Monthly Archives: March 2009

If you are considering buying a second property as a future investment, it is worthwhile considering let your property as a holiday home or holiday let. You may do this for either short term monthly income, or you may decide to substitute the monthly income for long term capital gain. No matter which you choose, as with buying or investing money into anything of great value, you would be very wise to make sure that you secure adequate insurance for you holiday home.

When it comes time to decide which holiday home insurance to choose, there are a few things that you should consider. If your second home is overseas or abroad, there can be different requirements to holiday homes in the UK. For instance, your property may have external buildings that are part of the main property, or your property may have a covered or indoor swimming pool. These things are not necessarily automatically included in the average holiday home insurance.

You might think that insurance is just insurance and decide to go for the cheapest. You can be excused for thinking that. Insurance is not always the easiest thing to absorb and understand especially if the insurance required is specialist such as holiday home insurance. To ensure that you find the most comprehensive cover, you must use a specialist in this particular niche, and one with several years experience. Using a specialist authority on holiday home insurance is the only way to guarantee getting the best cover at the best price, and with no ugly surprises.

Many people choose to buy a holiday home abroad or overseas – favourite countries being Spain, France and Portugal – and when they investigate getting insurance for their holiday home, they will often be directed towards the local notary or broker. While a notary or broker will be local to you to the holiday home, his doesn’t automatically mean they are the best person to deal with. Should you choose a foreign notary or broker, they should be fluent in English, and fully aware of all the potential issues with holiday home insurance.

It is important that your holiday home insurance policy is written in plain, easy to understand English, other wise what chance do you stand of actually understanding what exactly you are covered for. Because of legal obligations for all parties, insurance policies are typically written in ‘legal speak’, making them difficult to figure out. Having your policy written in plain English will guarantee that you are totally clear about what you are paying for, and what you will be covered for.

Buying holiday home insurance should be simple to arrange, your broker should be fluent in English and an expert or authority in holiday home insurance and your policy should be written in plain English and should be easy for you to understand. If you follow these rules, you should be able to find a really good broker who can guide through the intricacies of holiday home insurance, and one who can find you a really good policy with great coverage and a good price.

A Look at the Cash Flow Note Business

Heather, a friend of mine, flew in for her 40th birthday the other weekend.

We went to the Samovar Tea Lounge near my house, and over some white tea and salmon salad, we spent hours catching up.

It was blissful.

The think that impressed me was what she shared with me about a current project of hers.

I automatically thought about how it related to my Cash Flow Note Business. Because of the simple fact that the story had a direct impact on you, your life, and the way you interact with people in your community.

Heather’s Relation to The Cash Flow Note Business

Heather’s an artist, a very talented one, who has specialized in story-telling through different media. Very different from my speciality which is buying notes.

Her current project involves a Native American woman from Washington. She is a member of the Sakgit Indians, and Heather has been documenting the life and wisdom of this woman.

What she told me was that this woman was a community builder – a wise woman in her tribe. And when Heather interviewed this woman in 2001 before 9/11 – she told Heather that people were no longer “fulfilled”. They were “emptier and emptier”.

Heather proceeded to bring a Hopi poem about the Lone Wolf.

As I read the poem, I knew that I wanted to share it with all of you. This poem serves as wisdom to everyone, especially to those of you new to the cash flow note business.

Success in the Cash Flow Note Business, Words of Wisdom

Here is the poem…

“There is a river flowing now very fast. It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid. They will try to hold on to the shore. They will feel they are torn apart and will suffer greatly. Know the river has its destination. The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above water. And I say, see who is in there with you and celebrate. At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally, Least of all ourselves. For the moment that we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt. The time for the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word struggle from you attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration. The poem ends with the words: “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”

The Poem’s Relation to the Cash Flow Note Business?

