Archive for the ‘Boomer's Picks’ Category

Who’s Outsourcing’s Grandpa? Hint - it’s Not Tim Ferriss

Wednesday, February 4th, 2009

Historians may beg to differ on this point, but I’ve found solid evidence that outsourcing can be traced directly back to the Guinness Book of World Records’ vote for the World’s Greatest Salesman: Joe Girard. (I relate these facts with utmost respect for Mr. Ferriss.)

Joe sold 13,001 cars between 1963 and 1978 at a Detroit Chevy dealership. At that time Chevy ruled the automotive industry, and if you’ve ever seen a 1963 Chevy Corvette Stingray, you might think they did a pretty good job of selling themselves. To help put the time frame and scope of Joe’s astounding sales record in perspective, I’ve found an awesome 1963 TV ad for Chevy’s amazing winking automobile:

Embrace Change and Follow Through

Joe’s venture into auto sales, ironically enough, began after a failed real estate venture left him broke and with a family to feed. Joe had no experience in auto sales, but convinced the dealership’s owner to give him a shot — and a tiny space to work while he learned the ropes. He got fired from this gig for being too “aggressive” and didn’t give up. He moved on to the next position he would hold for the rest of his automotive sales career.

Joe still holds the all-time record for car and truck sales in one year: 1,420 vehicles! In one day alone, he once sold 18 vehicles.  According to the Automotive Hall of Fame, at a time when only 5 percent of dealerships in the U.S. sold 1,000 cars per year. Girard was averaging that amount each year by himself!

How Did He Do It?!
As his success grew, Joe began outsourcing his busywork by hiring staff (on his own dime) to handle the busywork, like filling out forms and getting clients qualified for their purchases. He was willing to spend a relative pittance of his own money so he would be free to focus on closing the deals.  Joe’s keen attention to the details that make a difference doesn’t stop there.

Joe also sent practically every person he ever met 13 cards per year: He sent one monthly and another at Christmas because he knew that the competition would most likely to be stewing over their eggnog than following up on leads. (Does this remind you of that stack of yellow real estate postcards you’ve been meaning to get in the mail?)

Real Estate Investors: It’s 11 O’clock, Do You Know Where Your Leads Are?
To learn how to apply these principals to your real estate investing business and make the most of your business by improving your real estate marketing, check out my new article: “10 Reasons Why Your Real Estate Marketing Should Go Postal.”

Since a lot of real estate investors I talk to have a shared gap in salesmanship skills, I wanted to include a little something extra here to get my members on the right track to improving their real estate marketing and sales skills on-the-fly.

Now in his 80s, Joe still lives in Michigan and though he has long since retired from auto sales, his rules of success continue to inspire us all.  I’m re-printing them from Joe’s Web site below in hopes that my fellow real estate investors will get as much out of them as I have:
Joe Girard’s 13 Rules of Success

