Real Estate News & Commentary by Chris McLaughlin, May 19, 2009

http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html
——–
No money, no credit – but an honest desire to succeed?
That’s all it takes to get into the lucrative business of
finding and reselling short sale properties.  We’ve had
people go from zero to six figures in less than six months!

See if there’re any spots left for this webinar Tuesday at
8:30 PM ET, 5:30 PM PST:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/965247674

New housing starts stop

The Commerce Department’s March reading of housing starts fell to the lowest level since the government began keeping records in 1959, plummeting 12.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 458,000, down 12.8% from a revised 525,000 in March — the second lowest reading came in January, when the rate of housing starts was 488,000. Economists were expecting housing starts to come in at 520,000, according to a consensus estimate compiled by Briefing.com. Compared to the same month last year, privately owned housing starts were 54.2% below the revised April 2008 rate of 1,001,000. Increased unemployment and skyrocketing foreclosures of existing homes seems to be the impetus deterring new builders. Applications for building permits, an indicator of future construction activity, fell 3.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 494,000 in April. The measure for building permits was also a record low, going back to January 1960; the furthest back the government has records.

Behind the numbers

“Markets trade on headlines but the details of this report are less bad,” said Ian Shepherdson, Chief U.S. Economist at High Frequency Economics, in a research note, referring to the market drops this morning. While the housing start numbers look terrible at first glance, “The devil is in the details here,” as Mike Larson, real estate and interest rate analyst at Weiss Research says. “The weakness in April was concentrated in the multifamily sector of the market – condos, apartments, and so on,” said Larson. “That likely stems from the ongoing condo glut and the tighter financing conditions we’ve seen in the commercial real estate arena.” New construction of multi-family homes with 5 units or more sank to an annual rate of 78,000, down 42% from a revised 135,000 in March, BUT, new construction of single-family homes, considered the core of the housing market, actually rose 2.8% in April over the prior month, to an annual rate of 368,000. Stability in the single-family sector combined with a recent uptick in builder confidence, according to a report from the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo released Monday, indicate the rate of deceleration in the construction market could begin to slow.

Short sale defined

In case some of us still don’t know what a short sale is, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) has defined it for us in the Handbook on Multiple Listing Policy: “a transaction where title transfers, where the sale price is insufficient to pay the total of all liens and costs of sale and where the seller does not bring sufficient liquid assets to the closing to cure all deficiencies.” The board also made a few somewhat more helpful recommendations, stiffening standards for realtors, and opposing some of the administration’s more knee-jerk regulation.

Banks to repay TARP?

Because of the stifling regulation the government brings with it, banks are scrambling to repay Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) money most of them never wanted in the first place,. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has said that if regulators certify that a bank would be sound without government help, the Treasury would gladly take the money back, but he left a loophole, telling lawmakers last month that his role was to ensure the soundness of the entire financial sector. Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase & Co, and American Express Co are expected to be in the first wave of major lenders allowed to return TARP funds, since the government’s stress tests said none of the three needed to raise capital, even among the most negative economic scenario that regulators considered. Wayne Abernathy, an executive at the American Bankers Association and a former Treasury official, told Reuters earlier Monday that he expected the Treasury would act soon to let large banks repay TARP. I guess we’ll see.

John P. Hussman, of Hussman Strategic Growth Fund and Hussman Strategic Total Return Fund, offers a stark warning about the future implications of the Obama bailout. It’s worth reading:

The Treasury has issued an enormous volume of debt into the frightened hands of investors seeking default-free securities. This has allowed the Treasury to finance a massive and largely needless transfer of wealth to bank bondholders so easily over the short-term that the longer-term cost has been almost completely obscured.

But by transferring wealth from those who did not finance reckless loans to those who did – providing monetary compensation without economic production – the bureaucrats at the Treasury and Federal Reserve have crowded out more than a trillion dollars of gross investment that would have otherwise have been made by responsible people in the coming years, shifted assets to the control of those who have proven themselves to be irresponsible destroyers of capital, and have planted the seeds of inflation that will cut short any emerging recovery.

