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Urgent – Senate Bill to Crush Our Business 

I need your help!

Dear Student,
Please read the information below regarding an urgent Bill that has been passed by the House and is being considered in the Senate.
 
You must take action NOW as this will inpact all of us!   
 
I don’t know if you’ve heard about HR 1728, but it’s a heinous infringement on private property rights that is likely to shut down the creative selling market. IT HAS ALREADY PASSED THE HOUSE AND IS UNDER CONSIDERATION BY THE SENATE NOW. I have attached an article about it that you should blast to your students ASAP, we need massive action on this immediately to stop it.
 
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House Bill 1787-Why it’s Death to Your Business and What to Do About it.
 
            The U.S. Senate is considering a bill that would severely limit the way you do business as a creative investor and, more importantly, is an inexcusable infringement of the property rights of all Americans.
 
            HR 1728, which you can view in its entirety here: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h111-1728 deals with a plethora of mortgage-related issues, mostly around limited terms and fees on residential loans. But the heinous piece of the legislation is in section 101(3)(e), which defines the affected principals as:
‘(E) does not include, with respect to a residential mortgage loan, a person, estate, or trust that provides mortgage financing for the sale of 1 property in any 36-month period, provided that such loan-
(i) is fully amortizing;
(ii) is with respect to a sale for which the seller determines in good faith and documents that the buyer has a reasonable ability to repay the loan;
(iii) has a fixed rate or an adjustable rate that is adjustable after 5 or more years, subject to reasonable annual and lifetime limitations on interest rate increases; and
(iv) meets any other criteria the Federal banking agencies may prescribe; and
 
            Yeah, I know, confusing. But here’s what it says: you are NOT subject to the law as long as you DON’T sell more than 1 property with owner financing every 3 years! Or, to put it another way, you ARE subject to the limitations of the law if you DO sell more than one property every 3 years via a land contract, owner-held mortgage or wrap-around mortgage-and who knows if they’ll define lease/options as owner financing, too?
 
            So what does it mean to be “subject to the law”? Well, at the very least, it means that you will have to comply with a long, confusing, and penalty-filled piece of national legislation. Here are the types of transactions that you would be restricted from doing more than once every 36 months:
 
o       Selling YOUR OWN HOME using a land contract or owner-held mortgage so that you can get a quicker sale, higher sale price, or better rate of interest than is available in other investments
 
o       Carrying back owner-held second mortgages on investment properties that you sell
 
o       Doing any kind of installment sale on residential properties including homes, condos, mobile homes, and even raw land that is zoned residential
 
Yes, there will undoubtedly by ways to “get around it”-some have suggested that getting a mortgage broker’s license and then learning and following the vast new set of regulations would circumvent the “problem”. But bottom line is, this law has to be stopped and it has to be stopped NOW. Here’s why:
 
1. Congress is trying to regulate the wrong thing. The deals we make are not “loans”-they don’t involve the transfer of money, or points or closing costs or adjustable rates or any of the other things that caused the mortgage crisis to begin with. They are INSTALLMENT SALES. We don’t give money to the “borrower” and wait for it to be paid back: we give a property to the borrower and wait for it to be paid off. Regulating this will have no effect on the foreclosure crisis
 
2. It is a completely unacceptable infringement on private property rights. When I own a piece of property and find a ready, willing, and able purchaser, I should be able to control the sale of that property within the existing laws of my state, which already regulate the interest rate that I am able to charge and some of the terms of the sale. The government does not have the right to tell us that we need special licensing to sell our own properties; nor do they have the right to further regulate the terms under which we can sell or burden small investors with a new set of rules that we can’t comply with.
 
Not only will this new law, if passed as written, effectively choke off owner financing as an exit strategy for you, it will also take away housing choice for your buyers. The millions of Americans who’ve been through foreclosure in the last 3 years can’t buy a house in any way OTHER THAN to negotiate owner financing with a seller-and HR 1728 would greatly reduce the number of properties available in this way. Millions of potential home owners who would otherwise be able to re-start the process of paying off a home, and get the tax advantages of ownership, will be reduced to renting until they are able to qualify for bank financing.

  
What to Do Right Now:  

            This bill has already passed the house and is waiting for Senate approval. Please contact your senator via email and snail mail to let him know that this law MUST NOT PASS in its current form. You can get your senator’s contact information here: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
 
            As always in cases like this, you have an automatic handicap to overcome-the fact that you are a real estate investor and are therefore viewed as part of the problem. So when you write, don’t emphasize the nature of your business, just that you and your buyers would be greatly aversely affected by the new law.
 
We need THOUSANDS of these communications to go out in the next few days to have a CHANCE of stopping this in its tracks. So whether you’re a new or experienced investor, PLEASE take the time right now to write your elected representative!
 
Here are some sample letters or emails:
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IF YOU HAVE A REAL ESTATE LICENSE
Dear Senator [name];
 
            My name is Shaun McCloskey and I am a resident of St. Louis.
 
            I am writing you to encourage you to vote NO on HR 1728, the “Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act”.
 
            While many of the provisions of the act are positive steps toward mortgage reform, the inclusion of private owners in the act (see section 101(3)(e)) will enormously reduce the housing choice of Ohioans and the ability of home owners to sell properties in this already-slow market.
 