  1. HAVE A POSITIVE ATTITUDE: Hang around with positive people, stay away from crybabies and complainers, because they will pull you down to their level.  If something isn’t going right in your life, keep it to yourself, no one wants to hear your problems, make people believe you are having a wonderful time.
  2. ORGANIZE YOUR LIFE: Keep an appointment book so that you don’t have to use the words that sicken me: “I FORGOT.”  At the end of each day, meditate upon what you did or did not do, so you can become stronger for tomorrow.  Plan your work for the next day.  If you know where you are going you will get there.  If you don’t, you are LOST!
  3. WORK WHEN YOU WORK: Don’t take long lunch hours, and only eat with people who can help your cause, not with other salespeople.  Do not sneak out of work early, if you do you are a LOSER.
  4. OBSERVE GIRARD’S NO-NOs: No smoking or chewing tobacco, no gum, no colognes, no profanity, no dirty jokes, no alcohol breath, and men should not wear earrings at work.  Turn off cell phones - they’re irritating.  The biggest killer of them all is NOT BEING ON TIME.
  5. DRESS THE PART: what kind of people are you dealing with.  If you are selling to blue collar workers, don’t wear $500 suits and expensive shoes, jewelry or watches (it’s a big distraction).  Wear it on your own time, not when you’re working - clothes can turn people off.
  6. ALWAYS LISTEN:  People can tell if you’re not listening.  The longer you listen, the more obligated people will feel towards you.  The more you listen, the more likely a customer is going to do business with you.  Listening shows that you care.  “The mouth should only be used for eating - keep your mouth shut!”  Silence is Golden.
  7. SMILE FREELY:  A smile increases your face value.  If people would smile more, your customers would feel better and want to do business with you, plus it’s great for your health!
  8. RETURN ALL PHONE CALLS & EMAILS: Not returning calls or emails are a way to lose customers and friends.  Return your calls and emails as soon as possible.  If you don’t, that’s a good way to burn a bridge!
  9. TELL THE TRUTH: If you get caught in a lie even once, you will always be a liar.  Even if you tell the truth for the rest of your life, you won’t be trusted or believed, consider yourself DEAD.
  10. DON’T OVERCHARGE: If you do, and the customer compares your deal with somebody else, you have lost him.  Take a little and leave a little; Joe only worked on a small profit, but he was heavy on volume, averaging six retail automobile sales a day.  Word of mouth got around that YOU CAN’T BEAT JOE GIRARD’S PRICE.
  11. STAND IN FRONT OF YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICES (not behind them):  The most important thing to do for your customer is SERVICE them, and they will do business with you over and over again. This is what made JOE #1 IN THE WORLD.
  12. LOCK UP EVERY SALE: After you have closed the sale, ask your customers why they bought from you - if they tell you why, they are reinforcing their trust in you.  Therefore no more buyers’ remorse, MEANING NO MORE CANCELLATIONS.
  13. REWARD YOURSELF: Treat yourself well for all the smart work you have done; YOU DESERVE IT!

Make the Most of Your Resources

Are you interested in making the most out of your real estate investing business without breaking the bank? When you join GaryBoomershine.com you get all the tips and tricks you need to maximize your real estate ROI.  Join us and you’ll be amazed to learn about how the little details that can make all the difference in your real estate business can be simple and cost-effective to implement.

Becoming a member is easy. Please sign in using the yellow fields at the right side of this page or on the main page at GaryBoomershine.com.

Real Estate Investors: Tune in, Turn on and Cash Out with High-Equity Deals

Monday, February 2nd, 2009

A lot of real estate investors with  short sales and pre-foreclosure backgrounds are used to dealing with incredibly motivated sellers, but today’s best deals are those with equity. Do you have the “right stuff” to angle these deals like a real estate professional?

Five High-Equity Markets Show You the Money
There are five major real estate market segments that offer investors the greatest opportunities to access equity. Homeowners in each of these segments have mindsets that real estate investors must understand  in order to successfully negotiate a deal.

Additional information about how to tap these markets is covered in greater detail in my article: “Pounce on High-equity Real Estate Markets for Maximum ROI.”  (Follow this link to ArticleBase for instant access to this story.)

  1. Equity: Bigger is Better: Find homeowners with 40 percent to 100 percent equity. U.S. Census Bureau data reveal that property owners in this arena currently control one-third of all single-family homes. Often, they’re near or at retirement age, are empty nesters and are looking to downsize.
  2. Adjustable Rate Mortgages with Equity: Homeowners with adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) and equity  usually had an ARM for three years or more before they opt to sell. If they owe less than 70 percent on the loan relative to the house’s value, these homeowners may be looking to execute their own exit strategies while they still have equity - - and before their ARMs re-set.
  3. Wholesale Real Estate: Properties in this segment are typically old enough to drink legally and tend to have cosmetic and deferred maintenance challenges. In this category, homes with loans at approximately  70 of a property’s value are great targets for real estate investors seeming to max their real estate ROI
  4. Multiple Family Units with Equity: Here, concentrate  on sellers with at least two rental units and a maximum loan-to-value of 70 percent or less to buy, hold or flip income properties. These sellers likely are motivated to sell by ongoing tenant and maintenance hassles. They also may be amenable to financing your purchase if they can defer capital gains taxes and rake in some cash flow through you instead of dealing with rent collection.
  5. Out-of-Towners: Absentee homeowners are easily identifiable because their mailing address on public record is different from their property address. Property owners in this segment often are disgruntled landlords with single-family homes or multi-unit properties.

