ArticlesForeclosure Trash Outs: Property Preservation Can Mean A Whole New Life Thursday, August 26th, 2010 The Biggest Foreclosure Business Opportunity Is Also a Second Chance The property preservation business isn’t the most glamorous one around – and performing trash outs on foreclosures isn’t for those who don’t like to get their hands dirty. But in a huge recession that’s heading back downwards, it is economic salvation to a growing number of people looking for a new career. With the record number of foreclosures not expected to abate until late 2013, according to some housing experts, there has been a corresponding record number of jobs and income available to property preservation companies that know how to take advantage of the current real estate crisis. Start-up costs are low and experience isn’t necessary; proper training is. And some of those who have had that training have found themselves making up to 5 figures a week. Bill and Donna Hoser are one married couple that found a new life by starting a property preservation company, according to a story this August in “The Bradenton Herald.” The … Foreclosure Trash Outs: Property Preservation Demand Skyrocketing Tuesday, August 10th, 2010 Government Demands and Record Foreclosures Mean More Business Opportunity Property preservation companies – those that clean up, repair and maintain foreclosures – can look forward to a lot more jobs. Even those that are already working around the clock. The shadow inventory of abandoned homes – properties that the banks have been delaying declaring as official foreclosures – is finally hitting the streets. Most major banks, such as Citibank and Wells Fargo, have recorded double-digit increases in their REO (Real Estate Owned) inventory because of the backlog, which some financial analysts estimate to be as high as 7 million homes. Meanwhile, new foreclosures keep coming – with 3/4s of America’s major cities recording an uptick in mortgage defaults in the first half of 2010. Over 300,000 homes face foreclosure every month. And Fannie Mae, the mortgage giant, says that it expects its inventory of repossessed homes to increase significantly through the rest of the year into 2011. Unemployment may be continuing to … Foreclosure Trash Outs: Powering Up Property Preservation Tuesday, July 20th, 2010 Higher Property Preservation Standards Means More Business Opportunity More foreclosures on the market and more competition in this home category means a whole lot more business opportunity for property preservation companies, the firms that perform foreclosure trash outs to prepare these abandoned homes for resale. The inventory of foreclosures continues to increase and to reach more record-breaking heights in 2010. Banks are still dealing with their huge backlog of these vacant homes, as well as all the many new foreclosures still occurring due to the weak economy. That’s added up to a “perfect storm” when it comes to the incredible number of vacant homes that require foreclosure trash outs. And, interestingly enough, it’s also become about more than performing those basic foreclosure trash outs. With REO (Real Estate Owned) properties becoming more and more prevalent – and distressed properties comprising almost a third of all real estate sales so far in 2010 – it’s no longer enough to market a foreclosure whose main selling point is the fact … Foreclosure Trash Outs: The Money-Making Opportunity Gets Bigger Tuesday, July 13th, 2010 Property Preservation Companies Continue to Boom With a high percentage of joblessness persisting, with fears of a double-dip recession continuing, one business sector continues to thrive – property preservation. The property preservation business, for those who don’t know, involves performing repairs and maintenance on vacant homes, which have usually been foreclosed upon by the bank or financial institution that holds the mortgage. These homes frequently have overgrown lawns, broken windows, and other cosmetic damage – they are also often victims of vandalism and break-ins, since the properties are generally unsecured. The property preservation company will prepare the home, which has usually become an REO (Real Estate Owned) property, to be put back on the market so the REO seller can recoup some of their costs. Because foreclosures still reaching record highs, property perseveration companies find themselves more in demand than ever. This trend will continue, as more mortgages are in delinquency than ever before during this unprecedented real estate crash – and the huge foreclosure backlog is finally finding … Foreclosure Trash Outs: Problem Pools Monday, July 12th, 2010 Summer Weather Brings Increased Necessity for Proper Property Preservation Foreclosures hit another record high in May 2010 – with experts expecting over 3 million homes to be repossessed this year and next. That not only means more work for agents selling REO (Real Estate Owned) homes – it also means more demand for property preservation services, companies that perform foreclosure trash outs and other important maintenance and repairs to vacant