Wendy Smith

I guess it was bound to happen but I was hoping it wouldn't - my direct mail campaign has failed to do it's job. For years I have used post cards and a tri-fold color brochure to generate leads. The system was tweaked over the years and worked wonderfully.

Recently though, due to the outrageous costs of postage, more postcards than brochures have been sent. www.Click2mail.com makes it very easy to maintain mail lists, upload new text and manage the timing of mailing the cards. (I think they also do letters but I only use the cards)

My typical postcard is full color, 80# white gloss with UV coating. The text is meant to lead recipients either to a phone to call or to my website to learn more about alternatives to foreclosure and how we can help. The target is sellers, not buyers.

In the last two weeks, nearly a thousand pieces were mailed with only one call and I suspect that woman was drunk. That's a very bad return.

It is time to shop for a marketing makeover. The problem is, however, the marketing programs I've found seem to focus on attracting buyers, not sellers.

I suspect that the current status of banks not foreclosing as quick as they once did has something to do with it as some homeowners must figure why do anything? That may be a factor but certainly it cannot account for virtually no replies to 1000 mail outs!

It doesn't make sense to spend any more money on a dead mail-out system no matter how good it once was.

My lead generation system needs a makeover. Though a bit embarrassing to admit, too much money has already been wasted on PPC and SEO type stuff e.g. lots of $$$ = no increase in leads.

I really do enjoy helping people through their [pre-foreclosure] crisis whether it be by loan modification, short sale, buy-back, whatever. I just seem to have like writers-block in my marketing!

Any ideas?

As colleagues and real estate professionals, most of us abide by and are totally familiar with the Realtor Code of Ethics. Even if an agent is not a member of any Association of Realtors, there are scruples that should govern their real estate practices.

I am referring specifically to the agents that have had to "get a real job" yet continue to have an active real estate license with the hopes of closing a sale now and then.

When a buyer's agent is not available, all too often the buyer is left to contact the listing agent for property specifics including appointment setting to preview the property. Hello? This is the job of the buyer's agent who can usually obtain all the necessary info from the Multiple Listing Service.

I've had the same scenario happen twice in the last 4 or 5 days - one agent had the audacity to say "Well, you are getting the listing commission", to which I replied "I will receive the listing commission without doing YOUR job, thank you!". She considered me rude and said so.

Then just this morning, a Craigslist.com ad generated a call from a prospective buyer. I asked if she was working with a buyers agent and she said yes, but her agent worked during the day and .....

Dear, dear buyer's agents: yes we listing agents do need you and your clients but please, we do not want to do your job and have you step in at the contract-writing moment so that you may collect a commission.

Please inform your buyers that YOU will help them with the details of any house or ad they see, and if they must call the Listing Agent, explain to your client that they need to disclose their relationship with you BEFORE taking up the listing agent's time.

Our industry is evolving and rules seem to change daily but ethics ... well, ethics haven't changed.

Step 1. Don't communicate with your lender. As you miss making the monthly mortgage payments, the collections department will commence their calling campaign in an attempt to collect the payments. Their calls are typically quite aggressive, the calls are frequent and sometimes the caller is demeaning and insulting.

TIP: It is easy to identify these calls using caller-ID and simply not answer the phone when your lenders number pops up on your caller ID. Also, if the caller appears as UNKNOWN, it is often a bill collector or the lender attempting to collect the debt.

By not communicating with your lender, your lender has no way of knowing whether or not you are eligible for a loan modification or other repayment arrangements. Not answering your phone will keep them in the dark.

Step 2. Ignore all mailings and correspondence. Your lenders collection attempts will most likely include sending form letters to the last known address they have for you. Initially, the correspondence is clearly marked and easily identified as being sent by your lender. This is only another attempt to collect the debt (mortgage payments).

The form letters usually contain phone numbers and attempt to compel you to call. Often these letters will suggest different options available to help keep homeowners in their homes. The options usually always include you as the homeowner providing information and documentation such as proof of income, bank statements, etc.

The EASY BUTTON method is to ignore all mailings. There is no need to clutter up space by retaining the correspondence. Simple throw it all away.

