Email Marketing - How To Automate Your Business and Investing

Try AWeber's Autoresponders for $1Being in Real Estate it is important to build up your "list" of potential
buyers and sellers. That way you will be able to help get deals done
faster and more efficiently for your clients.

Use an auto responder to Immediately Engage Your Clients, Potential Clients, and your Buyers

After you meet with a homeowner or potential buyer at first they require some special attention. They're eager to hear from you, but they don't know much about you and your company.

Immediately engage with them and keep yourself "Top of ther mind" so that you can build profitable relationships with them.

I really recommend using: http://www.AweberFollowUp.com

With Aweber you will be albe to automate ALL of your follow up.

Watch this quick video...


Try AWeber's Autoresponders for $1

How to Buy a House Step 1 "Get Prequalified for Your Loan" - Real Estate Mortgage Prequal

When Buying a Property many people ask, what is the first step, Should I Get Pre-Qualified for a Loan first?




The answer is Definitely Yes! Before you start looking to purchase a new home or condo, you should review your finances, discuss your home loan options, figure out how much you can afford, and get pre-qualified. Getting Pre-qualified is a simple process thatwill put you in a much better position because you will have the confidence to move forward with a purchase and it will give you significantly more negotiating power when purchasing.

What does it take to get pre-qualified for your loan? Not as much as you might think... With a short phone conversation, we can briefly review information about your employment, debts, income, and assets. We can also look at your credit profile, discuss your down payment options, and cover the different loan programs that can work for you.

Once you get pre-qualified, your loan officer will give you what's called a Pre-Qualification Letter. This letter states that, as your loan officer, they have reviewed your finances and can get you qualified for a loan up to a certain amount. The whole process is simple and to the point,the paperwork is kept to a minimum, and generally your loan officer can provide most clients with a "Pre Qual letter" within about 15 minutes.

Once pre-qualified then you can go out and find the home or condo that catches your eye. Once you and you decide on "the one", being pre-qualified for your mortgage will do a couple of things. First, it lets you know in advance how much you can offer. Second, your real estate agent(me) wil submit your mortgage prequalification letter with your offer so that the seller knows that a lender has reviewed your situation and that you can afford the home.

It puts you in the best possible position and gives you the most negotiating power when buying a house, so make sure you get qualified in advance.

Contact me if you have any questions or need any help,

Oliver Graf

Real Estate Expert
http://www.ThinkOG.com

How to Get More Real Estate Deals Tip 1: Legal Notices and Notice of Defaults

Legal Notices / Notice of Defaults

You can start to look for legal notices in small papers usually on weekdays. There are also legal newspapers in many communities that most of the general public is unaware of. Do a little research in your local community to find where you can find these free postings to prospect.

The County Records/Courthouse is another place to find these lists for free. Sometimes they can be a bit tricky to find so I'd recommend asking for help as soon as you get there.

The best place to go for the lists is the County Recorder’s Office or the County Clerk. Usually, there will be a computer or filing system that you can use to pull the most current recordings of default.

Purchasing NOD Lists: There are a lot of companies out there that can help you pull the list for you every day. These companies are great and they make your job a lot easier by pulling all the NODs for you as well as doing a reverse look up to find their numbers as well. Depending on the city of your choice you can find prices anywhere from $20-$140 per month.

If you decide to purchase these NOD lists it is important that they are selling you CURRENT filings. You do not want to be calling on NODs that are a month old. You also want to make sure that they include the Homeowner’s phone number. Some companies will sell you these lists without phone numbers. This is a big waste of time. Also, make sure they will send out new lists daily. You want to do your best to be the very first person to call the Homeowner. The early bird gets the worm. You will want this information as fast as possible every day.

For optimum results, combine your phone prospecting efforts with your mailing campaigns. Think about it... how powerful would it be to call or door knock a prospect AFTER they have already received a few of your marketing pieces. It will get you the deal every time and chances are no one else is doing it!

Make sure you track your NOD lists by date so that when you follow up on your mailings with a phone call or a door knock it is all organized in a manner to make your follow up easier. Write out your marketing plan for you list in advance and then follow it.