properties. And part of those maintenance duties involves attending to neglected swimming pools that pose a threat to neighborhoods. Unfortunately, because there are still so many homes in limbo all across America – the residents have left, but the banks have yet to officially foreclose – tens of thousands of swimming pools aren’t attended to, creating a neighborhood health and safety hazard that becomes markedly worse in the hot summer months. Teenagers have been known to hold wild parties at the bottom of empty pools of foreclosed homes. Not only that, children can sometimes fall into … Foreclosure Trash Outs: When Lawns Turn Into Jungles Saturday, July 3rd, 2010 Lack of Property Preservation Leaves Foreclosure Lawns a Growing Menace It’s estimated that almost 4 million homes will receive foreclosure notices in 2010. And with the unemployment picture not brightening all that much, 2011 doesn’t look that much better. Research shows that one foreclosure occurs for every six to ten jobs lost – and that, more than underwater mortgages, is driving the current mortgage delinquencies. Now that summer is here, the foreclosure crisis is showing growth in another area – uncared for lawns and gardens. In the southern Chicago suburb of Oak Forest, resident Len Zabawa keeps his lawn neatly trimmed. But the yard next door – which belongs to a foreclosure that’s been empty for over a year – has become an overgrown eyesore. “The yard is starting to look like a jungle,” Mr. Zabawa commented, according to a story in “The Chicago Tribune.” “I think it’s impossible to run a lawn mower over it now. It’s a real shame that nobody takes care of it.” In … Foreclosure Trash Outs: Just Like A Good Neighbor… Thursday, June 10th, 2010 Door Hangers Help Property Preservation Company Maintain Homes Foreclosures are still everywhere in the news – and all across this country’s neighborhoods. Recently, the long-running CBS news hour “60 Minutes” profiled average Americans who, because of the real estate crash, now owed more than their homes were worth – and were preparing to walk away from them. JP MorganChase has also warned its investors that this trend is mushrooming. Not only that but the number of foreclosures is expected to skyrocket in the last half of 2010, as mortgage defaults continue to rise and the shadow inventory of REO homes makes its way to market. This, of course, means a great deal more opportunity for companies that perform foreclosure trash outs – as property preservation is increasingly seen as the biggest foreclosure business opportunity. Profits for these companies, both big and small, continue to increase nationwide. Unfortunately, neighborhoods that have experienced multiple foreclosures have suffered declines in property values and quality of living, … The Property Preservation Business Opportunity: Foreclosure Trash Outs Battle The Blight Thursday, June 3rd, 2010 Lawmakers Force Banks to Maintain Foreclosures Once again, in the first quarter of 2010, an overwhelming number of foreclosures hit the housing market. A record number is expected again in the last quarter of 2010. And local lawmakers all across the country are moving to force the banks and financial institutions who are taking possession of these homes to perform the necessary property preservation services in a timely fashion, in order to prevent them from taking down whole neighborhoods with them. In Ocala, Florida, for example, the city council grew weary of complaints about overgrown yards, uncovered swimming pools turning into green cesspools and vacant homes either being broken into or getting vandalized. So they joined the 38 other communities in the Sunshine State by passing an ordinance obligating the banks, most of which are located out of state, to register the abandoned homes and hire property preservation companies to maintain the homes and keep them in compliance with city code. “This is so common … The Property Preservation Business Opportunity: More Foreclosure Trash Outs Coming Faster Friday, April 30th, 2010 HUD Changes Foreclosure Definitions In the first quarter of 2010, there were more foreclosures recorded in the USA than there had ever had been before – since they began keeping statistics on them. Although numerous economists continue to claim the Great Recession is over, the housing market is still plagued by a giant backlog of foreclosures that is just finally beginning to be dealt with. That means at least several more years of big opportunity for those in the business of securing, repairing and performing trash outs on these foreclosures – the property preservation business. Banks are finally publicly recording the millions of homes in default that formed the “shadow inventory” of foreclosures that had been held back from market. The government has also decided to help streamline the foreclosure process by changing its definition of what a foreclosure is. On Friday, April 2nd, HUD decided to classify any property that is at least 60 days behind on the mortgage or the property owner is … The Property Preservation Business Opportunity: Foreclosures About