- Asking you to sign the house over to them, putting
their name on the deed
- Giving you a small amount of cash up front & "buying" your house & leasing it back to you
- Leasing your
house and "promising" to make the monthly payments, then selling your house in two years, and promising to give you the profit then
- Charging you a cash fee, paying a new, increased monthly fee to them while they say they will stop your foreclosure and make your
payments
- Encouraging you to file bankruptcy; or use some other "creative" / non-traditional approach which will not sound or feel
familiar to you.
BE CAREFUL! These pitches that sound almost too good to be true, may NOT be for you!
While
under certain circumstances there may be benefits, NONE of these approaches would appear to GUARANTEE
a happy ending (even
though they may sound like they do) and ALL involve varying degrees of risk (at least from the fact
that in some if not
many cases, you are signing over control of your property to another person):
- In some cases you'll be asked to pay very high fees up
front, or make high monthly payments with interest rates even higher than your current loan. You may only just end up delaying the
foreclosure - wind up dealing with it again at a later date, and having to face it with less cash in your pocket - because you
paid your valuable cash in fees to the person who was "helping you". So you end up losing BOTH your house AND the extra
cash you paid to the person or company that was going to save your home and help you.
- If you gave the deed to your house to this person,
you may still be responsible for making the payments!
- Filing bankruptcy may seem like the easiest and fastest way to stop the auction.
It may be. BUT - bankruptcy can have its possible drawbacks as well. It is clearly a negative mark on the credit record which
lasts for years. And, if a foreclosure can be stopped WITHOUT having to file bankruptcy, why not consider that option first?
Don't be pressured into filing bankruptcy. We are not attorneys. This is not legal advice. However, as we all know,
no matter how good something sounds, nothing is perfect - almost everything has both pros and cons.
REMEMBER THIS - The Schemers and Scammers will tell you what they think you want to hear. Your job is to sift through
the bull and get at the truth. And - if they are willing to tell you anything you want to hear - and it
all sounds good -
shouldn't you be somewhat careful???
The reason
these approaches appeal to some people is because they seem to buy more time - allowing the homeowner
to stay
on in the house, stopping the foreclosure auction, etc. BUT.....
Look down the road and evaluate
your situation - FIRST, BEFORE you sign anything. Be realistic. If there isn't a real, solid
likelihood
that your financial situation will get better within the time that you have "bought" using these methods, then you may have
simply delayed the inevitable, spent more of your limited funds or obligated yourself to additional payments. Size
up what you think
your income and expenses will REALLY be - then decide if these approaches which
are being sold to you, are in YOUR best interests.
There Are Others Whom We Encountered - People Who Try To Buy
Houses - Who Actually Copied
And Used Our Work - Without Our Permission
Some may be so inexperienced,
unskilled or unethical that they must copy or mimic the work of others.
They watch our websites
and ads and copy us - in our opinion, in part, because they lack the ability to be creative on their own (and
THEY
know who they are, as they read this page...). To the best of our knowledge, in our primary market area for example:
- We
wrote a strong newspaper ad, someone copied it (almost word for word) and by the way, he was caught and stopped dead in his tracks!
- We
were the FIRST of our kind to be on a specific regional home sale website, then we were followed by at least 6 other companies.
- We
were the FIRST of our kind in our area to be members of the On-Line Better Business Bureau and the FIRST to be local BBB members,
in using this on our ads and websites, then we were, once again, followed by other local companies who started using the BBB
as well.
- We are honest and ethical and described ourselves as such in local ads - once again, a "newbie" to this business mimicked
us.
- We were one of the first (if not "the" first) in our area with our own, well-presented website. "Others" either had no website
or one of poor quality. After they saw our website, they either came up with one or made their low-level website better,
again following our lead, unable to generate the ideas on their own.
- We found companies who copied our phrases and content
from our website. We pursued them immediately and stopped them.
It's unfortunate. It's unprofessional.
It's a shame. Obviously, what we do is appreciated not only by our Customers, but also by our
"competitors"!
Again, THIS IS JUST ANOTHER SYMPTOM OF POTENTIAL PROBLEMS IF YOU WORK WITH THE WRONG PEOPLE:
People who mimic
the ideas of others are likely just as incapable of solving your very important cash and real estate issues.