            As a real estate broker, I have seen several dozen cases in the  past year of home sellers and buyers coming to an agreement for an installment sale on a property that the owner desperately needed to sell (often to avoid foreclosure) and the buyer desperately wanted to buy, but could not raise the downpayment needed for conventional financing.
 
            In all cases, these sales turned out to be win-win deals for the buyer and seller; the seller was able to get rid of an unwanted property to a buyer who loved it, and the buyer was able to get his new home at an affordable payment and interest rates with none of the usual costs (points, application fees etc) inherent in more conventional mortgage transactions.
 
            In Missouri, these transactions are already regulated by state law: a low maximum interest rate is already in place, and both the buyer and seller are protected by other regulations at the state level.
 
            In defense of private property rights, owners should be exempted from the burdensome and unnecessary rules that this law foists upon them. In its current form, it would all but shut off the “owner financing” market that is the only way that many sellers can sell and many buyers can buy right now.
 
PLEASE DO NOT LET THIS RESTRICTION ON PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS PASS THE SENATE. It is unnecessary to stop private buyers and sellers from transacting business that is beneficial to both of them-they are not the problem that the bill seeks to solve. HR 1728 would be extremely harmful to thousands of your constituents.
 
It will exacerbate the problem OF foreclosure, as fewer sellers will be able to sell their homes to avoid it, and CAUSED BY foreclosure, as fewer buyers who have recently experienced foreclosure will be able to re-start the process of home ownership inexpensively and easily by negotiating owner financing.
 
Thank you for your consideration;
 
Shaun McCloskey
 
 
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IF YOU SELL HOUSES WITH OWNER FINANCING
Dear Senator [name];
 
            My name is Shaun McCloskey and I am a  resident of St. Louis.
 
            I am writing you to encourage you to vote NO on HR 1728, the “Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act”.
 
            While many of the provisions of the act are positive steps toward mortgage reform, the inclusion of private owners in the act (see section 101(3)(e)) will enormously reduce the housing choice of Ohioans and the ability of home owners to sell properties in this already-slow market.
 
            As a professional housing provider, I sell several houses each year to home buyers on installment sale [or, if you have not purchased a property, add here: "I had planned to sell several houses this year on installment sale]-a practice that would become impossible under this law in its current form.
I find that in today’s slow market, the best way for me to help buyers who desperately want to become homeowners, but who cannot raise the downpayment or meet the other terms needed for conventional financing, is to allow them to make payments directly to me.
 
            These sales are win-win deals for both the buyer and myself; I am able to turn over homes that I’ve bought and rehabbed (often from foreclosures) to buyers who love and can afford them, and the buyer can get his new home at an affordable payment and interest rates with none of the usual costs (points, application fees etc) inherent in more conventional mortgage transactions.
 
            In Missouri, these transactions are already regulated by state law: a low maximum interest rate is already in place, and both the buyer and seller are protected by other regulations at the state level.
 
            Without the ability to sell homes in this way, I will no longer be able to invest in and renovate any of the tens of thousands of vacant, ugly houses placed on the market by the foreclosure crisis, and my small-but-beneficial business will literally be in ruins. Perhaps more importantly, the homeowner-buyers that I serve will be forced to rent rather than moving toward the American dream of home ownership.
 
In defense of private property rights, owners should be exempted from the burdensome and unnecessary rules that this law foists upon them. In its current form, it would all but shut off the “owner financing” market that is the only way that many sellers can sell and many buyers can buy right now.
 
PLEASE DO NOT LET THIS RESTRICTION ON PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS PASS THE SENATE. It is unnecessary to stop private buyers and sellers from transacting business that is beneficial to both of them-they are not the problem that the bill seeks to solve. HR 1728 would be extremely harmful to thousands of your constituents.
 
It will exacerbate the problem OF foreclosure, as fewer sellers will be able to sell their homes to avoid it, and CAUSED BY foreclosure, as fewer buyers who have recently experienced foreclosure will be able to re-start the process of home ownership inexpensively and easily by negotiating owner financing.
 
Thank you for your consideration;

Shaun McCloskey
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IF YOU BUY HOUSES WITH OWNER FINANCING
Dear Senator [name];
 
            My name is Shaun McCloskey and I am a resident of St. Louis.
 
            I am writing you to encourage you to vote NO on HR 1728, the “Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act”.
 
            While many of the provisions of the act are positive steps toward mortgage reform, the inclusion of private owners in the act (see section 101(3)(e)) will enormously reduce the housing choice of Ohioans and the ability of home owners to sell properties in this already-slow market.
 
            In the past year, I have purchased and renovated several homes-made possible only  because the sellers of these homes were able to sell to me using owner financing in an unrestricted way.
 
            For many of these property owners, seller financing was the only way to unburden themselves of an unwanted property that, in some cases, was headed toward foreclosure before I purchased it.
 
            Without this ability, I can not continue to buy and renovate properties in the neighborhoods that so need me and my colleagues to invest our time, energy, and money in rehabbing properties.  Bank financing is not an option for these properties because of the condition; only financing carried by the sellers will suffice.
 
            Section 101(3)(e) would keep my sellers from utilizing this method of getting rid of unwanted properties in today’s market, should they have more than 1 to sell.
 