Remember...it can take up to 7 touches before you get the deal. Don’t stop short, keep calling, mailing and knocking your list.... The fortune is in the follow up!

Good luck, now go out there and get more deals.


To your success,

Oliver Graf
Real Estate Expert

How to work with Homeowners (for Agents Real Estate and Investors)

Currently over 25% of mortgages are over-leveraged,
meaning these properties are worth LESS than the amount
of the mortgage.

There is an estimated 7 MILLION foreclosures coming
down the pipe over the next few years, and right now
luxury homes are going into foreclosure twice as fast as
the medium-priced homes.

THIS IS A PERFECT STORM FOR YOUR
REAL ESTATE BUSINESS!!

Once you locate a potential short sale deal and you set
the appointment with the homeowner, there are three
major factors to understand...

1) Homeowners can be skeptical. Many of these homeowners
are in a short sale situation because of a loan officer that put
them into a bad loan, they were tricked into terms they did
not understand, or they got in over their heads.

2) They are most likely in some sort of hardship. It could be
anything from Job loss, to death of a spouse, medical issues.

3) They have a lot going on in their heads, particularly fear
of making a bad decision.

Learn to be there for them and come from a place of service.

Be real with them and educate them on what their options
are. When you put their interests first and show a strong
knowledge you will get the deal every time!


To your success,

Oliver Graf
Real Estate Expert

New FICO 8 Mortgage Score Now Available on all Top Three U.S. Credit Reporting Agencies

FICO, the nations leading credit score provider announced some big news....

A brand new FICO® 8 Mortgage Score

This new credit scoring model is designed specifically for mortgage lenders and focuses on providing a more precise risk assessment for the real estate market.

FICO® claims that the new FICO 8 Mortgage Score will reduce borrower, lender, and investor risk, and help support market stability

The FICO® 8 Mortgage Score will analyze the full credit history for the borrower and aids mortgage professionals in better predicting a borrowers risk so they can mitigate the incidence and high cost of foreclosure.

Take a look at this Exerpt from the FICO.com website...

"MINNEAPOLIS—October 26, 2010—FICO (NYSE:FICO), the leading provider of analytics and decision management technology, today announced that its latest credit scoring product, the FICO® 8 Mortgage Score, is now available from all three major U.S. credit reporting agencies. Mortgage lenders now have access to more precise risk assessment tailored for the real estate market, which can help support market stability and reduce borrower, lender and investor risk.

The FICO® 8 Mortgage Score was built specifically to help mortgage lenders better predict mortgage performance and improve credit decisions for both current and prospective homeowners. The score analyzes the full credit history on file to deliver significantly sharper assessment of mortgage repayment risk, and aids servicers in earlier identification of borrowers at risk so they can mitigate the incidence and high cost of foreclosure. Validation results have demonstrated an additional predictive value of up to 15 percent for mortgage servicing over the broad-based, all-industry FICO® Score used most widely today.

“The FICO 8 Mortgage Score’s broad availability means that all U.S. lenders and servicers can now easily access scores that are fine-tuned for mortgage performance,” said Jordan Graham, executive vice president of Scores and president of Consumer Services at FICO. “Moreover, by combining this superior predictive performance with the FICO Economic Impact Service, lenders are able to adjust policies and strategies quickly based upon forward-looking economic modeling. This is what we mean by the FICO analytic advantage: the ability to use the most advanced predictive analytics to compete and win in this highly challenging environment.”

“To do the best job of evaluating risk and increasing profits, lenders need updated credit scoring analytics that incorporate mortgage credit performance since the subprime mortgage meltdown,” said Craig Focardi, senior research director at TowerGroup. “The availability of mortgage credit scores across all three credit reporting agencies will enable lenders to upgrade their loan underwriting and account management practices.”

The FICO® 8 Mortgage Score retains the same 300-850® scoring range, minimum scoring criteria, authorized user and inquiry treatment as the general-risk FICO® 8 Score. To achieve its significant increase in predictive strength, FICO Mortgage Score assesses several additional data variables from consumer credit files to specifically predict mortgage repayment risk. Accordingly, FICO Mortgage Score includes additional score reason codes compliant with the Fair Credit Reporting Act that help lenders understand and explain the scores to applicants."