This is how it applies to your note buying business.

a) The river flowing very fast is this new world of investing in nonperforming notes that you’re jumping into. You must be terrified.

b) The less adventureous will “hold onto the shore” while you you push forward.

c) Trust in the river – and that it has a destination – one that you’ll be able to reach if you allow yourself to “flow” with it. (example: multiple exit strategies for you defaulted mortgage business)

d) The time for the lone wolf is over, think of it this way, if you want to really succeed in your cash flow note business; you need to reach out to people, whether those be bankers, investors, real estate agents, or title officers.

e) You are learning how to swim in a river that is probably moving faster that what you are used to. It’s not a “struggle”. Because once you are able to stay afloat in you cash flow note business, you will master the lingo, master what a trade looks like, master the process and close your first deal! Let the river guide you.

Cash Flow Note Business Tip

The important lesson learned? “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”

Write that last line down. Print it out and put it on your bedside table. Put it on your desk. Tape it to your wall. Let it be the motto for your new Non Performing Note Business.

You can do whatever you put your mind to. You don’t have to wait for anyone.

Imagine the conversation: Me, meet Me.

A little realization shouldn’t be underestimated.

“the most powerfully creative moments for an artist are when we get out of our way, and just let our creative energy flow.” The words that Heather spoke.

Remember – you’re the one you’ve been waiting for.

Make use of all the wolves out there and get out of the river.

Are you not being able to repay the loan that you had borrowed in order to build your house? Are you thinking how to stop foreclosure St Louis? Are you thinking about whom to consult regarding how to stop foreclosure St Louis? If all your answers are a big yes then you are doing the right thing now. The following article would provide you with the complete information regarding how to stop foreclosure St Louis.

You can stop worrying about it completely if you are going take up these steps to stop the foreclosure. There are numerous consultancy services which provide highly effective services regarding how to stop foreclosure St Louis.

There is an option of availing a grace period for the borrower to pay back his loan. If the borrower still fails to repay the whole amount, there is no option left for the lender but to initiate the foreclosure process. Through foreclosure, the lender is capable of occupying the property and selling it to get his money back. The consultation with experts would help in such a situation and show you how to stop foreclosure St. Louis.

The stop in repayment can be due to several reasons including treatment of health hazard, nuptial settlement, loss in job, etc. Be it anything you are free to seek the help of the foreclosure consultancy services for how to stop foreclosure St Louis.

Once you cannot pay back your loan, How to stop foreclosure St. Louis becomes a tricky question. Short selling your home is an option where the lender agrees to take the proceeds of the sale as full settlement for the loan. However, if your home doesnt fetch enough, the lender will suffer a loss so they are generally reluctant to agree. How to stop foreclosure St. Louis then? You can try and sell your home now, and if you are lucky enough to be in a booming time, you may be able to pay off your debt and keep your credit rating from plummeting to the floor as well as get some surplus cash in hand.

When you ask How to stop foreclosure St. Louis, signing your home over to the lender forms another option which you may take. Doing this before the lender serves notice will preserve your credit score. Further, you get a deed in lieu relieving you of all debt. If you need help on How to stop foreclosure St. Louis, a number of foreclosure assistance centers are available in St Louis who can analyze your situation and tell you possible ways to make foreclosure stop.

Before you visit the consultancy firm, you can also try to talk to your lender about the problem. As a loan provider he would like to have his money back. In the event of a foreclosure the lender has to pay for the legal formalities and the amount of money retrieved after selling the house is also less than the original loan amount, so he faces a loss. Therefore lenders usually dont prefer foreclosure. This is point you can bank on regarding how to stop foreclosure St Louis. So if you approach your lender it might be that they provide you with a grace period or even fore go a portion of the loan amount.

Usually the lender prefers to provide a buffer time for the borrower to repay loan amount. They can also provide the borrower with other plans which will help him to repay the debts. Even if the lender does not does not comply with the above solution you can persuade them for a stay order on the foreclosure till you can make arrangement for the money.

