Rene Bayani

I just want to take the time to notice and send prayers out to all the people who's homes, property and lives have been affected by the rain storms that have circled Southern California over the past 5 days.

As I watch the news, I see different people who have been evacuated from their homes as the threat of flash floods and mudslides persist. I also see people whose homes and vehicles have been ruined by property changing (and in some cases irreversible) water damage.

There is never a good time for any of these things to happen - but especially more so during the holidays.

We definitely needed the rain in SoCal (although not all at the same time)...but never-the-less, to all those who have been affected, my prayers go out to you and your family. I wish that your lives will return to "normalcy" soon and that 2011 will bring all the prosperity life can offer.

Michael Davar

Realty One Group - Discover Short Sale Team

www.discovershortsale.com

In a state like California, where most of foreclosures occur by way of trustee's sale, as opposed to judicial foreclosure, if you request a loan modification from the lender or its servicing agent, the trustee may cancel or postpone the sale date, while your loan modification request is under consideration. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean it puts a stop to the foreclosure process. More often than not, your lender has mutiple departments (i.e. loan modification and foreclosure departments) that do not necessarily communicate with one another about what the other is doing. While the loan modification is pending approval, a borrower needs to confirm with the lender and the trustee that the sale date has been postponed. Many borrowers are falsely misled to believe that the sale date has been postponed, only to find out the trustee conducted the foreclosure sale when they get a three day notice to quit posted on their door.

The only way to protect yourself is to verify with the trustee in writing that the sale date has been postponed. Even if the loan servicer or lender tells you that the loan modification is pending approval, a prudent person will verify it in writing. Documentation that the lender and trustee have agreed to postpone the sale date to a date certain is vitally important in the event the servicer does not communicate with the trustee that the sale date is to be postponed. If the foreclosure sale is conducted and there is nothing in writing, it's your word against theirs, and basically, you've got an uphill battle to set aside a foreclosure once it occurs.

Regardless of your loan modification status, the best decision you can make for yourself and your family is to have a plan in place that will be in the best interest of your family's future financial standing. Anyone going through a loan modification process should seriously considering a short sale to avert a foreclosure sale. The best course of action is to have a plan of action. You should plan in advance and prepare to move forward with a short sale incase your lender decides to deny the loan modification request, can't give you a decision, or won't respond to efforts to communicate regarding the status of your loan modification request or confirm that the trustee's sale has been postponed or cancelled. There are many benefits of a short sale that far outweight the negatives of a foreclosure.

Unlike a loan modification, a short sale, if done correctly, will have a definitive postponement date for your trustee sale and a short sale will likely provide you with significant extra time in your home.

If you would like more information on how to prudently plan around the possibility of delay or rejection of your loan modification, please contact The Discover Short Sale Team at Realty One Group today.

www.discovershortsale.com

info@discovershortsale.com

(877)REO-2299 / (877)736-2299

Realty ONE Group - Discover Short Sale

4010 Barranca Parkway Suite 120, Irvine, CA. 92604

https://sites.google.com/a/discovershortsale.com/discover-short-sale-9-07-10/Lender-Workout-Solutions/Loan-Modification/alert---truths-about-loan-modification

It's surprising to me to see how many agents and people in the real estate/banking industry consider December a "dead month" for conducting business.

Yes this is the holiday season. Yes there are plenty of people who are going on vacations to see family, play in the snow or lay out and soak up the rays of some tropical island. But why should that be used as an excuse for relaxing our efforts? Most of us here have chosen the career path of independent sales. We like to set our own hours (often long) and we like that our succcesses are directly related to our efforts. Because of this fact we cannot let up our efforts.

I am reminded of a story a friend of mine in retail told me about how he was able to achieve success through good times and in bad. Before Thanksgiving, he is planning for Christmas, before Christmas he is planning for New Years. Before New Years, he is planning for Valentines Day...then for Mother's Day, Fathers Day and every other conceivable opportunity to improve his bottom line. Why should any of us have any different work mentality.

We may be in a period when cold weather is upon us and things tend to move a bit slower. But if done right; even in the days of winter, seeds can be planted that will reap the crops of tomorrow.

For more information on how to avoid foreclosure visit www.discovershortsale.com

Email marketing can be one of the most valuable tools you have at your disposal when it comes to promoting your business, converting potential customers and retaining current customers. As with any other field, there are best practices that should be followed and things to avoid if you want to maximize your success. That being said, here are some facts to consider if you have not been devoting the proper alocation of time and resources to Email Marketing.

• According to the American Management Association, email has overtaken the telephone as the preferred method of communication among North Americans
• Jupiter Communications estimates that paper-based campaigns receive only 1% to 2% response rate on average and banner advertising averages below 1%. Email campaigns can receive a response rate of 5% to 15%.
• While traditional direct mail typically costs between $1 and $2 per piece, email campaigns can cost as little as pennies per piece
• Forrester Research found that campaigns sent using customer house lists achieve a 10% click-through rate. 2% of these click-throughs result in a purchase.
• Email gets results fast. You should expect to get 90% of your email marketing results with 48 hours
• The ROI on email marketing is 70% greater than any other direct-response marketing vehicle

TIPS on building your Email Marketing Campaign:

• Build a Permission Based List - this list will provide warm and hot avenues to spread your message and ideas
• Never Buy Email Addresses - Yes, there are companies that sell them (some more reputable than most). The problem is unless you implement a targeted campaign, you will likely get marked as SPAM and your message will get lost.
• Whenever possible - PERSONALIZE your message to your target audience
• Quality over Quantity - Its not how many people you can touch, its how many you can convert. 100 highly interested people will produce better results than 1000 random names.
• Keep the Subject Short and Informative - Self Explanatory. Remember the basic rule of K.I.S.S.
• Unsubsribe option - to the email blast somewhere visible on the email is a must have in the distribution of any email campaign.

www.discovershortsale.com

info@discovershortsale.com / (877)785-2299

This timeline shows what the state requires (per the California Civil Code) and the timing typically involved in the foreclosure process. The timeline starts with the recording of a Notice of Default (NOD) and goes through the Sale Date.

If you want to learn more about avoiding foreclosure and the short sale process please visit www.discovershortsale.com.

http://www.discovershortsale.com/Short-Selling-Your-Home/Foreclosure-Timelines/California-Foreclosure-Action-Timeline