Negotiating with High-Equity Sellers

Making deals happen with these property owners often requires more enhanced real estate marketing. Keep in mind that since they have equity, they’re not as likely to have the motivation of a distressed property owner. Though you may have to mail multiple real estate postcards to property owners in this group, you should be aware of local market changes in their areas.

Many of my clients at SalesTeamLive are reporting an across-the-board boost in high-equity homeowner willingness to deal. We can attribute this shift to the ailing economy, stock market and retirement fund losses, and cost-of-living and healthcare price hikes. Many are deciding that downsizing now is the safest way to preserve their standards of living — and their real estate nest eggs.

Someone who says no in June may have a totally different attitude come March,  when their homes still haven’t sold and they see comp prices dropping around them. This is especially true in a post-hot market where owners are facing the grim realities the market just won’t support the price they had set in their heads six months ago.

The trick is to be persistent and keep in touch. And however you communicate with high-equity homeowners, be sure to make a good impression. These days more than ever, your real estate investment business depends on it!

One Best Practice Your Mother Probably Told You About
Sending out personalized thank you cards to folks after your presentation isn’t just the polite thing to do. It’s a best practice to reinforce your professionalism, presence and status as a problem solver for your prospects.

Be resilient and implement best practices to be successful in tapping these real estate markets. Suddenly, you may find your focus shifting from what the best color is for a real estate marketing postcard to how to handle the incredibly high volume of calls you’re receiving.

It takes only a few seconds to change the way that you view your real estate business — and the world. For more best practices and strategies that rock your real estate world, sign into GaryBoomershine.com using the yellow fields on the right side of this page or on the GaryBoomershine.com main page.

Put that Coffee Down! Coffee is for Closers!

Wednesday, January 28th, 2009

A recent conversation with my friend Dan Doran reminded me of the quintessential real estate movie of all time: “Glengarry Glen Ross.” For those who are too young (or too old) to remember it, the 1992 movie was based on a Pulitzer Prize-winning play written by David Mamet.

In 1984, when Mamet wrote about a cut-throat, all-male real estate sales team working out of a dingy office and living on watered down booze and stale Chinese takeout, fallout from the “worst recession since the 1930s” gripped the United States economy — and the American psyche.

In many ways, the social, economic and political climate that led Mamet to write “Glengarry Glen Ross” easily can be compared to the many crises we’re currently seeing in the news– and in some of our financial accounts. Then, like now, banks were closing, the Fed was accused of sleeping at the wheel, unemployment rates soared, corporate corruption littered the headlines and real estate was in a major downturn.

The “World of Men” depicted in the movie includes Alan Arkin, Alec Baldwin, Ed Harris, Jack Lemmon, Al Pacino and Kevin Spacey. The focus was on their ability to close on real estate deals as though their lives depended on it. And indeed, they did.

When I first saw this movie, I was a little green in the business and it blew me away. Nearly two decades later, I’m still drawing upon its bare-knuckles illumination of real estate marketing and sales in the trenches.

There’s one classic scene that captures the essence of the real estate deal in a way that no other real estate boot camp, course, book video or coaching call can touch. And thanks to YouTube, I can offer it to you here. Please, only watch it if you’re not offended by a little salty language. (And by that, I mean a seemingly endless string of obscenities peppered with awesome wisdom on the fundamentals of survival in the real estate business.)

WARNING: This Clip Contains Obscene Language — Even By Today’s Standards.

(According to one source, actors in the movie deploy approximately 150 F-Bombs and 50 S-Bombs.) Please only view it if you’ll not be offended by the wanton use of words that beg for a bleep — or possibly if you have teenagers living in your house.

As Blake (played by Alec Baldwin) so vividly illustrates in the clip, the keys to success in the real estate can be distilled into two mnemonics:

AIDA

  • A - Attention
  • I - Interest
  • D - Decision
  • A - Action

ABC

  • A - Always
  • B - Be
  • C - Closing

They’re deceptively simple to read, but can be brutal to implement because in real estate, as in life, the devil is in the details.

