.

The equation is the same for me: plusses far exceed the negatives.
This type of epiphany is exactly what blogs are for!

What can a Real Estate Lead Generation company do for you?

A real estate lead generator is a service that connects motivated sellers with real estate investors.

Real Estate lead generation involves connecting with homeowners that are desperate or very motivated to sell now. The real estate lead service is contacted by the sellers asking for help in finding an investor to buy their property.

The lead generation company asks tons of questions and compiles detailed information regarding the seller’s situation, property, and mortgages and listing status. This is VERY helpful to investors because it saves them time. The investor not only doesn’t have to spend the time asking questions, the lead information also allows the investor to know their purchase strategy before ever speaking with the seller. We all know that time is money in business.

Once all the information is gathered a team of real estate lead professionals decide if the lead is quality and has enough equity to send to the subscribers. If so, the real estate leads are emailed to the subscribers in real time. If not, the leads are tossed and considered a waste of time. Endless amounts of time and potential profit are spent and wasted on marketing attempts to find real estate leads. A real estate lead generator guarantees quality leads in your area will be emailed to investors daily.

For most investors, it is a great idea to use a real estate lead generation service. It is equivalent to hiring an entire team of marketing and real estate lead qualifying professionals. This allows the investor a fixed monthly cost for marketing with a guarantee of success, more time to focus on closing deals and making more money!

I learned about this process by interviewing Art Smith co-owner of Wehavehomeleads.com. He warns that not all real estate lead generation companies have the same high standards and/or as Wehavehomeleads.com.