[T]he bailout ensures that any incipient recovery will be cut short, because the only reason that our economy is able to absorb the present supply of government liabilities is extreme risk aversion that creates a demand for default-free instruments. If that risk aversion abates, it will quickly be replaced by higher short term interest rates, higher monetary velocity, and inflation that can be expected to be quite difficult to control. At that point all the Fed will be able to do is to swap one government liability (monetary base) for another (Treasury securities). The genie will not easily go back into the bottle.

[T]he attempt to save bank bondholders from losses – to provide monetary compensation without economic production – is not sound economic policy but is instead a grand monetary experiment that has never been tried in the developed world except in Germany circa 1921.

This policy can only have one of two effects: either it will crowd out over $1 trillion of gross domestic investment that would otherwise have occurred if the appropriate losses had been wiped off the ledger (instead of making bank bondholders whole), or it will result in a stunning and durable increase in the quantity of base money, which will ultimately be accompanied not by a year or two of 5-6% inflation, but most probably by a near-doubling of the U.S. price level over the next decade.

The other way of saying “a near-doubling of the U.S. price level over the next decade” is “The value of your savings will be cut in half over the next 10 years.”

http://www.hussmanfunds.com/wmc/wmc090518.htm

Now on to our real estate investor education tips section …

Short Sale & REO Negotiations – Bad Product Round-Up

Here’s a tip to keep in mind when evaluating potential short sale properties and placing an offer…be sure to evaluate whether or not the building is impacted by bad products, recall notification or other defects that could drive down property values or require extensive (and costly) repairs. It could save you a small fortune even if you aren’t positive the property is impacted. Follow these simple steps and use the following check-list as a starter:

Inform the lender or seller of your suspicion. If a home was built within the general time frame or uses materials that could be considered potentially suspect, request a copy of the building supply list, product numbers or other information in order to verify or eliminate the suspicion.

Include the information in the appraisal. The appraiser may not have an up to date list or even be aware of every product recall on the market; in fact, most simply check to make sure the item works as expected in the case of HVAC/other and eliminate the most obvious defects like glaring holes…few, if any, actually consider the quality of the materials used to build the home.

Put it into writing. The seller, lender and appraiser should all be

notified of any confirmed defects or faulty building products used on the construction of the home so be sure to put it into writing.

Remember, even though the home is being sold “as-is”, there is still an obligation to inform prospective buyers about known defects.

Make a contingent offer. All offers should be made on a contingency basis until the final inspection is performed especially if you suspect the use of bad building products were used in the construction of the home. Re-negotiate your offer based upon the findings of the appraiser and/or proof of materials used.

Keep a list and check it twice. There are more bad building products on the market than you might ever realize; in fact, according to some experts almost every home contains one or more potential problem products. Here is a short list of some of the more commonly encountered – and frequently overlooked – materials used in the construction of newer homes that could impact property values:

Roof Insulation – Beazer phenolic foam roof insulation.

Pressed Wood Siding – Numerous manufacturers are either in court or have active settlements.

Drywall from China – Corrosion, respiratory problems and even plumbing erosion.

Weyerhauser Hardboard Siding.

Omege Sprinklers and fire prevention

Louisiana-Pacific composite deck boarding and materials

GE electric stove/range

Home Heating Vent Pipes

Central Fireplace – actual fireplace and/or inserts

Kidde fire extinguishers

Maytag refrigerators

Window blinds – many varieties!