In my next post, I’ll take a candid look of one of the mission critical details that 99 percent of all real estate investors overlook in our real estate marketing. There’s one simple quick and inexpensive action you cantake to increase your income by $100,000 or more this year. Can you guess what it is?  Stay tuned and find out.

And while you’re here, be sure to become a member of GaryBoomershine.com. Just sign in using the yellow fields on the right side of this page, or on the main page at GaryBoomershine.com and you’ll get all the information you need to conquer tough markets, fly above your competition’s radar and meet your real estate investment strategic goals for 2009 and beyond.

What’s Got More Gurus than A Section 8 Rehab Has Cockroaches … and What Does it Have to Do with Than Merrill?

Friday, January 23rd, 2009

Yale graduate, NFL Veteran, A&E TV network host of “Flip this House” and superstar real estate entrepreneur Than Merrill is adding “REI Spy” to his impressive resume in his “Mission Impossible” video series. All the intrigue is leading up to an exciting launch we’ll talk more about next week.

The Spy Who Loved REI
All you have to do to make your real estate business Mission Possible in 2009 is grab some popcorn and sign in with Than. Beyond the spoofs and goofs for the camera in the intro videos for this series is some awesome, pitch-free content.

In the first video, Than and his real estate investment business partner Paul (who you also may recognize from their hit TV show) delve into the nuts and bolts of investing in probate properties for wholesale. Their innovative approach to tapping probate markets blew me away.

This training is incredibly comprehensive and robust. Because Than’s training is geared for wholesalers, he’s sharing a fresh perspective that puts an entirely new spin on probate real estate investing as we know it.

Got Leads?
In the second video, Than guides us through a simple 15-minute process using Google’s local business listings to pull the trigger on rapid, high-volume REI lead generation online.

This training is useful because it simplifies a process for scoring leads online that for too many of us, remains a highly technical mystery that can be downright intimidating.

If you think there are a lot of gurus in REI . . . just type:

search+engine+optimization

In any search engine on the planet, and you’ll instantly find more experts than cockroaches in a section 8 rehab. You’ll also quickly discover that the price of their advice is nearly as attractive and reach for the aspirin.

The information you’ll likely find while trying to get a handle on an affordable, scalable and effective Internet marketing solution can be confusing, conflicting, and incredibly expensive.

Web 2.0 marketing is here to stay, folks. And you don’t have to sell a kidney to make it affordable for your business.

In this video, Than clearly demonstrates that if you use some common sense, it won’t cost you any vital organs — or your life’s savings to start scoring leads and raise your real estate investing business profile online.

Got Tips? You Could Win Free Bootcamp Excursion with Than!
Share your single best real estate marketing strategy to find buyers on Than’s blog when you sign in to watch his videos and Win! Than will choose the most creative entry and announce his pick. Than says the winner will receive two tickets to his next four-day real estate marketing and wholesaling Bootcamp.

The most surprising entry I’ve seen so far calls for investors to scan the news for homes that police have been determined to be meth labs. Apparently, those owners are incredibly flexible and eager to make a deal. Though very creative, this business model may have some flaws ….

Do yourself a favor this weekend. Visit Than Here, get some useful free training and let your creative juices flow!

Than Merrill Kicks Off REIWired TV Launch at Noon EDT

Thursday, January 15th, 2009

REI ALERT: Don’t Touch That Dial!

Tune in at Noon EDT for Mike Collins’

REIWired All-Star Internet TV Network Debut Bash

Stay Tuned to this Channel for ALL the Winning Details!

In a matter of hours, Mike Collins is launching the widely anticipated REIWired.com Internet television network and Than Merrill is one of more than 20 real estate superstars who are headlining Mike’s special lineup.

Building up to this awesome launch, Mike has been sharing hours of highly inspirational and educational videos online. He’s even smashed a real TV to make a statement about how much time and money most of us squander by sitting in front of the ‘boob tube” hoping one day our lives will suddenly improve.

