Lea's Journal

Thank you for stopping by it's always great to hear from you. I was very happy to read about your first rehab and hold property that you will be closing on and am looking forward to hearing the details as you progress. Cathy, you did it!!

Lea

sounds like you are doing great and still moving forward. awesome! sorry i haven't been around much, but once i get back home i hope to get caught up. boy, that'll be the day, won't it???

You'll get caught up when you get home but in the mean time you get to check out REI in Tulsa and get to spend some precious time with your family. I now you're happy about babysitting Grayson and Gentry. Gentry must have grown a bit since you saw her.

Denny's been talking to REA's, nothing to write home about yet but he feels 2 have promise. We'll see. He's going to e-mail more. I've been working on probate research and sending letters. Tomorrow we'll be stopping by Richie's duplex and on the way back we'll search for vacant properties. We'll also keep our eyes peeled for properties in the process of being rehabbed.

Enjoy your time in Tulsa!

Lea

I'm continuing my probate resesarch daily and sending letters to the personal rep or trustee. I believe hand written letters are more effective but then its 2 pages long. This same letter typed will fit on one page. I don't know that folks will take the time to read a 2 page hand written letter as opposed to a 1 page typed letter (thoughts on this are welcome.) So I'm doing it both ways. When we sent letters to owners of pre-foreclosure properties our short, hand written letters received a lot more response (also a lot more comments about it being hand written.) I'll follow-up with a few more letters and then a phone call. It's a good thing I'm getting more comfortable cold calling

Denny has spoken to several REA's. His approach is better than mine and the conversations go smoother but still have to find the right one(s.) One of the agents said he specializes in short sales but when Denny asked for his short sale listings he said he didn't have any. Putting in low offers is an issue for most so far, even for the ones that say they are investors themselves. So the search goes on.

My sister-in-law referred a friend to us who is considering a short sale on his property (in Tampa.) I missed his call and called back and left him a voice mail message. My sister-in-law said he doesn't know what to do and is looking for guidance. I'm not in the position to give someone guidance on this, it is way to personal and a big decision. But what I have learned is listening helps. Have you ever talked to a friend about a problem and as you were talking the solution came to you before they said anything? I'm doing this to help the homeowner(s) but since it is out of my control after that it doesn't thrill me. On the other hand I don't have any desire to negotiate a short sale. From what REA's have told Denny fewer buyers are looking at short sales these days because of what's going on with the banks. If the homeowner moves forward with this I'll keep in touch with him to get his feedback on the folks we refer him to.

In my last post I said we would be looking at properties on the way back from Richie's property today. Then Denny told me that he had some other things on his 'to do' list. One of which is going to BOA. We closed our checking account with them in June. We just found out that they left 13 cents in the 'closed' account and charged a $30 service charge. From past experience gong to this bank it takes 30-45 minutes to talk to someone while just sitting and waiting for them. There is no point in wasting time 'sitting and waiting' so instead I'll be working on REI. We'll look at vacant properties together later.

For anyone reading this if you haven't already seen Richie's post called "No Money No Cred Really Works" here is the link to it http://www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/everything-else/62734/no-... Richie shares his inspirational story and it's definitely worth the read.

I don't usually remember to comment in my journal about Dean's video blogs. They are always wonderful! Eliminating news was easy to do. I loved the one about documenting our time. I used to do this and got away from it somehow. Thanks Dean for the reminder! Documenting our time shows us what we are doing, where we are losing time, what we are accomplishing and where we need to focus. Dean's video blog this week was another great one. The first thing that came to mind was going to the park that is in walking distance of our house and enjoy nature. I like the outdoors and woods and this park relaxes me. Thanks Dean! We are having family and friends over for Thanksgiving and I'm a born planner. I've go the menu planned and have even decided on how I'm going to fold the napkins so our loved ones feel special that day! Some folks are bringing appetizers, drinks, coolers, etc. while others are even bringing a large folding talbe and extra silverware (ahead of time.) We'll put the folding table next to our table to seat everyone at one long table so to speak. Can't say I enjoy cooking LOL, but it will be fun to have my home filled with loved ones.