Rheem oil furnace

Bosch and Siemens Dishwashers

Woolf Steel Propane fireplace

Gas vent dampers by Effikal

Gas Boilers by PB Heat

Gas range by Wolfe appliances

Indoor light fixtures by Lithonia

Goodman Air Conditioners and Heat Pumps

Heat Recovery Ventilators by Venmar

Lighting fixtures by Progress Lighting

Miele gas dryers

Hearth and Home fireplace wall controls

American Flame fireplaces

Carbon Monoxide Alarms – several

Kenmore Wall Ovens

Bathroom medicine cabinets sold by Lowes

Shop/garage lights by Cooper lighting

Carrier Air Conditioners and/or Heat Pumps

Dishwashers by GE, Asko and others

FLOR carpet tiles

Plus MANY Many others!

———

See you at the top!

Chris McLaughlin

http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html

P.S.: Don’t miss our webinar this Tuesday night at 8:30 PM ET,

5:30 PM PST:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/965247674

Copyright Loss Mitigation Institute 2009.
All Rights Reserved.

http://www.shortsalescoach.com
http://www.shortsalesriches.com
http://www.reomillionaireclub.com
http://www.sixfigurebpo.com
Finally, a blog for Real Estate professionals
that want up-to-the-minute news, & how it impacts
us and our market…
http://www.shortsalesriches.com/blog

About the author:

Chris McLaughlin is widely known as America’s top
Real Estate Attorney and Investment Consultant.

* As the top Florida foreclosure and pre-
foreclosure expert, he oversees more than
100 short sale & REO closings each month
* Long-time authority on real estate investing
and rapid flipping of distressed homes. Owns
portfolio of nearly 100 high-value, high-profit
properties
* Owner and Supervising Broker of one of Florida’s
largest Real Estate firms, running 4 different
offices, supporting nearly 450 agents, uniquely
positioning him to help thousands of investors
make money in the biggest market opportunity ever!
* Highly sought-after speaker, consultant, and
seminar leader for current trends and hot topics
in Real Estate Investing, Entrepreneurship, and
Wealth Building
* On twitter: http://twitter.com/mclaughlinchris
* On facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/addfriend.php?id=709199143

The Role of Lady Luck, Real Life Lessons and Learning in Short Sales

 

Real Estate News & Commentary by Chris McLaughlin, April 14, 2009
http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html

——–

No money, no credit – but an honest desire to succeed? 

That’s all it takes to get into the lucrative business of

finding and flipping short sale properties.  We’ve had

people go from zero to six figures in less than six months! 

 

See if there’re any spots left for this webinar tonight where

we explain it all tonight @ 8:30 PM ET, 5:30 PM PST:

 

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/247184123

———

Retail sales fall

The US Commerce Department said total retail sales fell 1.1% last month, even though Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had been expecting an increase of 0.3% in March, compared with February’s revised gain of 0.3%.  Even without auto sales included, sales fell a surprising 0.9% compared to a revised 1% increase in the measure for February.  February ex-auto sales were originally reported to have increased 0.7%.  Scott Hoyt, senior director of consumer economics for Moody’s Economy.com said economists are surprised:  improving sales both in January and February “gave us reason to believe that retail sales were starting to head in a positive direction…we’re not sure yet how much of the [sales] weakness is real and how much is based on the Easter shift.  There are still lots of weights on consumer spending.  The housing market is still weak and we’re losing 600,000 or more jobs every month.”

 

Deflation?

The Producer Price Index (PPI), which tracks the changes in selling prices for domestic producers, decreased 1.2% last month – more than expected.  A consensus estimate of economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast that the index would remain flat on the month.  The main driver pushing down the PPI number was the decrease in food and energy prices.  The index that measures energy prices plunged 5.5% in March, on the heels of a 1.3% increase in energy prices in February and a 3.7% increase in January.  Applying a bit of lipstick to the pig, Anika Khan, economist at Wachovia Economics says, “This report does not put us firmly in the deflation camp.  This was a huge drop, clearly, but one month does not necessarily make a trend.  What it does tell us is that inflation is not a near-term worry.”  That sounds to me a bit like the captain on a sinking ship pointing out that he won’t have to worry about low flying aircraft anymore.

 

Economy bottoming out this year?