In defense of private property rights, owners should be exempted from the burdensome and unnecessary rules that this law foists upon them. In its current form, it would all but shut off the “owner financing” market that is the only way that many sellers can sell and many buyers can buy right now.
 
PLEASE DO NOT LET THIS RESTRICTION ON PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS PASS THE SENATE. It is unnecessary to stop private buyers and sellers from transacting business that is beneficial to both of them-they are not the problem that the bill seeks to solve. HR 1728 would be extremely harmful to thousands of your constituents.
 
It will exacerbate the problem OF foreclosure, as fewer sellers will be able to sell their homes to avoid it, and CAUSED BY foreclosure, as fewer buyers who have recently experienced foreclosure will be able to re-start the process of home ownership inexpensively and easily by negotiating owner financing.
 
Thank you for your consideration;
 
Shaun McCloskey

Shaun McCloskey 

Lots of investor updates; who is hiring; apps dropping as rates edge higher 

The other day my daughter was singing to herself, “Love to eat them mousies; Mousies what I love to eat. Bite they little heads off, nibble on they tiny feet.” Although that has nothing to do directly with mortgages, I hope that the girl in my UC San Diego dorm who painted the Kliban cat poem on her wall 30 years ago isn’t being foreclosed upon. (I know that this is a real stretch.) Yesterday the administration unveiled a new set of incentives for mortgage servicers on 2nd liens: the government will pay mortgage servicers (not originators) $500 upfront and $250 a year for three years for successfully modifying a second mortgage, such as a home equity loan. 

The news yesterday also included the latest mortgage growth industry that is hiring. The Senate voted to hire hundreds more FBI agents and prosecutors to go after mortgage fraud and make a better attempt at dealing with the 5,000 incidents reported each month. The Senate bill is estimated to cost more than $265 million a year for the next two years, but is also expected to pay for itself because of the fines and penalties that would result from more aggressive government investigations. Another 160 special FBI agents and more than 200 support staff, including forensic analysts would be hired – a large increase from the 250 special agents currently assigned to financial fraud cases, and the Justice Department would hire 200 more prosecutors and civil enforcement attorneys, along with 100 support staff.

 Speaking of hiring, remember Deutsche Bank’s MortgageIT platform? Sun West Mortgage, out of California, is picking up MortgageIT’s core platform. They are setting up the office and training their staff, and expect to start taking new business (government & agency products, including reverse and 203(k) products) next month. This is yet another example of the wholesale business model surviving.

 
MGIC reported its seventh straight unprofitable quarter, posting a $184.6 million loss. The loss widened from the $34.5 million they lost in the same quarter a year ago. Chief Executive Officer Curt Culver said he’s talking with regulators and the U.S. Treasury about raising funds to continue offering policies. 

US Bank Home Mortgage rolled out their FNMA refinance plus program for both conforming and jumbo conforming loans. As most brokers know, this program goes up to 105% LTV, and is being used to reduce the monthly mortgage principal and interest payment or offer a more stable mortgage product (i.e. refinance from an ARM to a fixed rate or a interest only to a fixed rate amortizing). The borrower can finance closing costs, prepaid expenses and points, and get cash back to the borrower in an amount no more than the lesser of 2% of the balance of the new refinance mortgage or $2,000. 

“To ensure we are protecting consumers and clients, and to aggressively mitigate fraud, the majority of Wells Fargo Wholesale Lending’s loan options require a processed IRS Form 4506-T. Effective May 4, 2009, the IRS will strictly enforce their policy to reject any 4506-T that is incomplete, illegible or has any information completed after the form is signed by the applicant/taxpayer.”

Wells correspondent announced that for Mandatory & Best Effort Registrations and Best Effort Locks “on and after May 4, 2009, the following Wells Fargo requirements will apply to all Fannie Mae DU Refi Plus loans: Maximum CLTV allowed: 110%, Minimum Loan Score allowed for primary: 620, Second home and investment: 680.” 

Starting Wednesday 4/29/09 Everbank will accept the 2009 temporary loan limits up to $729,750. 

GMAC Bank Correspondents should “note that appraisals conducted in connection with single-family mortgage loans, other than government-insured and -guaranteed loans, with application dates on or after May 1, 2009 must conform to the Home Valuation Code of Conduct. The Home Valuation Code of Conduct reinforces the independence of the appraiser and enhances the overall appraisal process to provide a greater level of integrity to the appraisal ordering process and appraiser contact. The Home Valuation Code of Conduct applies to all conforming loan products.” 

The MBAA reported that U.S., driven by a big drop in refinancing demand. Refinance applications fell almost 22% in the week ended April 24, and purchase applications were down .6%. The total loan index was -18.1%. home loan applications fell last week to the lowest level since mid-March 

Are you, as a consumer, more confident? The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, up slightly last month, improved considerably in April. The index, which samples 5,000 households, jumped from 26.9 in March to 39.2 (1985=100). Although that didn’t have a huge impact on the market, what did cause some prices changes for the worse yesterday was the fact that our stock market did not plummet, and this morning appears to be on the rise since suddenly swine flu concerns may be over-stated. And although companies around the world are exceeding profit estimates, here in the US the first three months of 2009 are expected to be the seventh straight quarter of falling U.S. profits, the longest stretch since at least the Great Depression. 