Lea

Lea, I am going to call you the probate queen from now on Just speaking to you I can see you learned a lot about them. I am sure you will be successful with them because I know your a perfectionist and have to get it right
good luck and i am looking forward to meeting you two and having a great dinner. Thanks for all you do for me.

Richie

p.s. Denny said he has a hamstring injury and cant walk anymore :0
( dont know if shes going to buy it denny But I had to try and save ya

takl soon Richie
ooooh I forgot to call ED, Will do tomorrow, i will put a note on my hand.

You and Denny seem to be very busy working the probates, seeking a REA and always scouting deals! Way to go Glad things are going well, hope you are taking some peaceful walks in the park, and enjoy the great Thanksgiving you have planned with your family!

LOL! Thanks for the kind words and well wishes on the probates. Will keep you posted.

Denny & I are both looking forward to meeting you. I know we will have a fun time! We've enjoyed working with you on this. It has been an amazing learning experience.

Hmmm, Denny must have forgotten to mention the hamstring injury and I didn't notice him walking funny - that's strange. I think 'walking it out briskly' is what he's supposed to do for this so we'll go for an extra long brisk walk. Thanks Richie for bringing this to my attention so I can help Denny. I just know he'll be thanking you too

I'm looking forward to hearing about how the conversation goes with Ed

Lea

It's always great to hear from you The probates are slow going but I work on them every day. Vacant properties and a good REA(s) will help a lot. Some REA's only cover 1 town but there are some that cover more than one county. One of them called Denny after their initial conversation to follow-up. This is a first!

Denny & I are looking forward to a walk in the park this weekend. If we get lucky we'll see an owl and have heard there are deer there too but have never seen one. Thanksgiving will be fun. Maybe I'll just get already prepared food and throw some flour on myself right before our guests get here LOL! (O/J)

Lea

i'm finally home! we will have to talk later in the week. i've missed our conversations.

sounds like you are really going great guns. there has to be a deal in there somewhere. also sounds hopeful about the REA. i have my fingers crossed for you.

are you, Denny and Richie getting together soon? sounds wonderful.

I've missed our conversations too. Thanks for keeping your fingers crossed on the REA. Since you are an REA maybe this will bring us extra good luck I'm not sure when we'll be getting together with Richie but it can't be soon enough

Talk to you soon.

Lea

for abandoned properties and REA's. We found several properties 1 REO and one listed with an agent. There was one property that doesn't come up on the city's website. Another property was purchased in 95' for less than $17 per sq ft. It's run down, has junk in the yard and old Christmas lights up. Public records show the owner living there but the property is vacant. The other property isn't vacant but is way overgrown. The roof has been patched, it has hurricane shutters on most of the windows and looks run down. It sits on 9 acres and the house was built in 1910. This property was purchased in 95' too. I'll send letters to the homeowners.

We also found a cash investor while searching for these properties that just rehabbed a property that was badly run down and beat up from tenants. We tried to reach the former landlord with no results and the property was foreclosed on. My research shows the new owners have purchased 3 properties in the last 6 months. I called and left a voice mail message.

Denny has spoken with more REA's but nothing yet ... well one possibility.

When Denny stoppd by Richie's duplex a lady told him that she is interested in renting it. Denny got her contact info and passed it on to Richie's property manager

Last week one of our cash investors closed on a property he flipped that is a mile from our house. Three days before the closing he pulled into the driveway and discovered the new a/c unit was gone. There was an article in the newspaper this week about a/c units being stolen in our town. The thieves pull up to the properties in 'official looking' a/c trucks during the day and take the a/c units. If anyone sees them it just looks like they are working on the property.

