Tampa Real Estate Investors Alliance Blog

Learn How to Be a Blue Collar Genius!

Posted on February 8, 2013 by

Blue Collar Genius Defined

A Blue Collar Genius is all of us who have mastered our craft with hard work, diligence, taking action, creating experience, making mistakes, and most importantly never giving up!

That’s a blue collar genius by my definition. How many times have you said I’m smarter than he is, but he’s driving the big Cadillac and you’re driving the little economy car? How could that guy ever make any money?

Perspiration, Inspiration, and Blue Collar Genius’

Thomas Edison said “Genius is 90% perspiration and 10% inspiration”.

The Top Real Estate IRA Investors Know Lack of Knowledge = Fear

How many people do you know that have been to every seminar, they know more about real estate IRA investing than anybody you’ve ever talked to, and when you ask them “how many deals have you done?”, they say “Well, I’m still working on my first deal.” You ask, “How long have you been a member of the group?” You’re not shocked when they respond, “About eight or nine years, but I’m looking.”

Knowledge is wonderful, but you have to actually use it! Read More→

Getting Started in Multifamily – Part 1

Posted on February 8, 2013 by

Have you ever thought about getting into the multifamily business? It’s not easy and it’s not for everyone, but if you have what it takes I can show you how! I created Real Estate Raw to pull back the curtain on the commercial multifamily business. I have survived the down turn of the economy and quite frankly I don’t want to go through that again. Do you?!

How many real estate seminars have you sat through to only find that it was one big SALES PITCH! Starting a business armed only with sales pitches is never a good thing. In this 5 part series I will be teaching you the “real side” of the real estate business.

Notice I keep saying real estate “business”? That is one of the first lessons that most people get wrong when starting out in real estate. Let me clarify this for you.

An investor is someone who is sitting around with cash that they need to get a return on. If you have all the cash you need to buy real estate with…then you are an investor. If you are trying to create wealth in real estate (not spend it) then you will need to raise money and possibly qualify for some loans…you are not an investor, you are a real estate entrepreneur. Read More→

Short Sales Are Sailing

Posted on February 8, 2013 by

Many Investors and Realtors avoid short sales like the plague.  They are definitely missing the boat!  My business specializes primarily in short sales and I have seen an increase in the number of approvals we are getting.  The time line for a short sale varies from 90 to 120 days if you submit the lender a “complete” short sale package.  Since short sales are dominating the market, the Lenders are creating more streamlined processes to conduct smoother short sales.  If you do short sales, then I am quite sure you have heard of the online system called “Equator.”  Equator allows all of the short sale paperwork to be processed electronically through one common venue, versus traditional and random faxes and emails.  Having a file processed online avoids the common objection from the short sale lender of “We didn’t receive the documents.”  Effective January 1, 2013, the newest lender that has started to use Equator is Chase.  The following lenders and servicers are presently using Equator:  1) Bank of America, 2) Chase, 3) Wells Fargo, 4) GMAC, 5) Nationstar, 6) ASC, 7) Carrington Mortgage, and 8) Homeward Residential Services. 

The Equator System assigns applicable tasks to each party (Agent, Negotiator, Closer, etc) including a deadline in which to complete each task.  I like the fact that the lenders can no longer say “Oh, we never got that paperwork.”  However, I don’t like the fact that they are tracking our information.  Nationstar has taken the collection of Buyer’s information to a whole new level.  They require all Buyers to fill out a loan application even though they most likely will not be using Nationstar as a lender.  This application has been mandatory and this has not been waived on any of my files.  If you are a Buyer on any property, you are required to provide your name, address, telephone number, DOB, SS#, assets, employment history and more.  This is regardless if you are purchasing for investment or personal use and if you are getting a mortgage or paying cash.    Read More→

By remembering just a few basics, you, as a Real Estate Investor, can quickly determine whether or not a seller is motivated to sell their property. First of all, a motivated seller will ask questions like “how soon can you buy my house?” or “How can you help me get out of this situation?” or “How soon can you get here?” An experienced Real Estate Investor knows these are really good questions for a seller to ask.

There are two types of houses we are going to buy, either pretty houses or ugly houses and there are motivated sellers in both of these categories. When you are marketing to sellers, there are certain types of sellers who are much more likely to have a house they need to sell.