The big news today, in addition to the $26 billion auction of 7-year notes and the May refunding announcement of 3, 10, and 30-yr Treasury debt next week, will be the FOMC announcement this afternoon. Look for no change in rates, but the verbiage of the announcement can often move the markets. We’ve already seen GDP, which measures total goods and services output within U.S. borders, dropped at a surprising 6.1% annual rate after shrinking 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Output has declined for three straight quarters for the first time since 1974-1975. After the news we find the 10-yr back at 3.0% and mortgage security prices worse by about .125.

After my last blog post, I got an email from a new student of mine.  Since I know that there are a lot of people out there that feel the same way as he does, I thought I would share this with you and make a comment that I think everyone can relate to and learn from… 
His letter reads: 

Dear Shaun

 I have your course.  I am scared to death to delve into it thinking “these” people are in misery.  I can’t guarantee these people >anything< so I feel less than adequate to even approach them and poke at their wounds not being a doctor.  The banks take a looong time to process the paperwork if they would happen to agree to do a SS.   

I know first hand how they feel, as I have been one step from a box under a bridge for a long time.  I am slowly getting a business built up rehabbing. I have done two with a secured HELOC … on my brothers home. What a guy!   

Now, in lieu of the economy and the dreaded fear of this administration leading us into ruin within 2 years, I am trying to learn how to wholesale.  But what if I can’t find an investor buyer?  Then what?  Between the uncertainty of the economy, dealing with people in misery and the fear of getting in over my head and finding myself on the street I am frozen stiff.  It’s always easy for the successful investors to say, ” just do it.”   But when you are one step from defending your turf under some bridge, it’s hard to flow like water.  – Joe

 Dear Joe,

I can totally and completely understand and appreciate how you feel right now.  As a matter of fact, most investors that I know right now feel this way, at least to a certain extent.  As a matter of fact, I can remember when I first got started in real estate.  I remember feeling many of the same things that you feel right now.  If I’m being truly honest with myself and with everyone on this blog, I can also tell you that there are still times when I feel this way about a number of challenges that I’m getting ready to face in life.  The fact is, it’s human nature to be scared of the unknown.  

Want to know how to get over this feeling?  You simply must put your heart in the game for the right reasons.  I can tell just by your e-mail that you’re someone that cares about people.  It comes across in what you just wrote.  You mention that you’re scared to move forward because you are not, in fact, a doctor, and yet you’re here trying to treat their wounds.  While I can agree with you that you’re not a doctor, I can also tell you this; if you truly have gone through my course from start to finish, you already know more than 99% of the other investors out there that are already successful doing short sales.  It doesn’t matter how much more information you feel like you still need to know before you need to take action, one fact remains.  You know enough to take action right now. 

If there’s one thing I’ve learned by being around successful people, it’s that successful people don’t waste time thinking of all the reasons they shouldn’t go after something.  Instead, they think of all of the reasons why they should.  Don’t get me wrong here, successful people also calculate the risks involved and take appropriate measures to make sure that they’re not taking on levels of risk that are unnecessary to complete the job.  At the same time, the most successful people that I know are the ones that aren’t afraid to get out there, make a decision, and take action.  (i.e. JUST DO IT.)   

The fact is, there are many questions that are going to come up over the course of any pursuit that you’re not going to know how to answer.  Do you honestly think that just because I have experience now that I never felt some of the same things that you felt?  Trust me, I remember what it was like to be scared to death, wondering whether or not it would ever find a buyer for a property or was getting ready to purchase.   I remember wondering if I was even going to be able to figure out a title company to use before I had even sent out my first marketing piece.

On one hand, it is human nature to be scared of the unknown.  On the other hand, I believe that it’s all in how you look at it…  you can either be so scared of the unknown that you don’t do anything to pursue it, or you can be so excited about the discovery and adventure of the unknown that you simply can’t wait another minute to make your move. 

Throughout the process, there are going to be many questions that you don’t know how to answer.  That’s part of life.  That can be a really fun part of the process, if you allow it to be.  It can also stop you from taking any action whatsoever and force you to freeze you in your tracks.   The choice is up to you, but I don’t know of any one thing in my whole life that is truly valuable to me that didn’t take some level of courage to acquire. 

One more thing… and ALWAYS remember this.  When I get a call from a homeowner who is in distress, I have to remember a few things.  First and foremost, I’m not the one that got them into the problem they’re in the first place.  They did that to themselves.  I am, however, so committed to doing whatever I can possibly do to helping them out their situation, that regardless of how many deals I’ve done in the past, there is no one more qualified than me to try and help them out of the mess they’re in.  The reason for this is that I actually care about the homeowner.   While I may have the goal of making money on the transaction in the end, my heart really does want to help out the homeowner in any way that I possibly can.  Because of this, I’m willing to go to bat for the homeowner in the best way that I know how.  This doesn’t mean that I’m going to make false promises to them by telling them that I am, without a doubt, going to save their house from foreclosure.  That would be a lie since it’s really not up to me.  It’s up to the bank to make that decision.  It does, however, mean that I’m going to be honest and upfront in my approach, and let the homeowner know that I will do whatever I can within my power to try and help them put this difficult part of their lives behind them.  