Step 3. Depending on which state you reside, one way or another, you will be notified of the bank's Intent to Foreclose. Simply put, this is a legal action in which the bank has the right to take possession of the collateral used for the loan - your home.

The service of this legal notice can be ignored as well.

Step 4. Eviction - defined as the expulsion of someone (such as a tenant or homeowner) from the possession of land by process of law. In many states, the Sheriff will come to your door and remove you & your family from the premises.

It's that simple. Losing your home to foreclosure is a simple process.

Saving your home from foreclosure is a bit more complicated.

Visit www.WendySmithRealEstate.com for some helpful information and professional assistance.

There's a couple of great ideas floating around: (1) allow homeowners to remain in & lease their home after foreclosure, and (2) offer a buy back in which the homeowner could purchase the home after a specific term (3 years? 5 years?)

Buy backs are not a new idea, buy backs have been around for years including during the boom. Back in the boom-time, investors saved many homeowners from foreclosure by purchasing the property, renting it back to the homeowner with an option to buy it back. One notable difference is that back then, these investors were often referred to as scam artists as they were blamed for taking advantage of distressed homeowners.

The St. Petersburg Times ran a good article House: Let Foreclosed Homeowners Rent on August 15, 2009. The article offers a nice snapshot of the pros and cons of buy backs.

The idea is great, but as most homeowners and agents would agree, not if banks run the program. Currently I am working a seamless short sale. The key is disclosure otherwise the buy back could be deemed not to be an arm's length transaction and possibly considered fraud. Some banks will not approve a short sale that includes the homeowner remaining in the property - buy back option or not.

A buy back program has the potential for huge success and win-win opportunities for all parties....again, as long as the banks don't run it.

Why not?

Think about it. How long should a short sale actually take?

Let's suppose an offer comes in on a house. A professional short-sale listing agent has already worked with the seller gathering the paperwork that will be required fr the lender. Sme lenders actually will image the documents prior to an offer.

The contract, PHUD and support docs are faxed to the lender. Let's say two weeks for set-up which includes the imaging.

Let's give it another week to assign the file to a negotiator. Total time so far is 3 weeks.

The negotiator reviews the file, orders the BPO, BPO comes in & goes thru the review process, negotiator runs the numbers - either an offer is close enough to submit to the investor or it's not. At the end of 4 weeks, let's give 5 weeks, the listing agent should be able to hear from the lender as to a counter offer or that the file will be submitted to the investor for approval.

Let's give the investor 3 to 4 weeks. We are at the two month period now.

Investor approves, counters, whatever - maybe it has to go to MI. whatever.

Then 30 days to close. That's 3 months - ok, be generous, let's say 4 months - that is SIXTEEN weeks!

The homeowner has this three/four month period to vacate the home. Just 3 or 4 more late payments hit his credit report. The short sale closes and he can go on with his life.

But we know that is NOT how it happens. Just ask anyone working a BoA or CW short, or how about Aurora? Let's see a show of hands for shorts that take longer than 6 months? 9 months? I'll bet there are quite a few that could raise a hand for a 12-month short too.

The point is, the lenders CAN staff these departments to adequately handle the volume. There are plenty of unemployed people with mortgage and related backgrounds that would train easily to fill the vacancies. Lenders received plenty bail out money (I still don't know where that $$$ went!)

The homeowner suffers more damage to his credit report with the higher # of lates and faces an increased deficiency amount. The increased damage to the homeowner is due to the lender not properly servicing the short sales and loan modifications.

I hope an attorney figures it out how to quantify these damages to dollars and perhaps start some sort of class action law suit.

I read recently that a guy lost his job. He got behind on his house payments. He put his house ont he market for a short sale. Meanwhile he found a job in another state and was prepared to relocate his family. Just before the move, the new employer called him to withdraw the job offer - seems that they ran his credit. Unfortunately, the new job required a good credit score.

This country is credit driven - these lenders wasting so much time to process short sales are having a huge residual impact on the lives of the citizens of this country.

C'mon, there must be an attorney out there that can hit these lenders in the pocket (aka bottom line) - it's the ONLY language they understand. Anybody?