For example, I personally like working with out of state owners (folks who own a property where you live but don’t live there full time), heirs, divorces, vacant houses, estate and probate properties, military transfers and pre-foreclosures. These sellers are much more likely to have a house they need to sell “right now” and that’s the kind of seller you want to work with. As a Real Estate Investor, you may also run into landlords who are fed up with tenants ruining their properties over and over. These are all good sources of motivated sellers. Most of these sellers are folks who don’t live in these properties. Read More→

Every New Year’s Day, people consider what they want to accomplish in the following year. Well, we are now 30 days into 2013, and I am sure that you have reflected on 2012. What resolutions did you follow to success? What results have you seen from last year’s work?

At the beginning of 2013, I reflected on what I considered success. Like many of you, I realized that I want to improve my monetary, financial, relationship and problem-solving skills because these lead us to success. What is success in 2013? ACHIEVING MORE OF YOUR GOALS.

We all know that success in our business means learning new tricks, tips, and techniques. We must accumulate knowledge and power. We must achieve a superior capacity to think and act effectively through presentations, best practices, and strong strategies. We must have a highly competitive advantage: a platinum value. But how do we strengthen the skills that we MUST have? Read More→

Welcome back! If you read Part One of this article, you know that we covered the other different types of popular real estate deals that most people do, and the biggest problems with them these days. Then we talked about how advantageous it is to do the new type of deals: Wholesaling Pretty Houses!

But we still have a few important things to cover, so let’s pick up where we left off…

Once you agree on the deal & terms with the seller, you get all the paperwork signed & closed at either a title company or attorney’s office. No exceptions. You’ll want that legal backup in case the seller conveniently forgets what they agreed to later.

So now you’ve got a deal under contract & all the paperwork signed. What now? Simple. You get it ‘sold’ as an opportunity to a tenant buyer who: 1. Has a decent chunk of money to put down (typically $5,000+/minimum), and 2. Can afford the existing monthly mortgage payments. Read More→

Thurs, Feb 14th @ 6:00 PM – Doubletree Suites Tampa Bay
Tampa REIA Meeting on Feb 14th
“How to Know a Good Investment Property When You See One”
with Special Guest, Larry Harbolt
Members and Guests can attend at NO CHARGE. Please RSVP Below…
Eventbrite - Tampa REIA February 14th Meeting with Larry Harbolt

Larry HarboltDo you really know a good real estate deal when you see one? You would be surprised how many real estate investors who have been in the business for less than 5 years, think they know how to separate the winners from the losers. Many of these well intentioned investors don’t know how to invest in truly profitable properties that will enable them to achieve immediate cash flow as well as long term wealth and lasting financial independence.

If you would like to learn how to tell a great deal from a marginal deal or a real loser, be sure to join us at Tampa REIA on Thursday, February 14th at 6:00PM at the Doubletree Suites located at 3050 N Rocky Point Drive West in Tampa, FL where local real estate expert Larry Harbolt will teach you how you can become a highly successful, seasoned investor in the shortest period of time.

Larry will share with you his secrets and those of other seasoned investors and teach you why they are successful regardless of what the market conditions look like from month to month or year after year.

And for those of you who want to learn even more, Larry is also doing a full day workshop called “Investing Ideas All Investors Must Know In Today’s Changing Market” on Saturday, February 16th on deal structuring and real estate investment strategies for the investor who is struggling to make money in the current real estate market. This is yet another opportunity for you to learn how other successful investors think, analyze their deals and structure them the way they do.

Click to view Cruise VideoWIN A CRUISE: All participants who attend the Tampa REIA Meeting on February 14th will entered into a drawing for a chance to win a *Complimentary 2 Day Cruise to the Bahamas with Caribbean Cruise Line! *You must be present at the meeting to win. The 2 day Cruise does not include port fees, transportation and taxes.

Late Night Networking at Whiskey Joe’s Bar & Grill

Whiskey Joe's Bar & Grill Tampa FloridaAfter the conclusion of the Tampa REIA Main Meeting (after 9PM), we will be reconvening at Whiskey Joe’s Bar & Grill located at 7720 West Courtney Campbell Causeway in Tampa for the “Meeting after the Meeting”. Come eat, drink, network and have fun with us as hang out late into the night on Tampa Bay!