In Mike’s final pre-launch video, Yale graduate, NFL Veteran, A&E TV network star of “Flip this House” and real estate entrepreneur extraordinaire Than Merrill discusses his play for glory as a real estate investor.

Than’s career as a mega-successful real estate wholesaler and rehabber had shocking start. “My first wholesale deal was singing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a seventh round draft pick for $20,000,” Than says. But after a moment of paralyzing hesitation quickly ended his football career, he applied a major life lesson to his new career in real estate.

“In the beginning, I didn’t know jack, so I went to a seminar,” Than recalls. “They were pitching and I was buying. Everything they were teaching me was new. You’ve never seen a guy so excited. I walked away with 12 courses, called my business partner and told him we were going to be rich!”

At first, Than’s business partner was a little skeptical about the cost of all the training he had purchased. Than says that at the time, they were over-leveraged with their rental properties and expenses. But they realized that they would have to put what they learned from their training into swift action to beat the odds.

Tackle Your Opportunities in 2009
Now, Than tells a different story. “My focus is on real estate marketing. I’m a wholesaler and a rehabber. We do both. It’s split down the middle,” Than says. Though his business is structured to profit from wholesaling and rehabbing, because it is diversified and has built-in multiple exit strategies, Than’s real estate investment business has the flexibility to respond to market demands.

“This business is about knowledge and business systems. You can’t just hope that one day a million dollars lands in your mailbox,” Than says. “You’ve got to reach out for opportunities and then run with them.” Especially when working in today’s real estate markets, hesitation is a fumble from which your business may not recover because it can keep you from discovering what will work best for your business.

Perfect Your REI Game
“When the market is bad, we wholesale a little more because it’s a safer niche to be in. But when the market was good, we were rehabbing 80 percent of the time and wholesaling 20 percent of the time,” Than explains. “Right now, we’re making a lot more money on wholesaling.”

Than believes that adaptation to changing market conditions and the speed with which you implement ideas are the keys to ongoing success in his business. To thrive, Than says, “Your niche needs to adapt. If you can put what you learn into motion, you’ll always succeed.”

Take This Ball and Run With It
For more of Than’s remarkable story and unique insights about how you can overcome any adversity, watch this video. It’s not too late to catch up on all of the great videos in Mike’s pre-launch series for REIWired Internet TV. Just sign in and Mike will send you hours of videos to help you make your best plays in 2009.

This Launch is going to be huge! Be sure to join Than, Larry Goins, Preston Ely, Cris Chico, Steve Cook, host Mike Collins and all of your favorite REI celebrities for history in the making! Just Tune in Thursday at Noon EST.

Why the Real Estate Marketing Revolution Clearly Will Not Be Televised: 5 Tips for Creating Your Own Economic Stimulus Package in 2009

Saturday, January 10th, 2009

I wanted to share with you this funny and inspirational video to help you kick off your New Year with a real bang! And what better way to do that than with wholesale real estate genius Mike Collins, his giant hammer and a pair of safety glasses?

It’s going VIRAL!

This video looks like Mike has lost his mind - - but clearly not his sense of humor. You’ve got to see how he rang in the New Year. It’s hilarious- -especially if you’ve got kids and pay a monthly cable bill! Even if you’re not active in RE right now, you’ve got to see this video. You’ll never look at your TV the same way again!

Not only does Mike handle a hammer like a pro, he makes a great point . . . one that hits close to home for anyone who ever has wondered where to start to affect positive changes in their lives without spending a dime! In fact, many of us could save over $1,000 per year by following Mike’s comedic lead. (Though in my case, it would bea mightly long year with the kids - -and possibly my wife not talking to me.)

If you like what Mike’s got to say, sign up for the two hours of strong content videos in Mike’s free Internet video series: “Insider’s Guide to Quick-Start 2009.” His 24 years of experience as a wholesale real estate entrepreneur and straight-shooter approach really make this training as interesting as it is educational.

I just watched another awesome hour-long video, and I was so riveted by Mike’s presentation, I totally forgot to eat lunch! With this video series, Mike is really delivering a stimulus package you can count on! Before I head off to NOT eat that burger and fries I’m craving, I wanted to give you a taste of Mike’s real estate investor’s food for thought. I pulled this info from my own personal notes.