The son of the owner of the multiple properties called today. Not about selling the properties but looking for ideas on how to help one of his tenants who is out of work and is behind now on the rent. The lady of the house and main breadwinner was hit by a car while riding her bicyle to work and broke her leg in 3 places. They have been great tenants and he doesn't want to evict them but can't keep them there for free. Section 8 housing comes to mind but I've heard they aren't giving out any more vouchers - could be wrong. If anyone has any thoughts on how to help these folks please share your thoughts and ideas. I e-mailed one of our cash investors who has rentals in this town for his thoughts. He doesn't do section 8 housing because he doesn't want the government in his business. But maybe he knows other investors who have section 8 housing. In the mean time I've suggested a food pantry, contacting his church, a local discounted grocery for people who are out of work or had their hours cut back so his tenants can get food on the table.

Lea

when you get a chance, you might want to check out this link:

http://www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/everything-else/63407/how...

don't know if it will help or not, but it might be worth a shot.

Thank you! Denny is checking it out. I enjoyed our conversation yesterday. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and ideas.

Lea

I've called some for rent ads in search of buyers & sellers. Nothing new yet.

Linda and I got to talk yesterday and she came up with some awesome ideas! She left me thinking "Why didn't I think of that?!?!' THANKS Linda It seems so obvious now.

I discovered that I missed a lot of probates so I've got some research to do. This makes me feel better because I had a feeling something was off. I sent letters to the property owners of the vacant/rundown properties I mentioned in my last post. I used a modified version of Carol Stintson's letter. It is wonderful that she shares her knowledge and experience so generously with all of us.

Lea

i have another link for you to watch a video. i loved it and it was so creative. in the 9th or 10th minute she mentions something we were talking about on Tuesday. see if you can catch it. let me know.

http://www.deansmedia.com/play.php?vid=176

Yes I did pick up on it right away - thank you!

Lea

When Linda and I got to talk the other day one thing we talked about was helping elders who need money for health care and for living in assisted living facilities and nursing homes. I can't believe this never dawned on me especially with my background. Maybe the saying is true that we don't always see what is right in front of us. I'll be approaching different agencies/businesses that assist the elderly. With my caregiver background and volunteer work with the Alzheimer's Associatoin I have a comfort level here and some connections to these businesses from my 'past life.'

Lea

Stopping by to say hi and catch up. Sounds you like are investigating new and creative ideas to make things happen. Think I'll check out the links Linda put up for you and see what they are about! So are you mentioning your caregiver background as a connection for probate properties? I was a little confused there But glad to see you are still out there workin it And man I hope those AC robbers dont go anywhere near Richies!!!! Hope that tenant lead comes through!

The a/c robberies in our town are not related to other robberies in other areas. Richie's property is 15 miles from our house.

Sorry about the confusion about the probates. Probates are BIG on my radar but people facing moving into assisted living facilities(ALF) or getting home health care are facing different dilemmas. The cost of living in an ALF is steep and even steeper if home health care is the goal. It was more affordable for me to quit working to take care of my Dad than hire someone while I was at work. Yes I'll be mentioning my caregiver background. It's complicated and different for each individual depending on their circumstances and what they are trying to accomplish. The sale of a property can keep them living with a family member with help in the house(aid or nurse)or living in an ALF or nursing home. Regardless of which they are doing it's expensive. The sale of a property puts cash in their pocket and they don't have to worry about a vacant property (a lot of stress for an older person.) An elder care attorney if they have one guides them through the process so they can see what is best for them and plan accordingly. In some instances they would be better off renting it out instead of selling. Hope this makes more sense now.

Lea

i can't wait to hear what you find about the ALF, etc. this should be something really exciting for you since it's near and dear to your heart. would be a wonderful niche for you. be open to all the possibilities!!