Foreclosure can be pretty alarming and discouraging if you don’t know what’s going to happen next. You make it a lot less daunting by learning the steps of foreclosure. That’s the reason you need to find the time and energy to study the mortgage foreclosure process.

The second you miss that first mortgage payment, the steps leading up to foreclosure are launched. After a few weeks, you will receive a notice from the lender announcing to you that you’ve missed a payment. The lender will leave you alone if you pay the past due bill. If you stay in default, the mortgage company will call. They will declare that you are in default and they will require payment. If you’re going through this process right now, it is imperative you contact your lender.

If you reach your lender soon enough, you may get the opportunity to do mortgage loan modification. Taking this step can be one of the greatest ways to spare your family from foreclosure. When you’ve missed 3 months of payments, a lender can set the offical forecluse process in motion. It can take a little more time, but if you keep missing payments you will receive a foreclosure notice eventually.

The problems multiply when you get your foreclosure notice. There will be a court hearing about your case, but you will lose because you’re offending the terms of your mortgage contract. After that, the bank gets the right so sell your house via an auction. As soon as that decision is made, you only have days left to leave your house. The local sheriff will evict you if you do not leave the house voluntarily.

It’s important to speak with your lender before things get this far. Frequently you have the opportunity to use mortgage loan modification and rescue your home and family from foreclosure. Study the mortgage loan modification process and fill out the paperwork correctly to get the best chance of being accepted.

Seized property offered through government auctions and police auctions are a bargain hunters dream. The wide range of new and used merchandise sold is astounding, and the prices are as low as 10% of market value!

What is seized property? Most states have “seizure laws” in place. These laws allow law enforcement agencies to seize property that was used to commit a crime, such as a car or truck used to transport stolen goods or illegal drugs, as well as any real property that was bought with money acquired from the commission of a crime.

For instance, if a drug dealer uses the money he made from drug trafficking to buy a car or truck, even a house, it can be confiscated under the “seizure law”. Jewelry, furniture, computer equipment, art all can be seized.

The range and quantity of seized property sold at government auction is enormous. You can buy antiques, clothing, collectibles, tools, medical equipment the list goes on and on. Nearly anything you can imagine can be purchased at these government auctions or police auctions, for a fraction of their real value.

These auction goods can also be merchandise that was seized by Customs. The seizure might be for smuggling, or improper importation, even failure to pay import duties or taxes. The US Customs agency often seizes entire cargo containers full of property. Many times, these consist of brand new merchandise that was originally intended for retail store sale, and are now being liquidated through a government auction.

Government auctions and police auctions are held by hundreds of individual agencies, from federal government agencies like US Customs, the IRS, FBI, and DEA, down to your local city government and municipal sheriffs departments. Each agency conducts it’s own auctions, some online, some at specific locations.

So how do you find these seized property auction treasures? There are essentially two ways: first, you can look through listings, but you can spend countless hours as each agency holds it’s own auctions, and they can change daily, weekly, etc. Alternately, you can join a government auction membership site that puts all those listings together in one place. Membership sites vary, however, so before signing up make sure you check out reviews such as those found at Government Auction Site Reviews.

Seized property auctions are vast treasure troves of merchandise. If you are willing to put in a little time browsing through them, you will find literally thousands of “deals of a lifetime” on just about anything in the world!

Conveyancing requires dedicated course and skill. When it comes to the way of transferring deeds from one person to another once some property is sold; conveyancing definitely needs the aid of a solicitor. In case you have been involved in buying or selling of some property; a house or some land, you need to hire a conveyancing solicitor with the object to transfer your deeds successfully.

Although there are many such people who believe that involving solicitors is a costly affair, yet it has many pluses to it. To save on the money, people normally decide to take the DIY approach and do not hire a solicitor. Although this is the general trend, but many people are not aware of the intricacies of this issues. As the process calls for much documentation and paper work, it is always prudent to cling to a solicitor.