Performing successful
real estate transactions and assisting people with their problems requires, in our opinion, a meaningful level of intelligence,
creativity, financial skills and solid ethics - a real sense of right and wrong.
The people who attempt to copy our phrases and other
aspects of our approach (how and where we advertise, how we structure our literature and website, etc.) are simply proving to
us and everyone else that they are lacking in some very important areas - ethics, creativity and even a basic sense of right and wrong.
You can see the copyright symbol on our work. Our work is actually registered with the United States Library of Congress
and
we work closely with our Attorneys to maintain our strategies.
The bottom line is that these people who copy the hard work of
others, are in our opinion, thieves - and cannot be trusted. Why work with someone with this clear lack of values when
you are considering something as important as selling your home?
Do Your Homework & Get The Facts:
When you are approached by someone who wants to buy your home from a knock on your door, a
post card, letter
or phone call, or when you are tempted to call the phone number in the "real estate
wanted" section of your
local newspaper, on a sign you see nailed to a tree or telephone pole, don't be
afraid to ask direct questions!
Make SURE You Screen Them With These IMPORTANT Questions: (PRINT OUT THIS PAGE AND USE IT!)
1.
First, review his ads, postcards, listen to his sales pitches closely, etc. - and look for clues. Does he "offer to take over
your
payments"? Or does he say he'll "buy any property in any condition
or location and at any price"? All of these statements may
be CLUES as
to his REAL ability to buy - and whether or not he ACTUALLY has the CASH - IN HIS POSSESSION. He may in
fact simply be preparing you for some scheme that SOUNDS like the real deal but is NOT. So...If his ad says or even
suggests
that he 'buys houses", ask: Will you personally take title and
actually close on the purchase of my home? If not, how do you define
the
word "buy"?
2. If you do "buy" my house, will it be the traditional sale that I desire, where
we go to a closing in a reasonable period, say 30 days,
at a Title company and
I get a check in full for the purchase price to which we agreed, with no further obligation on my part to either
the property, the mortgage or you? If not, why not??? You led me to believe that you can "buy" my house!
3. Do you personally have the cash immediately available, in your personal accounts, to do an all cash purchase? If yes,
please
show me current bank statements, in your name, that would be used to buy.
4. If you do not actually have the cash to buy, why not? Ask this question ESPECIALLY if his ad uses the word
"cash" anywhere!
5. Do you "represent" other investors who supposedly do have the cash, if you don't?
Who are they? Please give me their names,
contact information so that I
may contact them directly and determine if they are in fact capable of buying as you say. How can I
be assured that they have the cash? How can I be assured that they will fund the transaction?
6. Will you be borrowing the money? If you are borrowing the money, can you guarantee me the sale will close? Are you
pre
-approved for a loan and for how much? If so, provide it in writing from your
bank. If you are not pre-approved, why? Which banks
have you applied to and
which rejected you - and why???
7. Do you expect me as the Seller to participate in any way in the finance
or sale of this house? If so, why? Why can't this just be a
simple, traditional &
clean transaction where I sell my house & I get paid in full?
8. Describe your experience. How long
have you been in real estate? How many actual purchases of homes have you done in the last
two years? What proof can you offer?
9. Describe the sources and extent of your formal education
and training.
10. How many houses have you bought where you actually wrote a check for the purchase price?
11. Describe some other aspects of your background and track record. For example:
A. Have you ever filed bankruptcy? When and why?
B. Have you ever been arrested
or incarcerated? If so, for what charges?
C. Have you ever had a dissatisfied
Customer take some action against you, including filing a lien against you? Details please.
D. Have you ever been sued by a Customer? Please provide the details.
E. If
you are licensed, have you ever had your license revoked or suspended? Under what circumstances?
12. What proof
can you offer me that should cause me to trust you?
13. Do you mind if I speak with other investors before
I sign with you? If you mind, why?
14. Will you put the answers that you just gave me to these questions
in writing and sign it? If not why not? If you just told
me the complete truth
then you should have nothing to worry about. Right?