Yes, this is exciting and right up my alley. I've got to tell you that our conversation even opened my eyes in creating better ways to approach guardianships. Haven't quite figured out exactly what that will be yet but I will Thanks too for the very helpful info you sent. Also we have had a few e-mail responses from the link you posted to find REA's in our area. Two were automatically generated e-mails saying they could help us sell our home. The 3rd was brief and said he has buyers for properties. Denny will follow-up with him.

Today I finished up the probate research/letters for this week and have been working on my business/action plan for our new direction.

Lea

After my post yesterday I spoke with a friend who works for the Alzheimer's Association. She has many connections to local resources and is involved with her church. I wanted to find out if she knows of any resources for the lady (tenant) who broke her leg and is out of work (she can go back to work when her leg is healed.) My friend reminded me of a thrift store called the Mustard Seed Minesteries. It is located in a neighboring town of the tenant. Some of the funds raised from the Mustard seed help families to pay their utilities and/or rent when a crisis has happened. So I passed this info onto the gentleman who called last week. Also e-mailed him other resources and ideas during the week. His Dad is the tired landlord with all of the properties that he wanted to sell. I'll be following up with him next month after he has healed more from his surgery to find out if he is still interested in selling his properties. In the mean time I did my good deed for the day.

Anyway, back to talking to my friend at the Alzheimer's Association. I mentioned our new direction and she was happy to hear about it (she was taking care of her Mom during the same time I was taking care of my Dad and we looked out for each other and our folks.) Once I have my plan in order I'll talk more to her and another friend who works at the Alzheimer's Association. Both of them deal directly with families living with Alzheimer's disease.

Lea

i love it! i can see that this just might be the passion you were looking for. i can "hear" a difference in your postings. i think you just might have found what you were looking for. oh, were you looking???

LOL! You are right, I feel like I've got the bounce back in my step again.

Lea

I can't stop thinking about our new plan. When the time comes that I talk with older folks about purchasing their property I'll also have contacts that will be able to help them with the challenges they are facing.

Part of this plan is to start by contacting 3 of the people I've kept in touch with since my Dad passed and they all played an integral role in our lives when we were living with Alzheimer's. One of them works for a home health care agency, one works for a company that helps seniors improve their lives and she has resources for them. She also goes to their homes if they wish, to learn more about them and how to help them. The last one is the Director of a demential specific ALF. My Dad lived there during his last 7 months on earth. The quality of care he received was an answer to my prayers and beyond my wildest dreams. Everyone their loved him and treated him with the utmost respect and dignity. All of us became a little family. (When he passed away I can't tell you how many of the employees were in tears and many showed up at his memorial service. While he was on Hospice many of them came by to expresss their words of love and say their good-byes to Dad.) Also I'll be contacting another lady who is a hospice nurse. Her and I had a lot of fun times with our volunteer work together and she is another one who played a key role in our life with Alzheimer's. Hospice has a program that helps people under the term 'failure to thrive' meaning they still have a long time left to live however for different reasons they are going downhill. Hospice steps in to help and once the person is thriving again their work is done. We did this with Dad.

All of the ladies mentioned above are devoted to those that they help and always go above and beyond. All 5 of us have Memory Walk Teams every year. There is a LOT of 'friendly competition' among every single team. Part of my plan is to donate a percentage of our profits to their Memory Walk Team when we close on a deal that was a lead from them or they can get the referral fee.

When I am prepared I'll also be contacting the Elder Care Attorney that we used for my Dad. She is one tough cookie. When we first met she treated my Dad like Gold. On the other hand she treated me like chopped chicken liver. As the years went by our paths crosssed at charitable events for the Alzheimer's Association. After my Dad passed her and I talked and she said she admired what I did for my Dad and the Alzheimer's Association. I asked her why she had been so tough on me when we first met (but also acknowledged we stayed with her because she was very protective and kind to my Dad.) She said she sees all too often adult children and other family members do awful things (elder abuse, stealing their money and even their homes) when they need their 'loved one' the most. She went on the assumption that I was one of them until she learned otherwise. Like I said she is one tough cookie and I BETTER have my ducks in a row and a well thought out plan before approaching her. She would definitely be an asset to my team. Her Mom has Alzheimer's.