White House adviser Christina Romer said today that the economy will probably bottom out this year, when the stimulus package starts to kick in:  “That stimulus package has just started.  We expect it as we go through to 2009 and 2010 to be a big job creator.”  Asked if she fears a double-dip recession, in which the economy seems to recover after the first dip only to fall again, she said “in terms of the double dip I very much have the sense that policy has been really good in this downturn.”  I have no idea what that means, and I doubt she does either, but it sounds like a slippery way of saying “if it works, give us the credit, but if it doesn’t, it ain’t our fault.”  This stimulus package may be a big job creator and it may not, but I don’t see a lot of value added jobs coming out of it, do you? 

 

Who is it that leaves sinking ships again?

CEOs are leaping off the ship in record numbers, according to new data from Challenger, Gray & Christmas.  1,484 CEOs headed for the exits in 2008 — which works out to an average of six every business day, the most since Challenger first began the survey in 1999.  “CEOs are under intense pressure,” says John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray, in just a bit of an understatement.  While high profile firings make the news, Challenger’s research shows that resignation was by far the biggest reason for an empty corner office this year, with 623 either retiring or “stepping down.”  CNN speculates that while some of the resignations are probably veiled firings, it also may be that a lot of CEOs just don’t know how to deal with the economic downturn and just want out.  CNN cites a report on the economy from consulting firm BCG, called “Collateral Damage”:

 

“In a study in early December 2008 of about 60 major companies worldwide – long after the creation of TARP and the clear collapse in consumer confidence, mind you — more than half of the companies had not made any significant changes to their strategic plans.  On average, they were assuming no more than a 5% reduction in volume in a year that was already shaping up to be disastrous.  “What is striking,” the report reads, “is that, outside of the construction and auto industries, many companies are assuming that the crisis will have a very modest impact in 2009.”

 

Now on to our real estate investing education section…

 

The Role of Lady Luck, Real Life Lessons and Learning in Short Sales

 

There are three types of investors in every market segment; those with true knowledge and know-how, those with the wisdom to recognize what they don’t know and make it a priority to learn from others and those that get lucky once in awhile. Learning how to distinguish one from another is the key to true, lasting success.

 

 Let’s face it, more often than not lady luck is often responsible for the majority of profits – and losses. Research indicates a few interesting trends about human nature; most people tend to attribute positive results to their own keen knowledge and know-how while blaming negative results to “luck”. In fact, both positive and negative outcomes are equally represented by “luck” including some larger than life fortunes. So, how can a new short sale investor determine if their mentor is truly knowledgeable versus just lucky? Start with these simple clues:

 

Repeat Results. Luck is just another word for probability – in any given scenario some outcomes are more likely than others. Anyone can get lucky once in awhile but that isn’t the same as true knowledge. Think of it like buying a lottery ticket; the probability is x that you will win some type of prize. Sometimes the jackpot is huge and life-changing while other times it is modest. While it might be tempting to think of the jack-pot winner as possessing some type of specialized insight the fact is, they just got lucky. Following the lead of luck rarely yields the same results twice. Savvy short sale investors should search for mentors with a proven – repeated – track record of success.

 

Investing in Success. True investors rarely shy away from investing in their own success. They clearly understand the risk/reward ratio and constantly use calculations to support their moves and positions in the market. This is not the same as taking unwarranted risk – instead, they have learned to invest in their own success by carefully analyzing each situation and taking proactive steps to maximize outcome and results. The result is a trend toward growth. Look for mentors that are growing their business not downsizing…especially during tough economic times.

 

They Have a System – Not Secrets. Nearly every successful business prospect of modern history is built on a system – not secrets. That is not to say the system itself doesn’t contain proprietary information but it is not the core of the business strategy. Everything from Henry Ford building a better automobile to Google’s infamous algorithms demonstrates the importance of a system. Even the success of the fast food industry center around consistent results due to the systematic routine of building the same eating experience and locking in the same prices throughout the nation. Systems can be reproduced – secrets lose their value once shared. Search for short sale mentors with a proven system rather than elusive secrets.