To Skyrocket Again Friday, April 30th, 2010 Foreclosure Trash Outs Continue To Be a Lucrative New Career In the past few years, as the huge number of foreclosures broke record after record, many of those affected by unemployment and the Great Recession found a new and profitable career by beginning property preservation field services companies that serviced, secured and performed trash outs on foreclosed homes. Those people quickly found out that property preservation is the biggest foreclosure business opportunity. After a minor lull in both foreclosures and REO (bank-owned properties) listings towards the end of 2009, due to both government attempts to help homeowners in default on their mortgages and the banks’ reluctance to foreclose during the holidays, it appears that 2010 is headed to be another record-breaking year for foreclosures. March of this year shattered more records for the number of foreclosures and at least two major banks, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, have reportedly projected huge increases in their REO properties by the … The Property Preservation Business Opportunity: Expert Training Makes The Difference Saturday, April 3rd, 2010 Lucrative Careers Await Those Who Learn the Ropes Many Master Contractors and larger property preservation companies are now requiring prospective contractors take a quiz to make sure they know what’s required from a foreclosure contractor. Business is huge for those in the property preservation business; the continuing overwhelming amount of foreclosures combined with the forthcoming “shadow inventory” of millions of homes yet to be converted into REO homes means there will be for years to come an overload of properties requiring clean outs, repairs and maintenance before being put back on the market. Some new property preservation contractors currently report making as much as $10,000 a week and working 7 days a week to keep up with the demand. That surely makes property preservation the biggest foreclosure business opportunity out there. But while it doesn’t take a lot of experience, skills or equipment to get started in this suddenly very-profitable occupation, it does take a certain level of training and knowledge before a new vendor will … THE PROPERTY PRESERVATION BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY: 6 REASONS WHY IT’S HOTTER THAN EVER Monday, February 8th, 2010 Foreclosure Clean Out Jobs Continue to Increase Imagine making as much as $10,000 a week cleaning homes. Okay, it isn’t the kind of housecleaning you normally think of – where you dust and vacuum for an hour and call it a day. It’s all about cleaning out foreclosed homes – what’s called property preservation or mortgage field services – and some newbies to the field have found amazing success in recent years. Foreclosures, as you probably already know, are rampant in the U.S. – and show no signs of slowing down. Here are 6 reasons why property preservation will continue to be the biggest foreclosure business opportunity around – and will grow even faster in the months to come. If you get expert training from people who know the ins and outs of the business, you can start doing foreclosure trash-outs in as few as two weeks. In addition, you’ll only need a truck and some basic … A SOLUTION TO THE “MANCESSION”: THE PROPERTY PRESERVATION BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY Monday, January 11th, 2010 Foreclosure Clean Outs Will Be Big Business for Some Time to Come At the beginning of 2010, the unemployment outlook continues to be bleak – 85,000 more jobs were lost in December of 2009 and the joblessness rate won’t budge below 10%. Not only that, but 661,000 Americans just plain gave up looking for work at all. Working-age men, however, have been hit hardest of all. Economists have termed this recession a “mancession,” because figures state that the jobless rate for this group is closer to 20% – with just about one out of five males 25-54 unemployed. The good news is that there are still business opportunities out there, for those willing to give a new skill category a shot. And one of the hottest job categories right now is property preservation. Property preservation – also known as mortgage field services – involves performing foreclosure trash outs, repairs and doing ongoing maintenance, and is truly the biggest business opportunity in this climate of ever-increasing home … THE 2010 PROPERTY PRESERVATION BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY Wednesday, December 16th, 2009 More Foreclosure Clean Outs Will Be Needed Than Ever Before Property preservation – performing foreclosure trash outs, repairs and doing ongoing maintenance – had an incredible year in 2009. The second year in a row of historic foreclosure highs meant even new field service companies could earn over $10,000 a week. In 2010, a year in which the overall American jobs picture is expected to still be bleak, property preservation companies will be busier – and more profitable – than ever. In addition to the continuing escalation of foreclosures, the beginnings of the so-called “shadow inventory” of vacant homes that have yet to be listed for sale or even acknowledged as foreclosures will be put on the market. This shadow inventory has been estimated at anywhere from 1.7 million homes to as high as 7 million. If it is actually 7 million, that would be over twice as many REO homes that require foreclosure clean outs as were recorded in all of 2009. The problem of … MORE GOVERNMENT ACTION: MORE PROPERTY PRESERVATION Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009 Colorado Community the Latest to Advocate Controlling Vacant Foreclosures As more and more foreclosed homes are left vacant and in bureaucratic limbo, more and more neighborhoods and communities all across America are facing the health, safety and social hazards presented by these unsecured, uncared-for properties, which continue to deteriorate. Property preservation companies are traditionally called in when these homes are classified as REO (Real Estate Owned) properties, in order to prepare them for resale on the real estate market. These mortgage field service businesses will perform a foreclosure clean out, make necessary repairs, do the landscaping and also carry out necessary maintenance. The incredible overload of foreclosed and abandoned houses should make property preservation the biggest business opportunity around. As it is, contractors who specialize in this niche are incredibly overloaded with work and making a lucrative living while other occupations suffer at the hands of the currently-dismal economy. Still, the fact is that more houses need immediate tending to prevent neighborhoods … PROPERTY PRESERVATION PAYS OFF FOR FLORIDA COUNTY Tuesday, November 17th, 2009 Active Use of Foreclosure Field Services Helping Neighborhoods The slow foreclosure process has plagued many areas across America. An abundance of vacant homes are quickly turning into safety hazards and eyesores – and also severely taking down property values. Property preservation companies, specialists in foreclosure trash outs and maintenance, routinely clean up and secure these unoccupied properties, but, often, no one is employed to perform this vital service and neighboring residents are left to watch the area deteriorate. Enter Pasco County in Florida, located along the Gulf Coast in Florida. As reported recently in “The St. Petersburg Times,” the county has bought – or is in the process of buying – 170 foreclosed properties within its borders. It plans to spend millions for property preservation services and foreclosure contractors to rehabilitate those homes, not only helping to save neighborhoods, but also giving the biggest business opportunity in the state to mortgage field service companies. There is no doubt that Florida was one … HUD DECLARES PROPERTY PRESERVATION OPPORTUNITY WILL INCREASE Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 National Conference: Foreclosure Field Services Will Be in Big Demand A national conference on property preservation was held in Washington D.C. in early November – and it was clear that government is very aware of the growing need to clean out and service foreclosure properties quickly and efficiently. Foreclosures are on track for another record-setting year and skyrocketing unemployment is sure to create even more distressed properties. At one panel discussion, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, a nonpartisan group that represents cities with populations of over 30,000, sent out an industry warning that unemployment – and foreclosures – will continue to soar in 2010, causing more and more distressed properties to require field services, in addition to the many homes already in this situation. Some municipalities may experience unemployment as high as 15%, according to the organization – and homeowners simply won’t be able to keep up with their mortgages. Meanwhile, HUD, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, is spearheading new ways of … PROPERTY PRESERVATION: A TALE OF TWO CAROLINAS Thursday, October 29th, 2009 Foreclosure Trash Outs Make the News As foreclosures continue to mount and unemployment continues to increase, it’s only natural that the media would begin to focus on the property preservation business opportunity. It’s one of the few sectors where business is booming, so more and more people are interested in finding out more about it. For example, in an article from September 20th, “The News and Record of Greensboro” newspaper zeroed in on several North Carolina foreclosure trash out businesses, including Junk King, run by Matt and Drew Hambright, and Junkyard Dogz, operated by Thad Loftin. In 2005, when Loftin began his business, he went to ask a local bank about foreclosed homes in the area that might need cleaning out. He was told there was usually only about one foreclosure per year. 2009 is a totally different story – with 343 foreclosures in one month alone in his area. The Hambright brothers have a similar story. … FORECLOSURES: TAKING CARE OF THE YARD WORK Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009 A Growing Problem for Cities: Overgrown Lawns of REO Homes
