Rob Caldwell

What is “Passive Real Estate Investing”?

The “Hands on” component involved with real estate investing is not always necessary. There are some people (possibly you) that are not interested in the everyday “hands on” activities that is real estate investing. They want nothing to do with tenants and plugged up toilets in the middle of the night, contractors that don’t show up when they say, chasing down indecisive sellers and buyers, or don’t know the ins and outs of the business. However, real estate can be financially lucrative without being “hands on”. For that reason the HomeVestors of Asheville office has several programs to help investors become involved in real estate without getting caught up in the day to day activities.

Possible Passive Investment Scenarios:

• Total Investment Property management ~ Complete “Hands Off” Approach
  • Complete management and oversight of your investment property. We can find the property for you, help you close on it, manage the renovation for you, market the property for sale when ready and/or place a tenant and perform the Property Mangement

• Private Funding and Investing
  • Call for Details
    

• Equity Fund Participation
  • Call for Details

• Partner with us and become a… HomeVestors Associate Franchise!

HomeVestors Associate Franchise Program

Take advantage of HomeVestors NEW Associate Franchise (AF) Program! This program is attractive to those who want to work part time or passively in the business and in many cases, keep their current job or continue their active lifestyle without interruption. AF’s receive training from HomeVestors Corporate plus ongoing coaching from a local Development Agent (DA). AF’s have the opportunity to utilize the valuable HomeVestors “We Buy Ugly Houses” branding and advertising campaign which generates an ongoing supply of quality leads.

In June of 2009 the HomeVestors of Asheville office was awarded the designation of DA for Western North Carolina and a portion of Northern South Carolina. As a DA, HomeVestors of Asheville will work with, support, train and mentor AF’s to plug into a working and successful business model for the WNC and Northern SC area.

Why Become Involved with HomeVestors?

1. HomeVestors is America's #1 Home Buyer, instantly recognized across the country as the "We Buy Ugly Houses®" company.

2. This strong brand awareness, together with our powerful marketing strategy, generates a steady stream of leads.

3. World-class training and support for you.

4. A proven system for buying, rehabbing and reselling houses.

SUBWAY Founders, Franchise Brands LLC, acquires HomeVestors: UG meets Jared!

In July of 2008, Franchise Brands, LLC acquired majority ownership of HomeVestors® of America, Inc. A guiding resource behind Franchise Brands is brilliant billionaire franchise legend Fred DeLuca, owner of megabrand Subway sandwiches.

Franchise Brands, LLC is focused on working with franchisors to develop and expand their brands. The company is uniquely positioned to offer potential business partners franchising expertise and the opportunity to grow within an established development system.

Having the confidence of Fred DeLuca in the HomeVestors system speaks volumes about the strength of our brand and the future of our company! For more information about the relationship of Franchise Brands, LLC and HomeVestors, click here

For further information fill out a Request for Franchise Consideration or Contact HomeVestors by phone: 1.888.701.3888 or fax: 972.534.1508

Or, contact me, Rob Caldwell at 828-698-0191 or email me at Rob.Caldwell@HomeVestors.com

The franchising information contained on this page is for information purposes only and is not intended as an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, a franchise. We offer franchises only through our Uniform Franchise Offering Circular. Currently, the following states regulate the offer and sale of franchises: California, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. If you are a resident of one of these states, we will not offer you a franchise unless and until we have complied with applicable presale registration and disclosure requirements in your jurisdiction. HomeVestors is a franchise. Each office is independently owned and operated. All HomeVestors franchise programs are subject to change due to market conditions or availability of funds. Financing programs are not guaranteed by the franchise agreement.

I am now on Twitter and would like to invite you to follow me!

I want to keep you up to date with the happenings of our HomeVestors business, the local Asheville real estate market, and all new properties that we have available for you; in real time! (You do know that we only sell properties that are priced BELOW market value didn’t you?)

I discovered that Twitter is a good avenue for finding out all of the things I that I might want to look into more closely. The folks I follow on Twitter keep me up-to-date with the latest real estate trends, ideas, and topics. I get to pick and choose what I want to learn more about.

So, it occurred to me that this is a great way to keep you up-to-date on the local Asheville real estate market and our discount properties as they become available. I will also post links to articles, websites, blogs, webinars and anything else I think you find valuable; and you decide which ones you want to check out!

You’ll also learn a little more about me and – if you’re new to Twitter – something about “social media” in the process.

So if you already have a Twitter account, click on this link to follow me:

If you are not on Twitter yet, here’s what to do:

1. Go to www.Twitter.com

2. Sign up for an account. (It’s FREE!)

3. Set up your profile.

4. Now go to my Twitter page and click FOLLOW.

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• 2 Bedrooms (1 bedroom is a loft)
• 1 1/2 Baths
• Stone Faced Fireplace
• Wrap around deck
• 996 Square Feet
• .79 Acre

If you like the seclusion of the mountains, then this mountain cabin is for you! The gravel road leading to the house is about a mile long and is rough and bumpy! Smaller cars won’t contend with this road making this a deal killer for some. But if you have a car or a truck that can handle the road then you will only need to make a few repairs and upgrades to make this cabin a home.