I believe that if you get out there and “Just Do It” with that in mind, you cannot fail regardless of the outcome.

Hope this helps,

Shaun

I just came across this article today that shows some rather interesting numbers.  What’s interesting is that loan modifications for homeowners are up, which, as a result, they’re saying that foreclosure are down.  What’s interesting is that shorts sales went UP during the fourth quarter of last year, which proves what I wrote in another post late last year.  The fact remains that short sales are a vital part of mitigating loss for banks.  We (as investors) are an important part of this process.  I also thinks it’s going to be interesting to see what happens with all of the these loan modifications.  In my opinion this will help save a certain percentage of homeowners from losing their house to foreclosure, however, I also believe that many of the people that are facing foreclosure today will only postpone the inevitable by initiating a loan modification.  I hate to sound negative because I’m not a negative person, but I believe that the vast majority of the loan modifications will turn into foreclosures eventually anyway.   But you should read for yourself and come to your own conclusion…   Enjoy!

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Helping More Homeowners – Loan Modifications Increasing

loans-webRISMEDIA, April 17, 2009-Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac modified nearly 24,000 loans during the fourth quarter of 2008, an increase of 76% over the third quarter. The modifications, along with the suspension of foreclosures that began November 26, reduced the number of foreclosures by nearly 27% during the quarter, according to data released by James B. Lockhart, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), as part of the Foreclosure Prevention Report for the fourth quarter for 2008.

The FHFA report details the actions Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have taken to prevent foreclosures and keep people in their homes. It analyzes data provided by the companies with adjustments to account for the impact of the foreclosure suspension. The suspension, originally set to end Jan. 9, 2009, was later extended to Jan. 31, 2009.

“Fewer homeowners are losing their homes as a result of the foreclosure prevention efforts,” said Director Lockhart. “We expect the numbers of those getting relief to grow further as the Making Home Affordable program picks up speed in coming months.”

The foreclosure prevention options include forbearance plans, payment plans, delinquency advances and loan modifications. Workout options that led to resolution of delinquent accounts, which means the account was either reinstated or removed from the portfolio, increased 15% in the last quarter of 2008.

The report shows that as of Dec. 31, 2008, of the Enterprises’ 30.7 million residential mortgages:

• Modifications represented 34.0% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions up from 22.2% of the third quarter.
• Completed payment plans represented 19.0% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 24.2% of the third quarter.
• Short sales represented 8.9% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 7.7% of third quarter.
• Deeds in lieu represented 0.8% of fourth quarter loss mitigation actions compared to 0.7% in the third quarter.

As a result of increased loss mitigation efforts and the foreclosure suspensions, the overall loss mitigation performance ratio (loss mitigation actions as a percentage of mortgages for which foreclosure was likely) for mortgages serviced on behalf of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, increased from 55% during the third quarter of 2008 to 65.7% in the fourth quarter. For prime loans, the ratio increased from 45.1% to 54.2%, and for nonprime loans from 64.7% in the third quarter to 75.3% in the fourth quarter.

Suspensions gave servicers more time to work with borrowers in foreclosure who were eligible for the Streamlined Modification Program introduced in early November 2008. The impact of the suspensions caused December 2008 numbers for completed foreclosure and third-party sales to decline and for total loans, 60-plus, and 90-plus-days delinquent loans to increase.

When adjusted to account for foreclosure suspensions, the month-over-month change in the delinquency rates decreased. The month-over-month change in the 60-plus-days delinquency rate from October 2008 to November 2008 was an increase of 14.39%. The month-over-month change from November 2008 to December 2008 was an increase of 9.31%.

For more information, visit www.fanniemae.com or www.freddiemac.com.

Have you ever really wanted to get something done, but just didn’t have the time to do it? I know I have… The front yard of my house has needed some attention for some time now. I’m the kind of the guy that is meticulous about keeping the inside of my house clean, but for some reason, I can never find the time to keep up with the yard work that needs to be done. The bottom line is that the front yard needs to be raked and seeded, re-mulched, new plants have to be planted, and it just needs an overall facelift. I’ve been putting off doing this task for some time now, always allowing other things to get in the way. The truth is, I really don’t care much for yard work. Some people get a thrill out of it, but that’s just not me. When I’m outside, I’d rather be going for a walk with my 8 month old son or going for a bike ride out in the country.

In the past, I might have called up a landscaping company and had them come out and take care of it for me, but today I had a different idea. Why not throw the job out there on Craigslist and see what happens? Here was my ad.

I need some help getting my front yard cleaned up this weekend. Preferably Saturday. Basically, the yard needs to be raked, bagged and cleaned up. I need someone who is willing to do a good job. I want it to be raked really good and then you can use my spreader to plant grass seed and water afterwards. I’ll pay $10.00 per hour for this help and I’ll supply the materials. You just show up, feel free to bring a radio, and have fun with it.

If we have enough time, we may also spread mulch, plant bushes, etc… Please email me and let me know what time you can be here and how long you can stay. And please, don’t yank my chain… if you say you’re going to be here, show up.