Full Post here: http://www.fico.com/en/Company/News/Pages/10-26-2010.aspx

How do you think this new scoring system will affect the Lending Industry?

To your success,

Oliver Graf

Real Estate Expert
Follow me on Twitter: Twitter.com/OliverGraf360



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The FHA’s 203(k) Rehab Program provides loans that cover Rehab & Renovation costs

Here is a great loan program if you are looking to do Rehabs or buy a property that needs work...

A little-known loan program for fixer-uppers

Home buyers thinking of purchasing a distressed property in need of repair, but who are concerned that the cost of the repairs could drain their savings account may qualify for the Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) 203(k) rehabilitation program.

MAKING SENSE OF THE STORY FOR CONSUMERS

* The FHA’s 203(k) rehabilitation program provides loans for covering renovation costs as well as the purchase price of the primary residence. Investors are not eligible for this program. Additionally, similar to traditional FHA loan programs, the rehab program allows for a down payment of as little as 3.5 percent.

* A common misperception about the program is that the house needs to be unlivable. Realistically, the property just needs to be outdated, according to a lender familiar with the program. The property “just has to appraise below market value and then at market value with the repairs.”

* Improvements deemed “luxury” are ineligible; however, the program has a wide range of definitions for “repairs” and “modernization.” Covered repairs include items such as a new roof or heating system, as well as decorative changes, like replacing vinyl with ceramic tile on the kitchen floor or painting the interior.

* In addition to putting down at least 3.5 percent of the current value of the property, buyers also must use a HUD-approved lender, appraiser, and a contractor approved by the lender for the repairs. One list of approved businesses can be found at 203kcontractors.com.

* Borrowers considering the FHA rehab loan program should be aware that loan rates typically run around a percentage point higher than conventional loans, and come in 15- to 30-year terms, either fixed or adjustable. Additional paperwork for inspection, appraisal, title updating, and the like can increase closing costs by $1,000 or more higher than the average.

* For additional information about the FHA 203(k) rehabilitation program, please visit http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/203k/203kabou.cfm

From Oct. 21st, 2010. Market Matters Weekly Advisory
Reprinted with permission of the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

How do you think buyers can benefit from this program?

How to Get More Business Today With These Simple Easy-to-follow Lead Generation Tips - For Real Estate Investors, Agents, and Brokers

How to Get More Business Today With These Simple Easy-to-follow Lead Generation Tips

Many people make the mistake of thinking that prospecting is about making the sale or closing the deal. You will rarely “make the sale” on the first call… It's about getting the chance to make the sale. The ultimate purpose of a prospecting call is to set an appointment to make your “pitch”. You should be focused on simply setting an appointment before you hang up the call.

Find out as much as you possibly can about the individual you are prospecting in advance. This gives you the huge advantage of being able to talk about their needs when you call them.

Always use your script on your prospecting calls (If you don’t have a script, make one! If you need help, feel free to contact me). This should be non-negotiable. Without a script, it's too easy to leave something out or get off track. Remember, after you practice and internalize the scripts this will become second nature to you.

The 5 Critical Points of Prospecting:

1) Selling is asking questions. Questions will help you find out everything you need to go for the sell. This is called question-based selling. When you ask questions, you come off more sincere, and it gives you the ability to find out more about your prospect. Listen to what they are saying and then present all the ways your product or service will benefit them.

2) Prospecting is a numbers game. We have all heard that every no gets you closer to a yes. We have to understand that hearing NO is going to be a big part of our business. The more NO’s you hear in a day the better you did, just keep on going for the YES! If you want more sales… you need to talk to more people.

3) You should set a goal for yourself to keep you on track. An example of this would be: 10-12 contacts an hour for 2-4 hours every day. This alone will get you better results than you ever imagined.

4) You can never lose a deal from too much follow-up. Remember, most sales will happen after several contacts. Don’t leave money on the table with the lack of follow-up. Set a follow up schedule for yourself and try to automate as much of the process as possible.

5) An objection is simply a question in the mind of the prospect that needs to be answered. So script out the answers to your 5 most common objections. Then you will be equipped to handle them as soon as they come up. Since objections never change, simply figure out the answers.