Agents and brokers for REO (Real Estate Owned) homes – unoccupied homes where the owners have been evicted due to mortgage default – are finding that if they don’t employ professional mortgage field service companies to deal with the outside as well as the inside of a property, the city may be sending them a pretty steep bill for lawn care. Hint: it’s going to cost a lot more than hiring a teenager for $5 an hour to mow the lawn! As a matter of fact, in some Illinois towns, it’s costing up to 25 times that – as one homeowner found to his dismay in Buffalo Grove. No, his home isn’t in foreclosure – he just doesn’t like to mow his back yard, only the front. One day, however, he arrived home to find that the back yard was cut down to size as well without his knowledge – and a … THE IMPORTANCE OF PROPERTY PRESERVATION Wednesday, July 8th, 2009 How Foreclosure Contractors Make the Difference in the REO Marketplace
Knowledgeable real estate experts know that foreclosed properties are taking a long time to finally making their way back on the market – to transition to REO (Real Estate Owned) listings. Back in February, RealtyTrac.com estimated that up to a shocking 70% of foreclosures still weren’t on the MLS yet. One large reason for the delay? Because of the explosion of the number of foreclosures in recent months, banks can’t keep up with processing the individual properties. That means they sit untended, unsecured and unoccupied for longer periods of time – leaving these homes open to vandalism, threat and damage. That means that, by the time property preservation companies are finally called in, there’s more much more substantial rehab work to be done on these homes. The lawn is usually a disaster, the plumbing can need major repairs and there is probably rotting food in the refrigerator. Ideally, the “trash-out” of foreclosures should … STARTING A PROFITABLE PROPERTY PRESERVATION COMPANY Sunday, July 5th, 2009 $89,000 Revenues in One Month – One Couple’s Amazing Story
It hasn’t been a good economic time for most Americans. And Matt and Carrie Singleton were certainly no exception. They had always run their own businesses – and for three years, they built commercial freezers for food distribution centers. They were doing fine. Then gas prices climbed – and the stock market crashed. That double play stopped Matt and Carrie’s business right in the tracks in early 2008. Suddenly no one was building anything anymore. The couple had no other source of income – and no prospects. Matt reacted as any guy might with a little money in the bank – he went fishing. But with savings dwindling and the economy still in shock, the couple knew they needed to do something. But in that bleak business climate – what? Luckily, Matt went over one day that summer to help his friend Scott Patrick fix a roof leak. … SWIMMING INTO TROUBLE: THE URGENT NEED FOR PROPERTY PRESERVATION PROFESSIONALS Friday, June 5th, 2009 Abandoned Foreclosure Home Pools are Potential Disease Pits
Foreclosures that have been abandoned by their owners are at historic highs. For many holders of mortgages left owing a lot more than their house is actually worth, it makes more economic sense to walk away than to continue to struggle to meet huge monthly payments. What happens after those homeowners leave, however, can turn into a horror show. A recent round-up of newspaper stories from across the country shows how these abandoned homes can quickly deteriorate – especially when the previous owners left without any concern as to the condition of the house – and accents the need for more property preservation companies to clean them out. In Las Vegas, one of hardest-hit foreclosure cities in America, many of the empty homes also have filled pools with the potential to become disease incubators. The number of “green pool” complaints jumped from 1700 to 2800 from 2007 to 2008 – and it’s expected to grow … REO RESQ™ : TAKING PROPERTY PRESERVATION TO THE NEXT LEVEL Thursday, May 14th, 2009 National Franchise Helps Service Record-Setting Number of Foreclosure Properties At a time when foreclosures are surging all across America, the demand for properly-trained and qualified contractors who will properly service these vacant and frequently-abandoned properties is at an all-time high. Enter REO RESQ™ – the first national franchise of property preservation specialists (“REO” stands for “Real Estate Owned” and is the common industry term for a property that has reverted back to the lender or asset manager when a mortgage has gone into default). The business of taking care of a foreclosure property can be complex. Frequently, the lender or asset manager who needs to sell the property can be located hundreds of miles away and obviously can’t personally handle the “on-the-ground” details. Not only that, but foreclosure REO properties require a lot more repair and maintenance than normal homes being sold by their owners. To begin with, the homes are frequently left in very bad condition – sometimes it requires two tractor-trailers … |
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