AND - IF YOU FEEL PRESSURED OR THREATENED
IN ANY WAY - ASK YOURSELF IF SIGNING WITH THIS PERSON IS
REALLY THE RIGHT THING TO DO - BEFORE YOU SIGN!
* Ask anything else that will enable you to better ensure that you are dealing with the right person - that person who will be able
to
successfully close, at the right price and meet your needs.
*** AND - try
your best to CHECK UP ON THEM AND VERIFY what they are telling you.
4 VERY Important Points! Please
Read This:
A. Keep in mind that some of those people who are out to deceive you will be preparing their
answers from these
questions. Make sure you spot them for who they are and dismiss them!
B. Yes, we know some of these questions are tough questions to ask. But believe it or not, there may be some people out
there who have, by their track records, demonstrated that they cannot be trusted or are not strong at managing
important financial transactions. Shouldn't you know about these issues BEFORE you trust the sale of your home to
someone?
C. Even though you may be looked straight in the eye, you may not
be given the truth. Some people out there are very
slick and excellent at telling
people just what they want to hear.
Listen closely to the answers you get. Even though
you get what sound like the right answers, test them for the truth
and KEEP TESTING - until
you are satisfied.
D. And last but not least, make sure you make comparisons - especially to us and
our background and approach. PLEASE
Read at least the "About Us", "Compare"
and "Our Founder" sections of our website.
The information above and throughout our website
and literature, is our opinion, not our advice.
Others who buy houses will have their opinion as well
and may try to disagree or tell you our opinions here are wrong. No problem.
In some
cases, some others may slam our opinions simply out of the fear that they won't get your business.
Our comments may apply to some and not others. We are not commenting on any particular
company or person, or on any one that
uses any particular sales slogan or sales pitch. Yes,
there are legitimate people out there who use some of the commonly seen sales
pitches and slogans.
As
is the case with every field or occupation, there will be people who are great performers, mediocre performers and poor performers.
To succeed, it is our belief that you should try your best to sift through the fluff and sales pitches and get to the real reasons
why you
should or should not work with someone, our Company included. Compare your options and make the best
decisions you can.
AND ALWAYS consider seeking the guidance of a qualified attorney prior to signing
any document.
A Few More Real-Life Horror Stories And Comments From People In Need Who Encountered Those
Who Would Supposedly "Help" Them By "Buying" Their House:
(THIS COULD BE YOU IF YOU'RE NOT CAREFUL!)
"Yes, I was very misled by *************.org. We even got as far as a contract. When I took it to my attorney for review I found out
it
was a scam. I was paying them $242,000 to close the deal and my name was still going to be on the mortgage while
they profited from
it!" VE, TN
"(They were) misleading and not very helpful." AH, MO
"Yes (they were) a scam. What a joke." RB, FL
"...Was very uncomfortable with (them). Did not seem legit." KH, FL
She knew she had no equity in her home, yet the "investor" still wanted to "buy it" She knew there was something wrong.
"I heard that before" she said laughingly..."I would never work with them. We can't be on the hook for the morttgage". MR,
NH
Some impressive-looking "buy houses" websites that hype natioanal coverage and make loads of promises don't
necessarily
mean the deal will go through as one expects or as promised.
This person put his house under contract with a franchisee of a national "home buying" comany, advertising on the Web.
Despite his promises, he broke the deal. "...He told me he could not get financing for it. Why have a XXXXX franchise if you
have no
access to capital? Doesn't make sense to me...I filed a complaint with the Attorney General's Office and
the XXXX the Dealaware Real
Estate Commission..." BW, DE
"...It was a scam. It was 1-800-XXXXXXX"
AA, MD
Auction anyone? Another possible approach to take control of your property used by some who may
have no desire or real
money to buy. Regarding a New Hampshiire home owner's experience: "...He said
let me do some research and I'll call you
back tomorrow. He never called me back...He was pushing and
pushing for auction. It was like ummm, you're not giving me any
options - you just decided what route I
should take and that's it..." SM, NH
"We had a purchase agreement with an investor. Then he decided that
his profit wouldn't be big enough AND he couldn't get the
financing." JJ, FL
"In foreclosure and scared...been approached by weird people and scam foreclosure prevention. He took my money and never got
back to me..." B, MN