The future of this industry belongs to the wholesaler, Mike says. And in this game, the person who finds the inventory, finds the best deals. Here, a 30-to-50 percent slice of each transaction goes to the wholesaler, only with less work than is required with other approaches.

Five Tips for Creating your Own Economic Stimulus Package

Here are five tips from Mike to whet your appetite for What’s Working in 2009. There’s plenty more where this came from. All you have to do is Sign Up Here to get access to this rich content.

  1. Know Your Market: Develop an in-depth knowledge of the players in your local marketplace. Shop for qualified buyer leads at auctions, for example. But perhaps most importantly, learn how to use direct mail marketing to save while you fill your pipeline with premium leads.
  2. Stop Elephant Hunting: Shift your perspective and business model so you see houses as commodities rather than as homes you might want to inhabit. Three bedroom houses in blue-collar neighborhoods tend to be winners, Mike says.
  3. Learn About Values: Both wholesale values and retail values are important for you to know in your local markets. Look at previous transaction data and comps for an overview. Mike’s got lots of innovative tips to help you get a professional real estate marketing handle on these data. Developing this knowledge is absolutely mandatory to prime your business for success in this and every year..
  4. Explore Direct Real Estate Marketing: In this arena, it’s essential that you develop the ability to quantify and calculate your ROI & maintain your creativity. Early on in his career, Mike says that postings in laundromats and even flyers he sent through a local pizza delivery operation helped give him a boost in this business. It also made him realize the true value that a constant flow of leads could bring to his business.
  5. Find your Niche: Both in your local markets and in your overall investment strategy.. To find success, you’ve got to first get a grasp on what’s working in your local target areas.(Realtors call these niches “farms.”) With some persistence and diligence, the opportunities will become increasingly more apparent with ongoing focus on your market.

Now that we all know about Mike’s plans and strategy for the New Year, what about you? What have you decided to do differently in 2009? Whatever it is, aim high and stay strong. Remember: This is your year!

How’s this for a New Year’s Resolution?

Monday, December 15th, 2008

Beat Your Competition & Make Tons of Cash in 2009!

Join Dan Doran and me Tonight at 9:00 p.m. EST or Thurs. at 1:00 p.m. EST & Discover What’s Working in the New Year!

Help Us Cast Off the Old & Ring in the New Year with Cutting-Edge REI Strategies, Tools and Tips!

Do you have trouble sticking to your New Year’s resolutions? It’s not your fault! Even in the Information Age, it’s easy to get lost in the challenge of generating the volume of real estate marketing leads that it takes to tackle inclement markets and build a business that can withstand any storm.

Recalibrate your Business for Today’s Markets
So many tend to over think, overanalyze, and procrastinate when it comes to getting the marketing out. Especially these days, when being your own boss is more costly than ever, marketing often the first item to suffer when the going gets tough. But letting your real estate marketing slide can touch off a downward spiral that could kill your profit potential in the New Year.

Are your real estate marketing efforts in tune with your business goals for 2009? Take this quiz and discover where you may be falling short. Answer these five questions with a quick “yes” or “no” to determine if you’re achieving maximum returns on your real estate marketing (ROI).

1.    What’s your real estate marketing’s return on investment (ROI)?

2.    Can you measure the success of your real estate marketing in dollars and cents?

3.    Do you know what REI strategies will work best in 2009?

4.    Is it a strain to make your marketing budget’s ends meet?

5.    Are you afraid that profits may be out of reach for your business in the New Year?

Where Do You Stand?
Each “Yes” answer is a red flag that it’s time to concentrate your efforts on proven strategies designed to conquer today’s markets. This is the only way to generate a tremendous volume of leads that’ll withstand the tests of father time and mother market conditions.

At some point in our careers, most of us learn the hard way that the work, cash and headaches it takes to independently handle our real estate marketing can be crushing to the entrepreneurial spirit as well as to the bank account. It doesn’t have to be that way!