  

See you at the top!

 

 

Chris McLaughlin

http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html  

 

P.S.

 

Don’t miss our webinar Tuesday at 8:30 PM EST, 5:30 PM PST:

 

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/247184123

 

P.P.S.:

Check out one of the ShortSalesRiches students holding himself as well as us accountable to whether the system truly works!  Go here now to

watch the videos from John Michailids:

http://www.youtube.com/shortsalesriches

and

http://www.willjohnmakeit.com

 

Copyright Loss Mitigation Institute 2009.
All Rights Reserved.

http://www.shortsalescoach.com
http://www.shortsalesriches.com
http://www.reomillionaireclub.com 
http://www.sixfigurebpo.com *************************************************
Finally, a blog for Real Estate professionals
that want up-to-the-minute news, & how it impacts
us and our market…
http://www.shortsalesriches.com/blog

*************************************************

About the author:

 

Chris McLaughlin is widely known as America’s top
Real Estate Attorney and Investment Consultant.

 

    * As the top Florida foreclosure and pre-
      foreclosure expert, he oversees more than
      100 short sale & REO closings each month

   * Long-time authority on real estate investing
      and rapid flipping of distressed homes.  Owns
      portfolio of nearly 100 high-value, high-profit
     properties

    * Owner and Supervising Broker of one of Florida’s
     largest Real Estate firms, running 4 different
     offices, supporting nearly 450 agents, uniquely
     positioning him to help thousands of investors
     make money in the biggest market opportunity ever!

     * Highly sought-after speaker, consultant, and
      seminar leader for current trends and hot topics
      in Real Estate Investing, Entrepreneurship, and
      Wealth Building

     * On twitter: http://twitter.com/mclaughlinchris
     * On facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/addfriend.php?id=709199143

—

Real Estate News & Commentary by Chris McLaughlin, February 5, 2009
http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html

—-

ONLY 30 MORE SLOTS LEFT …

Sign up right now to ensure your reservation!  The amazing Recession Proof Real Estate Investing webinar will be held this coming Saturday at 3 PM ET, NOON PST!  There are only 30 slots left so jump on this now:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/583681653

—-
CNBC reported today that the White House plans to announce next week that it is moving away from having the government buy up trillions of troubled assets and putting them into a bad bank, rather it is more interested providing insurance and guarantees of the troubled assets in a “ring fence” concept.  The current plan will likely involve the remaining $350 billion of TARP money, and rumors of several trillion are now apparently not in the cards. 

In economic news today, the US Department of Labor reported that adjusted initial jobless claims for a 4 week period were 626,000, an increase of 35,000 over the prior week’s revised figure.   Most analysts had expected 585,000 new claims, so the 626,000 number surprise many.  The number of jobless claims is now at a 26-year high. Ouch.

Now, on to our real estate investing section…

Short Sales Excuses – and Why they are All Wrong

If you have been sitting on the side-lines thinking about investing in short sales but haven’t yet taken the plunge then chances are you have a few of the following short sales excuses to blame. Learn how to overcome the fear of failure and instead focus on the path to profit by informing yourself why all the facts you think you know are actually wrong.

Excuse #1. You need a lot of extra time and money to get started.

Fact: It sure doesn’t hurt but one of the great things about short sales investing is the ability to begin with very little out of pocket funds. Unlike starting your own business that requires immense up-front capital as well as most of your free time, short sales investing uses leverage and can be started in your spare time.

Excuse #2. You need years of experience.

Fact: No, you don’t need years of experience…you only need to tap into the know-how of someone else who has been there and done it with a track record of success. Hmmmm, now where can you find that if not right here at the shortsalesriches.com strategy?

Excuse  #3. You need to have a heart of stone to deal with foreclosures.