The best place to start is on the PHONE. The sooner you develop and learn your script and objection handlers the sooner we will be able to jump on the phone and get business. If you are persistent every day in making your minimum # of calls you can’t help but to succeed. Do it consistently EVERY DAY and you will receive a flood of business!


What creative ideas are you using to land more prospects?




Sincerely,



Preston Mattix
Real Estate Expert


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Real Estate Purchase
Real Estate Sales
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How to Make BIG profits Investing in Tax Liens

How you can Easily Make BIG profits with Tax Liens, One of the HOTEST investing strategies in today’s Real Estate Market...

As we all know, there are several big money investing strategies when it comes to Real Estate.

With rising interest rates and economic hardship, one of the strategies Investors are using to make big money in this market is Tax Lien Certificates. How it works.... if a homeowner falls behind on their property tax payments, which is currently happening all over the country, you have the opportunity to come in and pay off the back taxes (generally for not a lot of money) and make a great return on your money, and if the homeowner is unable to repay, you can acquire the property for pennies on the dollar!

Tax Liens and Tax Liens Certificates

Shockingly, there are certain individuals that do not like to pay their real estate property taxes. (hard to believe, right?).

The non-payment of taxes creates a serious cashflow problem for local governments because they count on the money from property taxes to supply vital services like police, schools, and new roads to their local communities. So when people don’t pay, it puts them in a bind.

Tax Liens solve this problem, by creating a win-win situation. By issuing a tax lien certificate, the agency needing the money from property taxes gets paid right away when you invest in a tax lien. In exchange for paying the taxes you will receive the government’s lien for taxes. Basically, you get the governments claim on the property for the delinquent taxes.

The Government wins because they get money now and can pay their bills, and you as the Investor win because you’re in possession of a certificate that entitles you to certain benefits…

Benefits of Tax Lien Certificates

Why would an investor want to invest in tax liens? Because when you buy a Tax Lien certificate you get some incredible benefits:

1) First, you get paid fantastic interest on your money. Not only is the taxpayer obligated to repay you in full, but on top of that they have to pay you interest on your money. This can be a great source of cash flow because depending on state laws and competition, tax sale investors can make returns anywhere from 15-45%! That’s a GREAT return on your money!!

2) On top of making great cashflow, if the property owner can not repay the money, you have the right to acquire the property for Pennies on the dollar! Since tax lien certificates are secured by real estate, if you as the investor do not get all your money back plus interest and/or penalties you (as a lien holder) have the right to acquire the property. Generally the foreclosure of a real estate tax lien will extinguish all junior liens including mortgages. Thus providing you with free and clear ownership of the property for pennies on the dollar!

This is why so many investors are making a killing in tax lien certificates. They've either got a chance to earn a high rate of interest on their investment (15-45%) or they've got an opportunity to buy a home at a fraction of its market value.

Finding Tax Liens to Invest in

If you're interested in finding tax lien information, here are a few links to do state-wide searches of county or federal tax liens and where you can access online tax lien information - both federal and county - for that state:

California: http://www.sos.ca.gov/business/ucc/

Hawaii: https://boc.ehawaii.gov/docsearch/nameSearch.html;jsessionid=3F5A44F36C8F7E0E7835BFA0A76759EE.kolea

Florida: http://www.sunbiz.org/lienlis.html

To learn how to make serious money investing in Tax Liens, I highly recommend the following course: Make Easy Money in Tax Leins - Click Here!

Sincerely,



Oliver Graf
Real Estate Expert
Follow me on Twitter: Twitter.com/OliverGraf360







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Real Estate Purchase
Real Estate Tax Liens
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San Diego Based Real Estate Blog

How to Successfully Launch a profitable Real Estate Business

How to Successfully Launch a profitable Real Estate Business

The hardest part of getting your Real Estate Investing business started is overcoming the fear of the unknown that comes with attempting anything new. Many of my students get stuck before they even start suffering from analysis paralysis. Getting caught in the train of thought that if they just buy one more seminar, they will finally feel confident enough to get in the game and finally start doing deals.