Nix Frustration and Waste in your Business
Someone needs to cut through all the static and talk about the straight facts & emerging strategies that’ll shelter your business in 2009 — and beyond. So, in response to GaryBoomershine.com member requests for info on how to build stronger and leaner creative RE businesses in the New Year, I’ve arranged an online event that’ll change the way you think about how your business does business.

If you’re like most real estate investors, you’re probably finding that what was working last year — or even six months ago is stalling out in today’s markets. This is change we can believe in for certain, but what’s really working for real estate investors heading into the New Year? Tune in Wednesday and find out!

Finally! A New Year’s Resolution that’s Easy to Keep
If your New Year’s resolution is to reach for greater success and growth in your business in 2009, join me and industry luminary Dan Doran Tonight, Dec. 17, at 9:00 p.m. EST. If you can’t attend tonight’s Webinar, I’m posting a replay on Thursday at 1:00 p.m. EST. Space is limited, so if would like to join us, claim your spot ASAP.

Officials Move to Slow Foreclosure Pandemic, Short Sale Markets Heat Up

Thursday, December 4th, 2008

Since government-sponsored financial services giants Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac announced a foreclosure moratorium through the holidays in November, government efforts to stem the foreclosure tide have heated up in hard-hit states such as California, Connecticut and Florida.

It is likely that state and federal lawmakers — and other officials convening in the New Year also are gearing up to take action to slow the foreclosure process. New and emerging policies in this trend are likely to give beleaguered homeowners some space to breathe — and RE investors a vast open field of profit opportunity.

Join the Revolution: Short Sale Manifesto 2.0
Ohio-based Strategic Real Estate Coaches Josh Cantwell and Greg Clement see green pastures ahead for pre-foreclosure and short sale investors who are keen on building stronger real estate businesses and cashing  in on recent market changes. Moving into the holiday season, they’re offering investors a steady stream of absolutely free, timely information, tools and resources you need to adapt to changing market conditions in this motivated seller market.

Timing Isn’t Everything
More than 10 million homes currently are over-leveraged with mortgage debt and have no equity, Josh says: If we can take advantage of these opportunities as real estate agents or investors, we can capitalize on these market conditions — big time.

Update Your Strategies, Tap Warming Markets
There are some common-sense tactics you can use which are incredibly cost-effective to deploy in your business, such as ramping up your personal and real estate marketing efforts that can have a dramatic impact on your bottom line. Some require more effort than others, but the focus should stay fixed on preparing your business to thrive in pre-foreclosure or whatever markets you choose.

It’s clearly no secret that property values have dropped significantly in the past two years. Today’s market conditions for short sale and pre-foreclosures are evolving, Josh says. And changing times call for different strategies.

Refine and Define your Strategies
Earlier this year, Josh updated several elements of his original “Short Sale Manifesto” to reflect what real estate investors need to succeed in today’s challenging and increasingly more competitive pre-foreclosure and short sale markets.

Josh updated this book because he is serious about helping his students to deploy only the most cutting-edge strategies and techniques in tapping these markets and the Short Sale Manifesto 2.0 leaves no stone unturned in its  pages,

Josh breaks all the mission critical aspects of short saling down into small, manageable tasks that emphasizs networking and skill-building.  Central to his Manifesto are key techniques that, when implemented properly, will strengthen your professional support system and build your business.

Like Candy for Short Sale Investors
While Josh gives great guidance on the steps you need to take to make the short sale deals happen — and keep a constant flow of new deals in your pipeline, he also tells you all about the pitfalls you need to avoid.

If you only have 10 minutes to spend reading this ebook, check out the details Josh provides regarding the Top 9 Mistakes even the best real estate investors make and how you can avoid them. These investment blunders include:

  1. Paying too much for a property,
  2. Underestimating the cost of repairs,
  3. Neglecting to stage property,
  4. Failure to build a workable buyers list,
  5. Failure to secure private money,
  6. Failure to plan multiple exit strategies,
  7. Failure to focus on revenue producing activities,
  8. Lack of a coherent system to organize your business, and my favorite,
  9. Failure to implement an effective and consistent marketing strategy.