Fact: This has nothing to do with your level of empathy or not. Properly transacted, many homeowners benefit as much if not even more than the short sale investor; you are actually doing them a favor in many cases.

Excuse #4. It’s too late to begin investing in short sales.

Fact: There are still plenty of great homes to select from and in many areas, the inventory is still growing. Don’t assume the federal bail-out or other stop-gap solutions will work for everyone or even be desirable; many people will not qualify or simply want to walk away and start over. There are still plenty of great properties to be found for those who know where to look and how to make an offer.  Are you aware that there were over 1 million jobs lost in the last 2 months?  What will happen to all those homes?

Excuse #5. It’s still too early to begin investing in short sales.

Fact: Although there are still plenty of great homes at ultra-affordable prices with historically low interest rates, that situation could change at any time. Even if the price of homes continued to decline, any increase in interest rates or lending standards could negatively impact today’s favorable conditions. Buy while the buying is good to lock in favorable prices and rates.

See you at the top!

 

Chris McLaughlin

http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html  

P.S.

This week’s webinar replay is right here…for the next 8 hours:

http://www.webinarwizards.com/custom/index.cfm?id=170879

Copyright Loss Mitigation Institute 2009.
All Rights Reserved.

http://www.shortsalescoach.com
http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html
http://www.youtube.com/shortsalesriches
*************************************************
Finally, a blog for Real Estate professionals
that want up-to-the-minute news, & how it impacts
us and our market…

http://www.shortsalesriches.com/blog
*************************************************

About the author:

Chris McLaughlin is widely known as America’s top
Real Estate Attorney and Investment Consultant.

    * As the top Florida foreclosure and pre-
      foreclosure expert, he oversees more than
      100 short sale & REO closings each month

   * Long-time authority on real estate investing
      and rapid flipping of distressed homes.  Owns
      portfolio of nearly 100 high-value, high-profit
     properties

    * Owner and Supervising Broker of one of Florida’s
     largest Real Estate firms, running 4 different
     offices, supporting nearly 450 agents, uniquely
     positioning him to help thousands of investors
     make money in the biggest market opportunity ever!

     * Highly sought-after speaker, consultant, and
      seminar leader for current trends and hot topics
      in Real Estate Investing, Entrepreneurship, and
      Wealth Building

 —

Why Bank of America Needed More TARP Money

Market News & Commentary by Chris McLaughlin, January 16, 2009
http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html

——
This is your year, right??  Let’s make it happen!  Forget the headlines, forget all the negativity, and forget all the turmoil.  More millionaires are created during times like these than any other time … so are you ready to make it happen?  If so, be one of the 23 spots that we have left for our Saturday webinar at 4 PM EST and 1 PM PST entitled “Recession Proof Real Estate Investing: How to Buy Property with no out of pocket costs!”

The link is right here, so jump on this now:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/783035902

———

Even before taking the oath of office President elect Barack Obama got what he wanted for Congress.  The US Senate voted yesterday to release the second half of the $700 billion TARP fund, and the incoming Obama group has planned to allocate between $50 and $100 billion toward foreclosure prevention.  In a positive sign for Realtors and investors looking for buyers, the new President’s team has signaled that stimulating buyer demand for homes is a priority, possibly by reducing interest rates even further is part of such a strategy.  We’ll have to wait for more information to come.

Bank of America announced its worst financial performance in 17 years today – they lost $2.39 billion.  Ouch!  The bank also announced that it would take on another $20 billion in TARP money.  Why?  Two words: Merrill Lynch.  As  Bank of America readies itself to buy the brokerage firm, the bank is discovering that the “mark to market” write downs, an accounting rule that requires Bank of America to write down assets to their existing market price, not the price that they might be worth if you took the time to sell them.  How does this accounting rule affect banks? 