Sometimes when people decide to manage things themselves, they often end up spending more money in this process than to what they had to pay to a solicitor. In addition, if one is not able to manage the process properly, he or she may have to do the entire takes all over again. There are a number of benefits of hiring a conveyancing solicitor. It will not only save you extra money but will also save you from the hassle of managing all the complicated process of transferring of deeds on your own.

Since a qualified conveyancing solicitor is a skilled associate he is in a superior situation to administer things for you. Being well qualified allows the solicitors to take care of the total process much more successfully and capably than an ordinary person.

The conveyancing solicitors can suggest you considering your state of affairs. He can recommend you as to how to go about the paper work as well as other official procedure without making mistakes. In addition, he can also get the property scrutinised before you buy it. This will help you to know if there are any issues relating to it which could potentially lower its value in times to come.

Hiring a conveyancing solicitor also saves your time. This process is very time taking and much paper work. You have to do a lot in a step to step way. In case you do not know much about it, you may feel stuck whereas a conveyancing solicitor knows what exactly to do and when.

He can handle the whole thing for you. All you need to do is to visit him a few times and sign some main papers. That’s it! The rest is all the headache of your conveyancing solicitor. Conveyancing solicitor also have a meticulous system which enables them to track every customer they are dealing with. They know what to do after each step so there are no chances of any blunder. Being well versed in the field, they can also analyze any potential problems and thus administer them before time.

By taking care of all your concerns in a proficient way, a conveyancing solicitor ensures the whole procedure of transferring of deeds is done rightly. So you must appoint a conveyancing solicitor whenever you have the requirement, instead of taking up the challenging DIY approach.

Are you a California homeowner who is suffering from the downward rollercoaster ride? Did you enjoy the ride up the hill or did you enter at the peak of the housing market bubble? Everyone loves the ride up but hate the free-fall down. Luckily, there is a small silver lining in this current housing mess. Homeowners can benefit from a decrease in their property value by capitalizing on a unique opportunity to reduce property taxes.

Don’t hire expensive property tax appeal consultants who demand fees before they even start on your appeal. It is easy enough to reduce property taxes by demanding a property tax reassessment from your local assessor, and it is your right. California Homeowners can complete the process with a little hard work and can successfully file a professional property tax reduction appeal themselves.

California homeowners have a unique opportunity to benefit from a reassessment of their declined property values. Deadlines the are set by the counties of California may be prevent you from seeking a property tax reassessment if you wait too long before you file your property tax appeal forms. Be proactive and act now before the deadline passes and this golden opportunity is gone, and the tax year passes you by.

Don’t think of this property tax rebate as a gift or a benefit given by the state – it is your right as a California homeowner to receive fair taxation. Since home values have dropped dramatically in California, a reassessment resulting in a property tax reduction is almost a sure thing if you bought your home between 2004 and 2007. In most cases, the state increases your property tax every year at a capped rate of 2 %. In some isolated cases, your county assessor will approach you to reassess your home, and it does not benefit you to wait until this happens. Be proactive.

Just about all Californians have received those annoying advertisements from property tax appeal consultants asking for up-front fees to do something that they can do themselves. It has never been more true than now, that homeowners need to take matters into their own hands. The time for frivolous spending and hiring out simple tasks is over. Now is the time for residents to take action and weather the storm. It is possible now to save thousands on property taxes but it requires quick action to demand a property tax reassessment.

Do it yourself! There’s a growing group of California homeowners who are about to save thousands of dollars! You too can save thousands on your property taxes by filing an appeal yourself, but you have to take action and demand a property tax reassessment before it’s too late. If you need help, there are great programs out there that will show you what to do step-by-step and provide all forms necessary for your property tax appeal letter. Do it yourself and save $1000′s. Yes, it is possible to take the rollercoaster ride down and still survive the plunge.