Some of these errors may be all too familiar, while some may be new to you, but in all cases, Josh offers clear strategies to protect your business and build wealth by keeping your wits — and your money — about you while you’re investing in short sale real estate.

Free Videos and Info Clarify your Short Sale Mission
Visit Josh at his Strategic Real Estate Coach Web site and prepare yourself to be amazed by the high-quality information he is willing to show you this month absolutely free of charge, all in celebration of the season. While you’re there, be sure to catch the free videos. They make great companion pieces to the Short Sale Manifesto 2.0.”

Stay tuned to this blog for the latest on SREC’s Special Giveaway Bonanza slated to kick off Tuesday, Dec. 9.

Watch Fascist Collide Moustache-First with Negative Equity and the Foreclosure Train!

Monday, December 1st, 2008

I was totally unprepared for the sheer hilarity of this video, which features history’s most notorious dictator caught with his metaphorical pants down. His story is not unique. It all started with a “liar’s loan.” The plot thickens with a home equity line of credit and a vintage Camaro SS …   before long, the anti-hero is slipping underwater with an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM), a property that has lost 45 percent of its value and no way to refinance his home loan. Watch as this fascist gets sucker-punched by negative equity, the credit crunch and foreclosure.

I hope you enjoy watching as the real estate bubble bursts over this unwitting real estate speculator’s head. The drama mounts with his bitter tirade against the National Association of Realtors, his mortgage broker, his diminished 401k and investments in AIG and Lehman Brothers.

Ironically,  the professionals working in the system that made it all this misery possible were: “Just following orders”!

This parody reinforces what the notorious head of state said so many years ago: “The great masses of the people will more easily fall victim to a big lie than to a small one.”

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Turn Your RE Business Volume to 11 and Totally Rock Your Bottom Line

Friday, November 21st, 2008

When it comes to fine tuning your real estate (RE) business, Larry rocks even harder than he does on guitar! And for a limited time, Larry’s Smash Hit “Dream Big and Wake Up Wealthy Boot Camp” is available in a collector’s edition box set in exchange for your non-refundable $1 donation to the American Red Cross made through Larry’s on-line order site.

Support a Great Cause While You Transform your RE Business
Larry’s “Real Estate Investing Boot Camp in a Box” video collection includes more than a dozen inspirational millionaire speakers captured live at two of his Boot Camp events, awesome footage of a rehab bus tour, a 400-page manual, audio phone calls with FSBOs, realtors, tenant buyers, and more!

Plug it in & Turn it Up to 11!
Because 10 reasons are never enough, here are 11 compelling reasons why you should invest $1 in Larry’s “Real Estate Investing Boot Camp in a Box.”  Of course, there’s much more to it than what I’m listing here, but these are some of my favorite “How-to” topics Larry covers in this awesome package:

  1. Identify Undervalued Property in any Market,
  2. Power Negotiating,
  3. Create Quick Cash with Creative Financing,
  4. Key Questions To Ask on Every Call,
  5. Work with Realtors, Lenders, Asset Managers and other RE Professionals
  6. How & When to Use Hard Money,
  7. Close Your Deals Fast,
  8. Get started in Commercial Real Estate,
  9. Invest in RE Using Self Directed IRAs,
  10. Manage Properties, Contractors and Inspectors Effectively and
  11. Get Your Offers Accepted on Your Own Terms.

Larry’s goal in delivering these materials (besides raising $10,000 for the American Red Cross) is to train RE entrepreneurs to invest the right way and build long-term business relationships through his mortgage business. In short, Larry wants to give you the key to unlock your future in real estate.

“We’ve put together a team and a program that clearly and patiently explains everything you need to succeed and grow in this business,” Larry says. “You’ll get all of the tools you need to build a strong and healthy real estate business.”

In “Real Estate Investing Boot Camp in a Box” you’ll see that Larry’s teachers aren’t just speakers who run businesses in their minds and speak for a living. They’re all million-dollar marketers, successful business owners and highly sought-after experts who struggle to stay on top of what they need to know to run and grow real businesses in the real world — just like we do. Learning from their triumphs and failures could save us all a bundle!