Let me give you an example.  Let’s say Merrill Lynch has a billion worth of mortgage backed securities.  Let’s also say that 25% of those are now in default, but 75% of them are paying just fine and are on time.  You would think that the valuation of the securities would be $750 million or less, right?  Well, given how mad investors are with the rating agencies they just don’t want them on their balance sheets.  Period.  So what would be considered $750 million worth of good loans are now worth $100 million at today’s market value.  No one wants them: they are toxic at any price!

Now let’s assume the Merrill Lynch has to recognize these assets on their financials.  What used to be a billion is now $100 million in the current market.  So even though the securities would be worth a lot more than $100 million if they were to go through an orderly process of selling off the assets, the bank is required to report it based on what it is worth now—in an illiquid market.

Now understand that we got these new “mark to market” rules after the Enron scandal, and they do have validity, because without them banks can essentially lie about what their assets are.  But in this instance, when extraordinary circumstances have created tremendous illiquidity, many banks are frankly being forced to unfairly write down assets that will be worth much more than their current liquid valuation. 

If the new Congress wants to save some taxpayer money, they should modify the mark to market accounting rules to have an outside appraisal identify what they assets are really worth versus forcing banks to mark down assets that are viewed as toxic. 

Now on to our real estate education section…

Unemployment Claims Crashing Websites – Create Your Own “Safety Net”

As pink slips pile up, jobless claims have become so prevalent they are literally crashing websites and phone systems as workers rush to file unemployment claims. New York, Ohio and North Carolina were forced to shut systems down completely due to heavy volume; considering the average unemployment wages are less than $400 per week or roughly $1,600 per month (or less), one might wonder if there is a better way to create your own safety net.

As it turns out…there is! Short sales offer investors of any background the ability to take their financial future into their own hands rather than stand in line waiting for the government to provide minimal income replacement. It doesn’t require a lot of money, time or extensive training to create your own safety net with an income stream as high or low as desired.

In less time than you might spend on “hold” when applying for a Michigan unemployment benefits (average hold time of four hours according to some clients), you could be well on your way to submitting an offer on your first short sale transaction worth thousands – or even tens of thousands. With a straight 12 months of job losses, 2008 is shaping up to be the worst on record in over 50 years. 

Learn how to create your own safety net with these short sale related resolutions for the new year:

1.      Do it daily. Each and every day do something toward growing your short sale empire. It doesn’t need to be a lot but you should get into the mindset of profit and success.

2.      Try something new. Once you master a formula that works (like the one provided by ShortSalesRiches) then continue to refine it and add to your portfolio of tools and resources.

3.      Expand. Begin small then build a base by incorporating new areas, different types of real estate or other potentially profitable relationships.

4.      Educate. Never stop learning. Find a mentor and learn from others as you go along. Share your knowledge with others along the way.

5.      Add a subscription. Find a source of reliable, pertinent and up-to-date information like that provided by the ShortSalesRiches.com/blog to keep a pulse on the trends.

6.      Query like crazy. Set a personal “outreach goal” for the next month to revitalize and jump-start this year’s success.

7.      Embrace the Internet. Learn how to use it then stick to it. If you don’t have the time to dedicate to doing it all yourself then hire someone to help. It’s an investment in success.

8.      Don’t be fearful. During tough economic times there is a tendency for people to run for cover and settle for less – often much less – rather than bet on their own skills and tenacity.

9.      Get organized. Stop procrastinating and take the time needed to put everything in its place, set up the tools you need and start using them.

10.  Be a bit of a brag! Yes, when you have a success it is important to pat yourself on the back…just be selective. While you are making thousands or tens of thousands of dollars on short sales, don’t expect your unemployed brother in law to be thrilled for you. Instead, teach him how to join you in creating a long term safety net and life you love.

See you at the top!

 

Chris McLaughlin

http://www.shortsalesriches.com/welcome.html  

P.S.: Be one of the 23 spots that we have left for our Saturday webinar at 4 PM EST and 1 PM PST entitled “Recession Proof Real Estate Investing: How to Buy Property with no out of pocket costs!”

The link is right here, so jump on this now:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/783035902

—