In my last article, I explained that there are two approaches investors can take to determine whether or not a lender has been negligent or committed fraud. The first approach I described is to look through the paper trail to dig up issues. The second approach is to follow the money.

Not many people truly understand how the mortgage and finance industries work. It’s basically a shell game with them moving money around with little regard as to the laws and regulations that govern how banks are supposed to act.

They play this constant game all supposedly in the name of increasing the money supply. Attorney Neil Garfield describes the process as the bank starting out with $100 in the left pocket and taking $10 out to deposit in the right pocket, but still reporting to the SEC and investors that the full $100 is still in the left pocket. When the next $10 comes out, described as trading profits or a fee, the amount in the left pocket is still reported as $100 rather than the $80 that is actually there. Read More→

Greedy people bring trouble to their families, but the person who can’t be paid to do wrong will live.” (Pr 15:27)(NCV)

The relentless drive to acquire the elusive “American Dream”, is what fuels many business professionals. To many, in pursuit of the world’s definition of success, means “getting more and more”, “climbing the corporate ladder at all cost”, or perhaps it means “the end justifies the means, no matter what!” This kind of ill-advised pursuit requires that a person disconnect other areas of life that makes significant demands on their time and attention. One way to separate these distractions is to departmentalize them.

Highly motivated entrepreneur and business professionals often compartmentalize their professional interests from the rest of their personal lives. Many “go-getters” tend to divide their lives into these different compartments and make decisions as if they are not interconnected. For many, their thoughts about church, religion, matters concerning God and the Bible, or even their family, have little or nothing to do with their day-to-day business decisions and activities that are required to be successful. They rationalize that these different compartments neatly and separately co-exist. For instance, one might; Read More→

Sat, Feb 16th @ 9AM – Ocean Palms Hotel, St Pete
“Investing Ideas All Investors Must Know In Today’s Changing Market”
A Full Day Workshop with Larry Harbolt
Saturday February 16, 2013 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Ocean Palms Hotel, 5005 34th St. North, St Petersburg, Florida 33714

Registration Information: You can pay at the door by credit card, cash or check or register download the registration form below and either email it back to larryharbolt@gmail.com or fax it back to 727-367-5349.

Larry HarboltHello investor friends,

Happy New Year and a prosperous 2013 to everyone! I want to let you know that I am doing a special one day class on strategy and deal structuring for the investor who is struggling to make money in this current real estate market. This class will help you see and find the missing pieces of the real estate puzzle you’ve been looking for to make your investing business thrive.

I will show you how to quickly determine which the good deals are, and which are the not-so-good deals. This class will take you to different levels of deal structuring and strategy you’ve never seen or thought of before. You will learn how successful investors in today’s market think through every deal they do and how they structure multiple ways to buy any property. I will also show you why “CASH” isn’t always the best solution for every seller, and why.

Here is some of what you will learn during the class… Read More→

Bill Ham

Posted on February 1, 2013 by

Bill HamBill Ham has been investing in real estate for 8 years and has created a portfolio of nearly 400 units in Macon, GA. He created his entire real estate investing portfolio using creative and seller financing.

Taking the Mystery Out of Money by Lonnie ScruggsFolks,

Lonnie Scruggs, the father of Lonnie Deals, published a new book today: Taking the Mystery Out of Money

You can download it today AND TODAY ONLY for F-R-E-E!

Lonnie is a national treasure and one of the most talented and successful real estate investors in the country. We LOVE this guy!!!

Here’s a link to down load his his book. Again, it’s free for today and today ONLY!

LINK: http://www.amazon.com/Taking-Mystery-Out-Money-ebook/dp/B0036ZAO6Q

Bill Cook

Sat, Jan 12th @ 8:30 AM – Doubletree Suites Tampa Bay
“How to Make $20K in 30 Days”
A Full Day Workshop with Don DeRosa on Jan 12

Don DeRosaWould You Like to Make More by Working Less? Is this really possible? Real estate expert, Don DeRosa says “15 hours a week is all you need to build short term cash flow and long term wealth by investing in real estate.”

Imagine taking any seller lead and creating a profitable, winning deal… making thousands of dollars in profit where you thought there was none. Wouldn’t this be nice? No more wasted marketing dollars. No more wasted phone calls. No more wasted time.