What we all need to understand is that fear will never go away no matter how many courses you buy, or how many boot-camps and seminars you attend. The only way to get over this fear is by actually getting in the game, you need to face your fears and execute! We do not need to start with huge deals getting started, or even any of our own money. So many times, investors think that they need to put everything on the line to get into real estate investing. That is so far from the truth, I did my first almost 50 deals without ever using any of my own money or credit. This are what everyone has heard of called "baby steps", everyone that is successful today started with baby steps. These are just stepping stones to growing a big investing operation like myself and my partners have. It all started with finally pulling the trigger and doing are first deal. Looking back on it now with over 300 deals under my belt, the only regret I have is not getting started sooner!

Here is an easy action guide for you to start using today, this will help you finally start working towards your goals. Follow these easy steps and you will be well on your way to being a successful real estate investor!

Attend a REIA / Meetup / Investment club meetings : Networking with other investors is the best and first step to starting your investing career. The people you will meet at these events can be a big help to you while first getting started. I always say that "Relationships are the only shortcuts to success". For a lot of us this can seem a little nerve wrecking in the beginning, but be rest assured that this is the most important step in starting your business. Another major bonus is that these meeting are usually free! If this is a big challenge to overcome, you might want to consider attending one of my events to help you sharpen your networking skills. Remember... you are always on the air!

Meet with successful Investors: Sometimes we need to see before we can believe. Meeting with an active successful investor will give you the inspiration you need to get your butt into gear. When I was first getting started I made it a point to meet and surround myself with as many of these people as I could. We have all heard that saying..."You income is the exact average of the 5 people you hang out with most"...so why are you hanging out with your broke friends? If you need help finding successful investors to meet with, a REIA or Networking group as explained above is a great place to start.

Take Action: The only way to invest in your first deal is by finding your first deal!! Whatever your chosen model is, you need to find properties to invest in. So if you are going to be looking for motivated sellers, then you need to get on the phone with sellers. The only way we can get better at talking to our clients is by talking to more and more of them. Practice makes perfect, right? No! Perfect practice makes perfect! Practice your scripts, roll play your scripts and get on the PHONE!! Read this very carefully...TAKING ACTION WILL MAKE YOU RICH!!

Getting starting and making money investing in real estate is not easy and anyone that tells you it is has not done any deals. If you want to be successful you need to be ready to get outside of your comfort zone and act in spite of fear! Because of this we must make sure we are always surrounding ourselves with the right people on a regular basis as well as feeding our mind positive thoughts on a regular basis. Make sure to check back for my next post on "The Winning Mindset."

What are you going to do to get started?


Yours in Success,

Sam Khorramian

Success Expert



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Real Estate Buying
Real Estate Investing
Real Estate Tips and Tricks
San Diego Based Real Estate Blog

Escrow Checklist - How to Close your Real Estate deals Easy and Fast with these handy checklists

Escrow Checklist - How to Close your Real Estate deals Easy and Fast with these handy checklists

Escrow Checklist – Closing Checklist - List of Items needed

Below is a great escrow checklist for closing your deals. When agents and investors start closing deals sometimes the details can get over looked. So as your deals start coming to fruition you will want to systemize things to make it easy. Take a look below at some of the Items that will be needed for most closing’s in CA (Other states will vary slightly). Print out the checklist below and turn it into a checklist for each one of your buyer/seller transactions. Put them in each file and check them off as you get the Items in, that way you can stay on track and make sure there are not delays as you progress towards a successful closing.

Seller Escrow Checklist

1) Escrow Instructions – Review with escrow officer and check for accuracy

2) HOA information (if applicable) – Get HOA information and find out if there are any problems with the building. Make sure a condo cert has been ordered. Get all contact info and payoffs.

3) Confidential Statement of Information – Must be fully and accurately filled out so the title company can complete their title search.

4) Certificate for 1099 Reporting – Make sure it is complete and signed

5) Affidavit of Non-Foreign Status – IRS requires buyers to buy from a foreign seller to withhold 10% of the purchase price from the sale proceeds, this form shows that they are in fact a US Resident and of “Non-Foreign Status”

6) California Real Estate Withholding Certificate (Form 593-C) – Completed. Determines if the seller is exempt from Franchise Tax Board. For additional Information call the Franchise Tax Board at 888 792 4900

7) Grant Deed – Signed and Notarized. Make sure the names match title.