Investing in Notes-A Common Question

When investing in Notes, one of the most commonly asked questions is: “Where do I find the list of banks that sell?” I know this because I have been asked the same question for the 58th time now, so it’s obviously on a lot of your minds. It was definitely on my mind when I finished my very first course on How To Buy Notes almost 4 years ago.

That was the only question I had for my instructor, Mark. By the time my 3 day workshop was done, I was so eager to get a hold of the list. I didn’t understand why he was waiting so long to give it to us. Why couldn’t he have just handed it out at the beginning of the course?

Banks That Sell Notes…The “Magic Binder”

When Mark handed it to me, I wolfed it down. I skimmed every page for nuggets, details, of every bank that “the Master” knew. And here’s what happened. Here’s what I did with that information…Exactly … nothing. Why? Let me walk you through what happened after the course was over.

a) For one thing, a good number of the banks werent in business anymore. (If Indymac was a bank I wanted to pursue, I would probably have a hard time trying to deal with the FDIC).

b) The phone numbers were just the main numbers for the banks themselves – which I had access to using Lane Guide or even Google

c) Some banks on the list didn’t sell anymore (so they told me – however whether they would mention something differently to him I didn’t know)

d) Banks NOT on the list did sell notes and defaulted mortgages

e) The name of the bank wasn’t enough. And whether they sold notes or not wasn’t as important as me finding the right person to talk to. The person to pitch.

And finally, here’s what happened to the list of banks, and that binder. It’s sitting on my bookshelf now. I’ve thought about copying it and distributing it – since it would probably be no less useful now than it was 4 years ago when I was leafing through it.

So Here is my Point on Buying Notes

The list of banks that sells notes and defaulted mortgages is huge.

And it’s based, in almost all situations, on who you know.

In fact, the people that know the list inside and out more than anyone are … Let’s think about this for a minute:

a) less than 3 dozen banks and lenders that sell notes.

b) The people I know well in this industry who run $1-50 million fund buy from less than 20 lenders in any given year. Most have less than 10 people that they buy from (or through – good brokers are a good find in this industry – treat them well)

c) An individual that I worked with in the past became very wealthy from one relationship. He spent 7 years buying notes from The Associates. They were his only seller.

d) All “professional” note buyers have one thing in common…

A Note Buyer’s Success – Their Secret

They know how to talk the talk. They know what the talk is, what to ask for, how to ask for it, and what to do with the information once they’ve found it. Did you just hear that? Did you get what I just said? Let me put it another way as a friend of mine once told me: “It’s not about what you know it’s about what you do with what you know.”

So picture for a moment that the most knowledgeable of all Note Buyers (think of this person as the Zen Master of Note Buying) and you are on the 20th floor of a New York City apartment building looking out over the Lower East Side.

The view is magnificent, but we don’t really hear the city at all, so she asks you out onto the fire escape. You crawl out through the open window, and there, with the noisy backdrop of honking cabs and the rumbling of air conditioning fans, she grabs your arm and points out to the high buildings all across the horizon. And then she says, in a hushed voice: “There they are.” You glance at her, quizzically.

“What?” you question.

“They are,” she answers. “The ones you are looking for.”

You look out to where her arm is pointing, but her arm is moving in a gentle arc all the way from your far left to your far right. Now, you’re really clueless. You’re about ready to ask her to explain what she means, but she cuts you off.

“You have doubts don’t you?” she says to me.

“Let me tell you a story.”

Her story is about a time when her master taught her where to look for the Fountain of Perpetual Notes as he called them. “Look for the suffereing”. These were the 4 words that her master spoke to her.

As she is pointing across towards the buildings, she whispers something to me. “Now…I tell you”.

“If you look for the suffering, you will find the Fountain of Perpetual Notes”.

She leads you back into the building.

Find the Fountain of perpetual notes. Look for the suffering.

All I’m looking for is a list of banks that sell notes!

The relation between Suffering and Buying Notes

There is suffering everywhere.