I know that some of this may seem unrelated to REI but it's part of where I've been and where I'm going.

Lea

Every weekend I call my Uncle in NY. He is so cool and faces the challenges he lives with, with grace, dignity and humor. He is 87 years old and takes care of my Aunt who has Alzheimer's. Today when we spoke I told him about my new plan and asked for his honest feedback. He loved it because it has been difficult for him to find resources to help him and my Aunt (I've helped them with that.) I asked him if he saw any flaws or areas needing improvement and he said to be careful about the people we refer to make sure they are honest. This was good feedback from his perspective and absolutely something I've considered already.

Lea

The owner of the multiple properties we were working on called and left a voice mail message saying he wants to move forward with one of the properties. When I called back he had company over and his son said he will call back. The market has dropped since our offer a couple months back. We did tell him back then that this was a possibility.

This gave me the opportunity to call one of my favorite cash buyers to update him. The property is in one of his favorite investment towns. However this is not a beach house which is his favorite investment properties to buy.

I called the ladies that I mentioned in a recent post and left a voice mail message. They are all in a caregiver's conference today in W. Palm so I may not get to talk to them until later tonight or tomorrow.

Lea

with one of the ladies at the Alzheimer's Association and she is excited about our plan. She said that next week there will be a candlelight vigel for anyone who has (or had) a loved one with Alzheimer's in observance of National Alzheimer's Month. We'll be attending along with caregivers, professional caregivers, nurses, Hospice, etc.

I haven't heard back from the other ladies yet. So I've started sending letters and will follow up with a phone call. After thinking about this I like it better because it lets me get everything in writing uninterrupted and gives them time to think about it and talk to their higher ups if they need to.

I spoke with the owner of the property. Naturally he's not thrilled that the market has gone down. He'll be talking to his son about this. There is some wiggle room for us.

We stopped at Staples to pick up some colored envelopes for our marketing letters. There are 5 different color envelopes in the box. I'm going to note what color envelopes were used to see if there is a better response rate from certain colors (there was a recent post that mentioned a better response rate using colored envelopes.) People are affected by color (yellow is cheerful, blue gives a feeling of trust.) Tomorrow I'll send out more probate letters and research more probates.

Lea

Today I got to speak to one of the ladies I mentioned. She is a caregiver counselor with a wealth of knowledge and resources available to seniors in our area. She said she will send leads our way and doesn't want a referral fee she just wants us to succeed and she likes what we are doing. That's nice however it is business. She could feel very differently later but if not I'm sure she would take a donation to her Memory Walk Team (all funds benefit the Alzheimer's Association.) I've also asked her for a brief rundown of what her company offers, contact info, etc. I'll create a sheet with contact info for the different resources to give to our future homeowners/sellers if they need help.

She also gave me the contact info of a local lady who has recently opened up a badly needed adult day care center for early stage Alzheimer's patients. She spoke highly of this lady saying she also helps seniors find an EXCELLENT ALF that suits their needs and desires. I'm told that some of the ALF's promise her a referral fee but don't come through in the end. Regardless she puts the senior's needs first and still works with all of the ALF's. This is definitely the kind of person I want on our team.

One of the ladies I would like to work with just started working for another company and is not on the road dealing with patients anymore but in an office setting. She was (and still is) a geriatric nurse specializing in dementia patients. She has a good heart, bubbly personality, fantastic sense of humor and extensive knowledge about Alzheimer's. Maybe we'll be able to work something out. I haven't been able to talk to her directly yet because her job keeps her on the phone dealing with Medicaid and shuffling a lot of paperwork.

I worked on probate research and sent some letters today.

Lea

you go, girl!!! you are doing a remarkable job! have a great weekend!