| |
|
Tip of the Week
Did you know....
One way to getting more of your
transactions funded is to do a
great job of packaging. Try to
get pictures and send a summary
cover letter!
Product Highlight
Negotiation starts from the
moment you first connect with a
note holder and to help with
that "Scripts and Tips - A Handbook for the Serious Note Broker"
is what you need.
Every month I am asked about what to say to note holders when they contact you
on that first phone call, when giving the price and how to negotiate. In
addition, the book lists for you more specific questions for certain situations and
property types including condo's, commercial properties and land. It also spells
out a few of what I call "magic" questions to help you determine that
all important motivation or need that the note holder must have if you are ever
going to get them to accept an offer on your note.
Click for more info and to order
TODAY!
|
 |
Upcoming Events
February 25, 2012
Sacramento, CA
RE and Note Intensive
March 17, 2012
Chicago, IL
RE and Note Intensive
Spring 2012
San Antonio, TX
Note Symposium
May 2012
Los Angeles, CA
Secrets of Paper
September 2012
Chicago, IL
Secrets of Paper
Coming Soon
Exclusive
Note-able
Membership
with Videos,
Training,
Tools
and
Support! |
Quote
of the Week
"People seldom improve when they have no other model but themselves to
copy after." ~ Goldsmith
 President's
Corner
When I was 16 and working at
Ralphs supermarket I met a man
that showed me a different way
to do things. He showed me how
he would buy a property, fix it
up and operate it as a rental.
He inspired me to follow his
path and at the age of 19 I
purchased my first property, a
triplex. I lived in one unit
and rented out the other two.
My real estate career had begun.
I will never forget that one of
his favorite sayings was
“attitude is more important that
aptitude”. For this
over-achieving, inquisitive
young man he meant, although my
ability to do something was
important, my attitude would
hold the greater key to success
in life. As was true with a lot
of things he taught me, he was
right.
You’ve heard it before but I’ll
say it again, without a positive
attitude you will go no where.
Being a note broker and
operating a note business is
hard enough but if you do not
have a positive attitude about
what you are doing you will
definitely fail. I see many new
note brokers every month and I
bet I could pick out the ones
who are going to make it and the
ones who are not by just talking
to them for five minutes.
When I hear things like “is this
a real business”, “isn’t there a
lot of competition”, “won’t the
seller’s find a better offer
with someone else”, “why do note
holders need us”, “who is going
to sell their note at a
discount” or even “I’m just
going to try it and see if it
works” I answer their questions
and explain to them the business
while wishing them the best of
luck. Although these statements
are not in themselves totally
negative they do come from
subconscious thoughts that have
the ability to fester and grow
into a negative attitude. This
in turn will eventually cause
failure.
The importance of a determined,
positive attitude backed up by a
genuine commitment and
dedication to our profession and
the people we serve can not be
over emphasized. Of course this
is a real business that has
competition. Competition is a
positive thing, it makes us try
new ideas and test out different
ways of doing business that
eventually helps the business
and industry grow. Note holders
need us because most of them
have no alternative to getting
the cash they need any other
way. We help people get cash
now in their pockets that they
would otherwise not be able to
get, a very positive thing.
I’ve got a saying in my house
that I’ve been trying to instill
in my daughters since they were
born. It’s not “I can’t” but
rather “how can I”. You see, if
you eliminate the words “I
can’t” from your vocabulary life
becomes a series of puzzles and
tests. You then learn that by
trial and error you can
accomplish anything you want
to. It is all centered on your
attitude.
Do you need some sort of
aptitude to do this
business? Absolutely, there is a
level of education and knowledge
needed to be in the note
business. However, once you
have the basics down and have
gone through several
transactions the remainder of
your success will be determined
by your attitude.
Remember, Success Demands Action! Keep
on marketing, it’s going to work! TWITA!
|
Feature Article
Packaging a Note
Transaction
|
Note Brokers put the
majority of their time into
marketing and finding first
position seller financed
notes and note holders. It
has been estimated that more
than 70% of a Note Broker’s
time is spent on marketing
alone. A note broker can’t
do any transactions if they
don’t find them in the first
place. However much of their
success often depends on
what they do once they have
found the note holders and
the note holder accepts
their offer.