A few lenders exist that do not have non performing assets on their books.

There is a ton of lenders out there that are selling notes to all investors.

There are even more lenders that are being forced to sell notes right now, to investors they do not know.

There are many investors that are calling up those lenders asking to be put on the “list” of approved investors. If I were to give you the list of banks that I know sell, it would be like telling you to go pick a number and to stand in line at Katz’s deli at lunch rush-hour on a weekday.

So just go and “Look for the suffering”.

And approach this with the belief that every lender sells. It’s not a question of “if” – but “to whom”.

Also called equity line of credit loans, Heloc loans offer existing home owners an opportunity to draw on their existing equity and take out another loan. The loan amount given usually depends on the worth of your property and factors in your ability to pay back the loan in full. Heloc loans are popular for investment properties because they are ready available. But unlike with a traditional loan where one has to borrow the whole amount up front and then pay the loan back in stages, a Heloc loan allows you to take out money at your own convenience. You can do so with a custom made credit card or by writing a check.

Another thing to note is that each Heloc comes with a draw date, a loan expiry date. Usually these range between 5 and 10 years. Many Helocs these days are second mortgages. As long as you have existing equity you should be approved for a Heloc loan. Despite their usefulness, Heloc loans also come with plenty of risks.

Some of the Heloc loans actually need to be fully paid on the drawing date and this could mean you have to take out refinancing options which can quickly become expensive. Before you sign on the dotted line be sure to check all the small details of the fine print to avoid nasty surprises.

Another huge risk of taking out a Heloc loan is their close ties with the ARM, also called the adjustable mortgage rate. This rate is dependent on the national prime rates. Make sure you understand the possible implications a rate change can have on your Heloc loan.

One of the best things of Heloc loans is their ability to offer fast solutions for financial needs. It is quite common to see people borrow money on a Heloc when they need funds to pay for school tuition fees, home renovations, holidays or even to pay their credit card debt.

While they certainly are very convenient, Helocs are also dangerous. Some borrowers simply forget that they are expected to pay back their “advanced money” over time. Or else they short-change themselves with the wrong budget. This can become costly and might requie a refinancing loan later on. Be sure to design a realistic budget that can be executed, regardless of your situation.

Taking out a Heloc loan is certainly convenient and offers a ready solution for many needs. However, before you rush to get your own Heloc inform yourself about the possible drawbacks and speak to your financial advisor.

Whether a Heloc loan is the right solution for you depends entirely on your financial strength. It is advisable to think about this Before you rush into a situation you might end up regretting.

Get your Heloc facts right before you take out a loan. It might just be your best decision ever made.

Learn from the mistakes of others in applying for a mortgage loan modification. This will prevent you from making them yourself and might give you a bigger chance in applying successfully. Notice that the final decision is always with your lender, but if you prevent the mistakes subscribed underneath you will make it a lot easier for your lender.

A common mistake is that people who are applying for a mortgage loan modification are prepared in proper. They didn’t read the approval criteria of the lender, with the result that they don’t meet the criteria of the lender and are turned down. When you don’t prepare the whole process of the mortgage loan modification there is an enormous chance that the banks will turn you down after sending in the paperwork.

Be aware that banks will always check all the information provided by you. Make sure that you didn’t omit or neglect any information. If they find out, and they will, you will immediately be turned down by the lender.

All banks will always check all the information that is provided by the applicant for the mortgage loan. There is no use in neglecting or omitting information, because they will find out, if they do this means an immediate turndown of your mortgage loan modification.

Speak to the right person; be sure that you speak with the right people within the bank about your mortgage loan modification. Do not try to negotiate with the people who will call you up if you missed a mortgage payment, their only interest is getting the payment and they are certainly not interested in why you didn’t pay or your negotiations about your payment. Upfront fee; be sure that you’re dealing with a reputable company who handles his business ethically before transferring your money to them. It is not common to pay a large upfront fee.