Buyer Escrow Checklist

1) Escrow Instructions – Review with escrow officer and check for accuracy

2) Confidential Statement of Information – Must be fully and accurately filled out so the title company can complete their title search.

3) Insurance Information – The lender will

require at least fire insurance prior to funding. Designate an Insurance agent and supply contact information.

4) Preliminary Change of Ownership – Filled out and submitted to the County Recorders office at the time of recording the grant deed. Used by the tax assessors office.

5) Vesting worksheet – Showing how title will be held. Needs to be supplied to lender prior to docs.

6) HOA information (if applicable) – Get HOA information and find out if there are any problems with the building. Make sure a condo cert has been ordered.

What else are you using on your checklists, how can we make this list better?

To your success,

Oliver Graf

Real Estate Expert
Follow me on Twitter: Twitter.com/OliverGraf360



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Real Estate Purchase
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Real Estate Buying

San Diego Based Real Estate Blog

Buy a house and get $8,000 Back!!

$8,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit!

-The new American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 bill offers an $8,000 tax credit to first time home buyers!

-This first-time home buyer credit is available for people purchasing a primary residence on or after January 1, 2009 through December 1, 2009.

-The credit does not require a repayment.

-Many of the fundamentals of the credit will be similar to the act under the 2008 rules: The credit will be claimed on a tax return to reduce the buyer's income tax liability. If any credit amount remains unused, then the unused amount will be refunded as a check to the buyer.

If you are a First time home buyer, take advantage of this eight thousand dollar credit...this is a great opportunity to buy a piece of Real Estate!

Do you think that they should extend the credit, and why?


If you have any questions contact:

Oliver Graf
Real Estate Expert

Follow me on Twitter: Twitter.com/OliverGraf360




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Real Estate Buying
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Real Estate Tips and Tricks
San Diego Based Real Estate Blog

Buy Properties for under $10,000

DETROIT – Landlord Nation, where foreclosure notices are plentiful and there are at least 1,800 homes for under $10,000 that once were worth at least 10 times more.

In extreme cases, homes are on sale for $1 or less, which has enticed investors to Detroit from as far away as the United Kingdom and Australia.

"In the past few months, I've picked up 10 new clients from out of state that are buying in bulk," said Mike Shannon, a suburban Detroit real estate agent. His office specializes in foreclosures in a city that's among the national leaders.

"They're coming to us, saying `Look, I want to buy 50, 100, 1,000.' They want to own every decent and cheap house they can find."

Despite a stagnant retail housing market, real estate sales of foreclosed homes are booming. Agents regularly fields calls from eager prospects, and recently sold 30 homes in one day to one buyer. A trio of U.K. investors has bought a half-dozen and plans many more.

The outside investors aren't only interested in Detroit, but it's been targeted because of the sheer volume of homes and the fact that values have fallen so much more than elsewhere.

Detroit now has the lowest ownership rate for single-family detached homes of the 20 largest cities in the country, according to data analyzed by longtime Detroit demographer Kurt Metzger.

Even the sale of U.S. Housing and Urban Development homes has been impacted by the poor housing climate in Detroit. The average sales prices of such homes plunged from $46,702 in 2003 to $8,692 last year. Through the first month of 2009, average sales were $6,035.

Still, not all of Detroit's real estate market has bottomed out. Listings include a seven-bedroom, 11,580 square-foot Tudor in Detroit's historic Indian Village neighborhood for $849,900, and a $765,000 penthouse condo in the city's Albert Kahn Building.

What's the effect on a city whose population has plummeted to half its size since the 1950s with no sign of return? The winners might be the renters lucky enough to live in a home that's been fixed up by a legitimate landlord.

Click on the picture below and see this great resource to finding great deals, get HUD Foreclosed Homes now..




Where are you seeing the best deals?

To your success,

Oliver Graf
Real Estate Expert
Follow me on Twitter: Twitter.com/OliverGraf360


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Real Estate Investing
Real Estate Buying
Real Estate Foreclosures
San Diego Based Real Estate Blog