The layout is very open with cathedral ceilings and a bedroom loft that overlooks the living room. The living room sits three steps below the kitchen giving it a “sunken” feel.

The structure is solid and well built but the Kitchen and Bathrooms definitely need upgrades. The downstairs full bathroom subflooring needs replacing and the rest of the house needs carpeting or laminate. (The subfloors are not hardwood).

The house is built on the side of a mountain and the lot is .79 acres. The only flat spot on the entire lot is the 2 car parking area. The open front deck looks into the surrounding woods.

This house is on well and septic. The well is a shared well with one other neighbor and there is a provision on the deed for maintenance and shared responsibilities.

This is a real deal for the right person! The After Repaired Value of this property is $120,000. Our asking price is $89,750. If you invest $15,000 in repairs and upgrades you will have an AWESOME mountain cabin with equity the day after you move in!

Call me today! 828-698-0191

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Much of the content in my Blogs will be about the company I work for and what we do. I have been with HomeVestors of America for over five years and one of the biggest challenges I have encountered is overcoming the assumptions of what we do. Everyone knows that we are the "We Buy Ugly Houses" people, but beyond that there is not much that the general public or even seasoned real estate professionals understand about HomeVestors.

For example, did you know that each HomeVestors office is independently owned and operated and that we are local residents of the communities we advertise in? Some people assume that HomeVestors is an out-of-state corporate entity that gobbles up real estate across the country.

As the Sales and Investor Relations Manager for the local HomeVestors of Asheville office, my job is to sell or lease the properties we own. We are not a Real Estate Brokerage looking for listings. We are the owner of the properties that we sell. And when we sell one of our houses, I construct a detailed process for marketing the property to get it sold in the shortest period of time.

First, I go to my database of buyers who have expressed interest in buying one of our properties. I give those folks first shot. Then I begin doing my own marketing through our web site, Craig’s List, and several local print advertising publications.

Of course I know ActiveRain is a gathering of mostly Realtors and I am sure some of you listing agents are just screaming right now, "Why don't you just list it?" Well, eventually we will list the property with a Realtor if I can't sell it through my own devices. But our company is a company built on relationships. We connect very personally with the people we buy houses from as well as the people we sell houses to. Here’s a good example:

Recently we acquired a property in West Asheville which is a highly sought out area of town. I immediately began marketing the property for sale as a wholesale “fixer-upper”. Within hours I was contacted by a young woman who explained that she and her boyfriend are looking for a house in West Asheville but they can only afford so much. She knew the house needed work but also recognized that even after the house was fully renovated, there was going to be considerable equity left over because of how we priced it. (We always leave equity for the buyers on all of our deals!). I met her and her boyfriend at the house and they liked it!

So now I have an interested buyer who likes the location, the house, and has been approved for financing. The only problem now is… who is going to replace the roof? How is the sub flooring in the bathroom going to get repaired? What are they going to do about the electrical panel that needs to be upgraded?

For us, the answer is a simple one. Through our preferred mortgage broker, Best Mortgage, we are going to help implement and facilitate a 203K-S Loan (often called the “Streamline K”). The 203K Streamline is a simple loan that does not require much of the documentation and steps that are required with the full 203K. Simply put the FHA 203K Streamline allows a Borrower to borrow up to $35,000 for repairs.

Since we have the experience in renovating homes, we are referring one of our battle tested general contractors to perform the renovations and manage to scope of work for this couple. The GC will take care of the big stuff and the couple will do some of the work themselves.

Some people might ask “why doesn’t your company just do the work and then sell the house?” We could. But in this case, I was marketing the house specifically to investors and ended up with an end user. They didn’t want us to do the work, they wanted to oversee and do some of the work themselves. This is an exciting endeavor for this couple. They are very excited about picking out their own cabinets, paints colors, bathroom fixtures, appliances, etc. This project is exactly what they wanted and we are glad to help.

This is just one example of how we sell houses. We are not interested in becoming a house selling mill; turning one deal over after another. Our success is built on the relationships we develop by working directly with people to help solve their needs whether we are buying the house, or selling it. Nothing is more rewarding!

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The Asheville housing market has proven resilient.   Historically, it has been one of the last markets to feel a downturn and the first to rebound.   Asheville is a destination market with a shortage of good, affordable housing.   I strongly believe there is a boom yet to happen in Asheville given the quality of life the area provides, temperate climate, relative home prices, and popularity with retirees.  Once feeder markets such as Florida and other areas in the Southeast, Midwest and Northeast recover and people are able to sell again, they will be coming to Asheville.  There are also a good many retirees who go to Florida then decide that the Sunshine State is not what they wanted so they pack up and move the Asheville.  The locals call them “Half-Backs”.

Here is a link to a segment that aired recently on CBS Sunday Morning.  http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5020563n   It’s a very positive piece and reinforces why I am bullish about the Asheville-area real estate market.  The segment features the developer of The Cliffs Communities, Jim Anthony.   His latest community, Southcliff in Asheville, will feature the first Tiger Woods course in the U.S.