If you want to learn how to make more and work less by investing in real estate, be sure to join Don DeRosa for a full day workshop “How to Make $20,000 in 30 Days… Tools, Tactics & Strategies to Create Winning Deals” on Saturday, January 12th from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM at the Doubletree Suites located at 3050 N Rocky Point Drive West in Tampa, FL.

Register Now!

Don will share the state-of-the-art tools and techniques he uses to evaluate and structure deals–so you can work less, earn more and spend your quality time doing what you want, when you want and with whom you want. You’ll learn…

  • How to get your phone to ring off the hook with HOT leads within 60 seconds for less than $25!
  • How to put a tenant in a house and still make $20,000 before you even buy the house!
  • The number one thing that will get your houses sold FAST!
  • The “Secret” to creating passive income of $350 or more per month without using any of your own money and with NO management on your part!
  • How to become a “mind reader” to find exactly what the seller’s hot buttons are so you can craft a deal the seller wants to take!
  • How to use Don’s patented “Green means ‘GO’, Red means ‘NO'” tools to negotiate for you so that you never let your emotions talk you into making a bad deal!
  • All this and so much more!

PLEASE NOTE: Guests can Join Tampa REIA as a Silver Member for a full year for only $100, now through January 10th and attend Don DeRosa’s “How to Make $20K in 30 Days” Workshop on January 15th at NO CHARGE.

Click to view Cruise VideoWIN A CRUISE: All participants who attend the Workshop on Jan 12th will entered into a drawing for a chance to win a *Complimentary 2 Day Cruise to the Bahamas with Caribbean Cruise Line! *You must be present at the workshop to win. The 2 day Cruise does not include port fees, transportation and taxes.

The Profit January 2013 Edition

Posted on January 6, 2013 by
The Profit Newsletter for Tampa REIA January 2013
The January 2013 Edition of
The Profit is Ready for Download!

The Profit - January 2013 - High Quality PDFThe January 2013 edition of The Profit Newsletter for Tampa REIA is now ready for download as a High Quality PDF or Low Res PDF format. In cash you didn’t notice by now, The Profit Newsletter is a digitally delivered, interactive newsletter for real estate investors to read and use with your PC, Mac, Smart Phone, iPad or other mobile ready device. Many of the articles and ads in The Profit contain hyperlinks you can click or tap to visit websites, watch videos, listen to audios, download content, send emails, comment on articles, share socially and much more!

The Profit - January 2013 - High Quality PDFThe Profit is a “new” Newsletter and were just getting started, so be sure to Subscribe to The Profit Here so you don’t miss a single monthly issue. And please be sure to tell your real estate investor friends to subscribe as well. This newsletter is for sharing.

This month you can read, interact and enjoy a variety of articles on real estate investing and more from Don DeRosa, Bill Cook, Bob Massey, Larry Harbolt, Kimberlee Frank, Dustin Griffin, Kathy Kennebrook, Ron LeGrand, Jim Hitt, Tony Pearl, Russ Hiner and Erven Kimble. And don’t forget, Tampa REIA Business Members can advertise in The Profit at deeply discounted rates. Enjoy!

RSVP Now!
High Quality PDF (6Mb) / Low Res PDF (4Mb)

New Habits for a New Year

Posted on January 6, 2013 by

Time and health are two precious assets that we don’t recognize and appreciate until they have been depleted.” ~ Denis Waitley

Wow. What a year! The turkey leftovers are gone. There are just a few pine needles left in the carpet. And your Aunt Miriam, thank goodness, has gone home to Indiana and has taken the fruitcake with her. Now it’s time to reflect.

I don’t know about you, but I reached many of my goals in 2012, and that feels great! Still, I know 2013 will bring plenty more challenges and opportunities. It would be boring, wouldn’t it, if we were completely finished with everything by the end of the year. I mean, what would we do then?

So we carry our unfinished business into the following year. That’s what New Year’s resolutions are for, right? “For every single day of 2013. I’m going to eat just 700 calories and jog six miles!”

For many of us, new year’s resolutions are made to be broken. In fact, for some of us, the best way to make sure something doesn’t get done is to make a new year’s resolution to do it. It’s the kiss of death!

