Kathleen Woolrich

I was watching a video with Donald Trump talking about the intelligence of buying bank owned properties... Donald Trump is right on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MdMt_0e5Qs

I was amazed at what he had to say about agressively investing now. I made a bid last week and by the time I got there, there were 6 bids on one property and 30 on another. The market IS turning around for the savvy investor and its a great time to buy , thats for sure.. Smart people park their money in real estate....

I am sure that by now you have seen SUSAN BOYLE who sang on Britain's Got Talent. She was not much to look at and kind of low key but when she opened her mouth and started to sing, Simon Cowell's mouth dropped. I am kind of like that as a realtor. I am an excellent realtor but I am not the prettiest with the prettiest car and with the trendiest phone but boy oh boy do I know my market. So here is a toast to all of us "Susan Boyles" out there who did not get picked first in recess and maybe have not gotten all the breaks ( like a direct line to all the best asset managers or first in line for office leads) We may not be the flashiest but we can show and sell, even in this market. And I for one am hanging in there and selling foreclosures and making a rainbow out of a hell of alot of rain... Here's to the SUSAN BOYLES of real estate who may not look the fanciest but can belt out a song ( and sell a house or two in the hardest markets)

I am the mother of 4 children ( one in heaven and 3 here on earth with me) and I am working it ,guys

Kathleen

I have been a realtor in the Orlando area since 1995 and have literally sold all over central Florida from Polk County to Seminole to Lake and then up to Volusia and of course Osceola and my home county of Orange. I have sold about 40 million dollars of real estate, one 90 thousand dollar transaction at a time so as you can add and subtract, I have done a heck of a lot of business in Orlando and I know this town up and down. Lately I have been concentrating on foreclosure sales and short sales because frankly, that is what everyone is buying right now. The deals are hot. The prices are ridiculous but there is a lot more to buying foreclosures than bidding on them. You need a smart agent. I am not saying I am a good cook or have a sparkling personality but when it comes to real estate, I am as a friend said, a pitbull in lipstick. I know deals and I know Orlando and that makes me a really good asset to have on your side when it comes to buying or selling real estate in Orlando. You can reach me on my cell phone pretty easily and I will be glad to send you listings and give you the real scoop on Orlando's market.

I hear all this bunk about technology. You can be a technological whiz and not know a thing about people.

Realtors need to hold hands, calm down people and be a real friend in sometimes the hardest of times to their customers. Technology is important but people skills are much more important. I have been doing this full time for 14 years and I have watched people with incredible tech skills go down the toilet...The most important thing is that you care about your customer,really care about them and are an ethical person who does good business and treats each person like the special person they are.

The rest of the stuff is just bla bla bla as far as I am concerned and you can quote. I am here in the trenches selling houses and I say bla bla bla as far as alot of the techie stuff. Techie stuff is important but you have to mix a personality in there here and there and be more than someone attached to a computer

Kathleen

I have been a real estate agent for 14 years. I used to sell primarily owner occupied houses and work with sellers transferring,etc. Lately ,all my business has been foreclosures and short sale offers. Its a new world and as a very experienced agent with alot of my fellow agents gone or out of business,its actually become easier to work frankly.

Whats involved with selling foreclosures?

1.You need to know who the listing agent for the foreclosures is. If they have a ton of common sense, I am going to have a much easier transaction.

2.More than ever,knowing about loan products matters. You need to know as an agent how to get a deal done. For example, to pass FHA there has got to be a stove in the kitchen. If an agent is selling bank owned and the buyer is FHA and the agent does not know that, what the heck is going to happen when the appraisal gets ordered and there is no stove in place. It will not pass. Now ,more than ever is the time to work with an experienced agent. An agent who has worked with bank owned properties and not your cousin who is starting out in the business. There is too much at risk.

3.Now more than ever ,USE HOME INSPECTORS and take advantage of the 7 day window for inspections. They do not require termites now. Get one anyway. The last foreclosure I sold had subterranean termites.

4. Above all, the buyer of foreclosures really needs an agent. With the bank contracts coming back asking for non refundable deposits and this and that, agents are necessary

I am a realtor and I would never buy a house without a realtor because I know our value. Foreclosures are hard enough to navigate through. Bring a map, a compass and a blow torch to fight the scorpions.... and your trusty realtor

Kathleen