The results were absolutely mind blowing. Within 24 hours, I got 91 responses. Are you kidding me? 91 RESPONSES!!! I had to delete the ad because I couldn’t handle all of the emails. 15 of the responses came from people that were HIGHLY qualified individuals that had recently been laid off from landscaping companies, you name it. As a matter of fact, 4 of the people had more than 10 years experience building retaining walls. One of the people built the retaining walls for some major corporations here in St. Louis. The point is… there were a LOT of very qualified responses from very qualified people, all who needed a little bit of work in some challenging times.

So, what does this have to do with real estate? Well, this experience got me thinking… how many other tasks in my day to day real estate business could be outsourced to someone like this. Someone that is willing to give it their all, and is happy to be working right now. My mind started getting ideas faster than I could write them down.

So, let me ask you the same question. What is going on in your business right now that you could really use some help with? Why not ask for it? The help is there. It’s also VERY reasonably priced.

Think you can’t afford it? I’m not sure you can afford not to. Think about it… How much is your time worth today? Time is the one resource that every one of us have that is non-renewable. Once it’s spent, you don’t get it back. On the other hand, maybe hiring someone at $10 an hour to do a task that you don’t want to do might free you up to do a different task that could make you a whole lot more!

Just a thought…

If you missed the interview with Roger Clyne, you missed a GREAT call!

Roger spoke for nearly an hour on life as a rock star, his passion for music, the importance of his family and his faith, and so much more!

Listen now to how Roger uses lifeonaire concepts in his approach to a fulfilling and amazing life.

Good News! Fannie Mae Stops Cutting Real Estate Commissions in Short Sales…

WASHINGTON – March 2, 2009 – Real estate commissions are now protected in some short-sale transactions. In response to Realtor concerns, Fannie Mae announced that “preforeclosure sales may not be conditioned upon a reduction of the total (real estate) commission,” providing the total commission does not exceed 6 percent. The policy became effective March 1.

The move affects only short sales where Fannie Mae backs the mortgage, but experts hope Freddie Mac and other government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) will soon follow suit. Currently, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac back over half the mortgages in the U.S.

The change seeks to solve a problem encountered by many Realtors. After putting together a short-sale package and submitting it to the lender for approval, Realtors report that lenders would often counteroffer with a cut in commission. Realtors then found themselves working twice as hard on a short sale for less money.

In November during the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Legal Seminar, Fannie Mae officials turned to Realtors and asked what could be done to expedite the short-sale process. Among other things, attendees took Fannie Mae to task for their commission policies. The recently announced change is Fannie Mae’s response.

Fannie Mae’s announcement appeared as a short notice in a “Miscellaneous Servicing Policy Changes” announcement. It says:

Servicing Guide, Part VII, Section 504.02: Contacting Selected Borrowers

Effective March 1, 2009, closing of preforeclosure sales may not be conditioned upon a reduction of the total commission to be paid to real estate agents to a level below what was negotiated by the listing agent with the borrower, unless the fee exceeds 6 percent of the sales price of the property in the aggregate. Servicers are reminded that they must continue to obtain any approvals that may be required by interested third parties in connection with preforeclosure sales.

The original document can be downloaded from Fannie Mae’s Web site at: https://www.efanniemae.com/sf/guides/ssg/2009annlenltr.jsp?referrer=frpromo

© 2009 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

   Join me this Friday, March 6^th at 2:30PM CST time for a one on one interview with lead singer Roger Clyne.  (Formerly the Refreshments) 

Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers is an Alt-Country/Rock band from Tempe, Arizona, USA. The band is typically referred to by the fans as “The Peacemakers” or by the abbreviation “RCPM”. The Peacemakers’ music is known to cross genres, with some songs showing a more Country influence, and others sounding more like a modern pop song. More recently, the band’s influences have included more of a Reggae/South of the Border influence.

Roger Clyne’s lyrics frequently showcase his Southwestern roots, and frequently invoke images of cowboys, Federales, and references to Mexico and places in Arizona, amongst other Southwestern references.

TO ATTEND THIS EVENT, CLICK HERE!!

Here are a few samples of his music. 

You have GOT to make this call.  Not only are the Peacemakers one of my all time favorite rock & roll bands, I think you’ll agree that Roger also has a lot of Lifeonaire qualities that you’re going to LOVE to hear about. 

I’ll see you on the call THIS FRIDAY at 2:30PM CST

 TO ATTEND THIS EVENT, CLICK HERE!!

Shaun McCloskey

For those of you that missed our Lifeonaire call with Joan Geison, let me just tell you that you missed one heck of a call!   

Joan stayed with us for almost an entire hour and out of the hundreds of people on the call almost NO ONE dropped off the call early.   She started by telling stories of how she became a true Lifeonaire… she then shared real life stories of miracles that have happened right before her very eyes.  So much so, that at 72 years old she was able to literally feed more than 18,000 people in need over Christmas this year.

You’re going to love Joan’s simple, yet completely fulfilling approach to Life!  

Hi everyone,

I just came across a journal post that I wrote in 2004 and thought I would share it with you.  Keep in mind that I got into real estate in the beginning of 2003, which means I wrote this after I was about a year into the game.  As many of you know, my first year in real estate was one of the absolute worst years of my life.  For those of you that don’t know, I lost a grand total of $84,000 on my very first real estate deal…  It was such a disheartening experience for me that I came very close to giving up.