Thankfully, though, we live in the digital age where help is as close as your iPad. So this month, I’ve got two apps to recommend. Read More→

You’re probably asking “Are you really gonna talk about financial calculators?” and thinking: Yawn, yawn, yawn – wake me when it’s over!

Here’s the thing: Our real estate investors group is geared for experienced investors. To master creative deal structuring and financing, we all need to know how to speak the same language. A great communication device that accomplishes this task is a financial calculator.

Remember, a financial calculator is about MONEY, not math! Knowing how to make it sing and dance is critical to achieving financial freedom. I promise, once you know how to use a financial calculator, your real estate investing world will never be the same. Plus, you will be head and shoulders above most any investor you meet – including the so-called gurus!

Let’s use a financial calculator to answer this interesting question: Can you become a millionaire by delivering pizzas part-time for five years? If you think you can’t, then you’d be W-R-O-N-G! Read More→

There are two approaches you can take to determine whether or not there has been negligence or fraud in the loan process. Both paths can be equally effective in uncovering lender misconduct and providing you with leverage for negotiations with the bank. One path follows the documentation from mortgage application through foreclosure documentation, and the other approach follows the money trail. This article will examine how the documentation can lead to a damaging case against a pretender lender. Our next article will cover the money trail method.

In order to prove that they have the right to foreclose on a property, it is becoming standard for lenders to be required to produce the original note on the property. The note is required before a court will allow a lender to sell a property. It must show that the lender is named with a recorded economic interest in the property. However, in many cases these original notes have been either lost in the securitization shuffle or purposefully destroyed as the note bounced around from entity to entity. The note could even have been Photoshopped or otherwise forged to make it appear that the entity trying to foreclose has the standing to do so. Fortunately, the lenders are being called on it by the courts. Read More→

This month I want to give you an example of different ways any investor can use notes to buy houses instead of using CASH. Once upon a time I knew an investor who was trying to structure a deal with a seller who wanted the money from the sale of his property to buy a motor-home so he and his wife could travel the country. The investor asked the seller if he was able to find a motor-home of the sellers liking, would the seller use the book value of the motor-home in exchange for the down payment on the property the investor was trying to buy from the seller. This was regardless of what the investor had to pay for the motor home he would be trading to the seller for his property. The seller told the investor exactly what he wanted a motor-home to have, that he would accept. Once the investor knew what the sellers wanted, he then immediately set out to find a motor-home he could use as catalyst to complete the transaction to buy the sellers house. Read More→

The Short Sale lenders are getting crazier and crazier. That is why you need to stay current with the short sale changes. Approximately 3 years ago, Bank of America was the first short sale lender to start requesting that the new buyer of the property consent to not resell the property for less than 30 days. This statement was included in their short sale approval letter. This statement alone caused a lot of challenges to investors who were still looking to close back to back on transactions. A few short sale lenders thereafter, such as GMAC and Wells Fargo, started adding 60 to 90 day resale clauses on their Arm’s Length Affidavits, but not their short sale approval letters.

Recently, I was in the process of purchasing a property where I needed to get an extension on the short sale approval letter. The reason was that the Homeowner Association advised us that, pursuant to their by-laws, their 35% ownership of investment properties had been reached and only homeowner occupants can purchase the property. The servicer for the lender was Seterus. I received a brand new approval letter for the same exact buyer as before, but with a few different statements: Read More→

Are you tired of making offers on houses listed in the MLS only to have the price bid up by other investors and hedge funds? Well, that’s what happens when there is an inventory shortage and everyone is chasing the same leads. The minute a new listing hits the MLS, there are often multiple offers on the home by the end of the day.

Instead of competing for the same small pool of leads, you need to generate your own leads… leads no one else knows about but you. You can do this by using many of the same methods and techniques that have been working for years such as…

  • Bandit Signs – Putting out we buy houses signs with your phone number and web address in and around the neighborhoods where you want to purchase will get the leads coming in almost instantly. Be sure to be aware of the sign ordinances in your area to avoid fines.
  • Flyers – You can distribute we buy houses flyers virtually anywhere to get the leads pouring in almost as soon as you put them out. You can flyer parking lots, neighborhoods and houses for sale. You can also have your flyers distributed with the local paper, on pizza boxes or by the postal service for about 14 cents each. Read More→