What does a note broker do
after a note holder says
yes? Let’s review the steps
to the process for a
moment...
Read more... |
|
Question of
the Week
Q - Hello Jeff! First off, let me say thanks for the check and allowing me a larger
commission than I was due. As I look at the deal, I tried to use the 1.5% of the balance of the loan as a benchmark for covering costs (Secrets of Paper 101). Is this still a good rule or should
this number be higher? What about deals where a seller would like to use a title company or attorney for the closing? How much would one factor in for this? Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Second, is a question about trying to do the note business full time. I pretty much started the end of March/early April. For that April
I tracked a 1.36% response rate
and in May 1.16%. In June, I
tracked my best direct mail
combination at 2.83% response.
These response rates in general
seem low. From a deal
perspective I have your deal
funded, one that is in the title
stage, and a partial that I have
a verbal commitment on and I am
waiting to get the seller under
contract. In addition, I
have lost one deal today in fact
(credit issues caused the
investor to lower the offer and
the seller rejected) and I have
one deal where the seller is
considering. At best that
is 4 deals. I guess as I
continue to try and move
forward, I am concerned that in
order to really do this full
time I need to send more letters
a month than I can realistically
budget for. Given the choice
between increasing the number of
letters sent versus sending
smaller amounts of letters and
working on increasing my
response rates I'm not sure
which way to go. Any thoughts on
what to focus on in order to
increase the likelihood of doing
this full time. As it stands,
your check is my first, I was
hoping given the amount of
letters that a couple more would
have funded by now. Any thoughts
would be appreciated.
- Edward T.
A
-
Hi Ed!
Thanks for the email! I will attempt to address all of your questions and
concerns. On the transaction we just closed the costs were above normal. Usually
the 1.5% guess-timate more than covers the expenses. That deal had many hurdles
and extra expenses to get everything in order. That high of a percentage of
expenses doesn't occur very often. Except on commercial properties where the
appraisal fees are much higher than a residential appraisal. When a seller wants
to close it with an attorney or title company we will pay up to $100 of the cost
of that. After that the seller has to pay for it. When the seller hears they have
to pay for it all of a sudden they don't mind doing it through overnight mail.
:)
Direct mail is a huge numbers game. For one I think I would add some additional
states to your mailings. If you are
getting 1% response you are doing good, anything higher than that you are doing
great. I like that you tested several different letter combinations and narrowed
down your best so far, that's what needs to be done to make your marketing
efficient. Also remember that you are not done calculating any of your monthly
stats. You will get responses 2,3,6,12 and even more months or years from now on
those same letters you sent in April, May and June. Your stats seem to be in line with what I consider normal.
My personal stats, on average I close one deal for every 40 worksheets right now.
Again, direct mail is a big
numbers game and should only be
a one component of your entire
marketing plan. Remember? You
should have 3-5 lines in the
water at all times? It seems you
only have one line in the water.
Honestly, I wouldn't think of going full time or quitting your day job just yet
until you have a consistent number of deals in the pipeline maybe one a month or
two a month, etc. Focus on the responses that you did get. Follow up with them
every couple of months even if they said no. Send them an extra follow letter or
postcard. Call them, email them. Ask them if they still have the note or did
they sell it? If so to whom and for how much? If they still have it do they need
some cash now? Can you update their prices for them? etc. That's how you start
making the most out of your responses, follow up. Too many note brokers just
throw out the worksheet if they say no and never follow up. Separate yourself
from the herd and follow up. Hope this helps!
TWITA!
|
|
So you want to invest in or broker
notes?
Been trying for awhile with limited
or no results?
Check out the most talked about, current and innovative educational tools,
training, mentoring, assistance and support services in the industry! Updated for
2012, click here to start growing your note business today!
|
|
If you have missed any of our
Newsletters click here for our
Archived Monthly Newsletters!
|
If you have a note business question you would like to see answered in this
newsletter just
email Jeff!
|
|
Get started in the
Note Business with the
Complete Note Business Starter Package - includes consultation's with Jeff!
|
|
|