I know this is a very long post, but before I married my wife my pastor asked me to answer one simple question.  “What does God mean to you?”   Below was my response…  I wanted to share this with you because, the more I share, the more I realize that other people can relate.  So if you’ve ever felt how I felt below, now you know you’re not alone.  If you’ve never felt what I felt below or if you don’t believe what I happen to believe, that doesn’t mean that I’m going to judge you in any way, however, I felt compelled to share this with you today.

So I’m supposed to think and write about what my relationship with God means to me.  WOW.  That’s a pretty big question to answer.  In one aspect, I know what the relationship means to me at times, and I know what it SHOULD mean to me ALL the time.  I guess sometimes my side of the relationship isn’t where it needs to be.  I know that God’s side of the relationship is perfect though.

I guess I’ll start by giving a little background on where my road of faith has led me throughout my life.  I grew up going to Catholic church most of my childhood, and to be perfectly honest, although I don’t have anything against the Catholic faith, the church we went to left a horrible taste in my mouth.  We would go to church every Sunday and see the same priest over and over again.  He must have been about 100 years old.  Every Sunday it seemed like he would say the same thing he said the week before, sing the same songs, and teach the same stories time and time again.  I remember how I felt every week after I left and while I was there.  I was flat our exhausted.  I would get there fairly energized and by the time I left, I was absolutely famished and certainly ready to leave.  I guess some people feel a comfort by repetition and the habits that came from every Sunday doing and saying the same exact things all the time.  I on the other hand felt like church was a complete waste of time, and that what I learned in the beginning was what I was to continue to hear week after week after week. 

With that said, I really wasn’t interested in church growing up.  I tried to be a part of religious organizations through high school called “Young Life.”  That was a lot of fun.  W would go to the meetings every week on Wednesday nights and Chip, our leader at the time, would sing songs and preach to us about how God should fit into our lives and what he has done for so many others.  It was great to hear, and I must admit that I was very motivated on more than one occasion, but it never really stuck.  I mostly went because a lot of my friends went.  It was a pretty good time, not to mention a great reason to get out of the house late on a school night.  At the end of the night though, when no one else was around, I really never could figure out what all the hype was about.  I never got that crazy feeling that all of these other kids said they got from “giving their life to God.”  For me, for some strange reason, it just didn’t happen.

Time went by and I got into my 20’s.  As I lived each day, it seemed like God was always hanging around in one way or another, but when I prayed, the prayer usually started with, “God, IF you’re out there…”   It was never a true belief that he was there, but I did pray from time to time because I always felt like something was missing.  Not only that, but I could see the affect that the church was having on my Mom, my sister, and my brother, but I still didn’t get it.  I really didn’t have much of a relationship with God throughout my twenties.  What WAS there, really wasn’t genuine.  Needless to say, I spent a lot of my early and mid twenties very confused about exactly who I was, and what my purpose here on earth was for.

In the year of my 28^th birthday, I became very interested in the word “faith.”  I didn’t know how everyone else did it, but for some reason, all of these other people seemed to have access to a lot of “faith” and I just couldn’t see how they did it.  How is it that one person can just believe in something?  How is it that they don’t doubt something that they’ve never seen with their eyes before?  I couldn’t see how this was possible.  What I DID see, however, was the affect that God was having with my Mom and how it helped her to get over the death of my Dad just a couple of years earlier.  It’s kind of funny, so many people say that they started to believe more when they lost a loved one.  Others say that they had LESS faith.  It seemed like neither really happened for me.  I didn’t have much to faith to lose in the first place.  I remember being a little mad at God for making my Mom go through what she was going through, and I also remember thinking that I hoped that IF there was a God, that my Dad went upstairs instead of down.  But the bottom line is that I saw my Mom go through a transformation in life and develop this overwhelming faith like I’d never seen before.  Not only that, but I saw my sister go through the same thing.  It was when I realized this that I thought about what the hole in my life really was.  I always had this feeling like something was missing in my life.  I had already accomplished what I thought was a lot for such a young guy, but it didn’t matter.  With every new thing I did, and every new adventure that I took on, something just wasn’t’ there…  How is it that my Mom, my sister, and my brother have this thing called faith and I can’t seem to find it.  It was only after talking with my Mom one night that I realized why.  I had never even asked God to give it to me.  I had never really been honest with him by sitting down and truly telling him what I thought, how I felt, and the doubts that I had.  My Mom told me, “if you want to have faith, you just need to ask God for it.  He’ll listen.”  At the time, I kind of thought that it was a bunch of talk…, but I decided that I was going to do it anyway, just to see what happened.  I don’t remember exactly what day it was, or if was day or night, but I sat down and had a little one on one with God.  I told him that I wanted to have faith in him, and that I wanted his help in giving me that faith.  After all, I thought, if you’re as big and powerful as they say you are, then this should be no big deal for you right?

It was that day that my life began to change.

I met with my Mom’s pastor a few weeks after that.  His name is Pastor Dan, and let me tell you, this guy is really cool.  I met up with him after church one day.  There were a LOT of people waiting to talk to him and tell him how great the service was, etc…  To my surprise, he worked his way through the crowd, came right up to me and said, “Your Mom told me your having a hard time with some things and that you needed some help.  Let’s get out of here and talk about it.”  He then took me to a quiet room away from everyone else and asked me what was on my mind.  I told him that I had a problem with a lot of what I’d heard about religion in the past and then proceeded to play a game of 20 questions with him.  He politely answered each of my questions and then quickly changed the subject to tell me how I could find these answers any time I needed them just by picking up the bible and reading a little bit at a time.  He then told me to start with Genesis and work my through John following through the New Testament from there.  I left the conversation that day feeling really good about my new teachings, and decided that I would start reading the bible.  I would read a little bit at a time at first, and pretty soon I found myself late for work in the morning because I couldn’t put it down.  I could see that a new world was starting to open up for me, but at the same time, I had many questions, and couldn’t just give myself up completely yet though.  There were just too many things in there that I wasn’t too sure about.

Right around that time, my good friend Valerie introduced me to a church in St. Louis.  She said that she really like it there and that it was totally different from anything she had ever been to before.  She said that the pastor there was awesome to listen to, and that he talked to everyone there just we talk to each other.  He doesn’t preach at you, he just talks and teaches from the bible in today’s terms.  Not only does Pastor Jeff tell you what the bible says, but he shows you what that means in life today!  You see, that was one of the things that always erked me about going to church as a kid.  It seemed like they always talked about things that happened 2000 years ago, but my thought was always, “WHO CARES!?!?  That doesn’t have anything to do with me right now…”  Before you know it, I attended my first Sunday at my new church with Val and everything she said was true.  It was great.  They had a live band, and they actually played pretty cool music!  This wasn’t just the pipe organs and old ladies singing.  They actually had guitars up there and were rocking out!  I really listened to what the pastor said that day, and the great thing about it was that I was able to relate it to my own life.  I felt like I really “got it” this time, and for the first time in my life I was really interested in going back again.

For a few months after that I went to church as often as I could go.  I was just finishing up a sort of “wild” time in my life where I was dating quite a bit and having a lot of fun.  On New Years Eve of this same year I went on my first date with Jennie Camp.  It was a friendly date, partly because she lived out of town, but mostly because she was my sisters’ friend and, to be perfectly honest with you, I just wasn’t really that interested.  That night, however, we had an absolute blast.  I didn’t know it yet, but that night would mark the beginning of the most wonderful gift I could have ever have been given.

Four days later I attended church yet again.  This time it hit me.  I decided that “Today is the day that I will give my life to God.  This is now for real.  I don’t want to wait any longer.  I am ready to allow him to come into my life and take me to places that I could never dream on my own.  Today, January 4^th, 2004 is the first day of the rest of my life.”  I would be baptized that day in front of the whole church.  I would show my leap of faith to everyone there, and this time, I would mean it with all my heart.  I wanted it very badly.  I wanted that feeling that my Mom and sister and brother had.  I wanted that feeling that no matter what I did, God would still love me.  And on that day, I got it.  What I didn’t know was that I had access to that my whole life, but for years and years I was so stupid that I didn’t even see it.  I asked and God listened.  He was there for me just like my Mom and Pastor Dan said he would be.  What a wonderful joyous feeling.

From that day, my life has completely changed.  My relationship with Jennie turned into something that I never thought would be a possibility.  Within just a few short weeks of my baptism, I developed a love for Jennie that was unimaginable before.  I am now in love with her more that I ever thought I was capable of.  I now know that it wasn’t just because I got lucky.  She was given to me by God because my heart was no longer too hard for me to appreciate her how I needed to.  Not only that, but I think people are unable to have this kind of feeling without Gods blessing.  She was my gift from Jesus Christ, and for that I am eternally grateful.  But that’s not it.  Remember, I said that my life TOTALLY changed, not just one aspect of it.  My family life is better than it’s ever been as well.  My business has really started to take off this year.  I’m finally starting to have some money again when just a few months before, I almost threw in the towel and got a job instead of following my dream of owning a successful business.  My relationships with friends are wonderful.   Basically, I have a whole new outlook on life.  My relationships with everyone I know and don’t know have grown so much.  For that, I am grateful.  For that, I have faith.  For that, I give my life to Him to do with what he wishes.  And I have to tell you… It’s a much better feeling to know that when things don’t go the way I thought they would, it’s only because God has something different in store for me.  What a great feeling.

I can’t lie, there are still times when I wonder about things.  There are still times when I’m not quite as strong as others.  I’m going to continue to do the wrong thing from time to time, even though I know it’s the wrong thing going into it.  But at least now I know that he’s there.  I know that no matter what happens, He’ll still love me.  And I know that no matter what I ever doubt or have trouble with, all I have to do is ask for help and he will. 

With that said, I also know that this marriage to the woman of my dreams needs to have a third person involved if it’s going to work.  This marriage is between myself and Jennie, however, God was the one that gave her to me, therefore He is the one that will lead us though our new lives together.  It’s also my responsibility to lead our family to Christ as the man of the house, and I plan on doing so.  I know that there will be times that will be tough, but I also know that those are the times when myself and my family will need him the most. 

Now that I’ve given the entire history of my life, it’s time to get back to the question…  Where does God fit into my life today and what does he mean to me?  Well, he’s given me more just by asking than I could ever give back to him in a thousand lifetimes.  For that, he means everything to me.  Without him, there is no me.  And for that, I’m eternally grateful.  Now it’s time to create my new family with him as well.