The HVA Blog
Another new franchisee in Ft. Worth, TX
Congratulations to our newest franchisee in Ft. Worth, TX, Steve and Shannon Sprowls. Steve and Shannon have been looking at HomeVestors 
for several years, and the new AF program fit his goals.
Also, congratulations to DA Mike and Lindsay Hambright on their newest franchisee. They now have 6 on their team buying Ugly houses in Dallas and Ft. Worth!
New Franchisee in St. Louis
Congratulations to Tom Smith, the newest HomeVestors franchisee in St. Louis! Tom will be helping make Ugly Houses pretty again after he completes training this week!
Also, congratulations to Tom's DA, Keith Immken and John Nixon!
Who Are HomeVestors Customers, part 2
Yesterday, we discussed why people sell to HomeVestors . We know people like HomeVestors because we buy houses fast, we pay cash, and we take houses in all kinds of conditions.
Today, let's look at more statistics on who these sellers are:
85% of sellers are individual, and only 15% are companies. Over half (51%) are female.
How about the age of the Sellers:
- 20-29 1.13%
- 30-39 10.03%
- 40-49 26.6%
- 50-59 31.05%
- 60-69 16.84%
- 70-79 10.19%
- Over 80 4.18%
How long have they owned their home?
- 0-9 years 46.2%
- 10-19 years 22.0%
- 20-29 years 14.6%
- 30-39 years 9.4%
- 40-49 years 4.6%
- Over 50 years 2.9%
Who are HomeVestors Customers?
Who is it that sells their houses to HomeVestors . We know people like HomeVestors because we buy houses fast, we pay cash, and we take houses in all kinds of conditions.
But, who are the people that sell to us? Here is a breakdown, based on actual transactions over the last 2 years, on why people sell their houses to HomeVestors :
- Financial Difficulties 27.17%. The biggest group are people that are facing financial difficulties. It is interesting that this category over the previous two years accounted for 6% of the responses. This may be a result of the recent economic climate.
- Financial Opportunities 18.29%. Interesting that the second biggest group also list financial - but financial opportunities instead of difficulties. They need money quickly for a financial opportunity.
- Age, Health, Retirement 16.48%. This category is actually down from 24% in the previous two years.
- Absentee Owner 14.67%. The biggest part of these sellers are people that inherited a house.
- Problem Rental 8.61%
- Moving-342-13.45%
- Divorce 3.42%
- Insurance Settlement .2%
Billboard Exposure?
This is one way to get more Billboard exposure.
Fort Worth police negotiating with naked man atop billboard
www.star-telegram.com/2010/05/03/2159505/fort-worth-police-negotiating.html
The SAFE Act
Barry Watts shared an email he sent to a local staff member in his Congressman's office. This is the best explanation I have seen regarding the SAFE Act, and the provision that is harmful to real estate in general. Thanks to Barry for letting me share this part of his email:
Representative Barney Frank is sponsoring legislation called the Consumer Financial Protection Act (I think it is referred to as the SAFE Act). Chris Dodd is sponsoring the Senate version. This legislation would require anyone who owns real estate and sells through owner financing to be a licensed mortgage broker if they sell more than one piece of property every 36 months. That means if your Mom & Dad have their house, and the rent house they bought 20 years ago, and the house they inherited from Grandma and Grandpa and they want to sell all three of them and move to Florida and retire, if they chose to let the buyers purchase the property over time (through a promissory note and deed of trust, a contract for deed, or a lease-purchase) that they'd have to wait SIX YEARS to be able to sell all three properties. Imagine Jack, if your Mom & Dad had been good investors and accumulated 20 rental houses over the years. This legislation means that if they wanted to owner finance the sale of those 20 houses to fund their retirement, they'd have to sell them over a period of SIXTY YEARS!!!
Why, you might ask would you Mom & Dad want to owner finance this property to a new buyer? It's very simple, Jack. Right now banks are paying about 2% interest on Certificates of Deposit. So if your parents sold a property and took the proceeds of that sale and put it in the bank they'd earn 2%. But they could "leave" the money in the property and let the new buyer pay for it over time and earn 6% or 7% for loaning the money to the new buyer. I'm a Certified Financial Planner Jack, this is a no brainer. If this were your parents they absolutely SHOULD leave the money in the property and earn the higher rate of interest rather than taking the proceeds and putting the money into a bank CD. But they aren't going to have that choice if Barney Frank gets his way.
Jack, I'm a real estate dealer. I buy and sell approximately 100 properties per year through our WeBuyUglyHouses company. This is what we do professionally, for a living, and we are very good at it. Sometimes we sell a piece of property with owner financing. The notion that we (or your parents) should have to be a licensed mortgage broker to sell our own property and invest our own money is ludicrous! I bear nothing but contempt for the brains behind this legislation and for anyone who'd vote for it. It represents an unnecessary intrusion of the federal government into a perfectly legal, moral, ethical, and common-sensical, private business transaction. So long as the taxes are paid, the government has no business sticking its nose into the citizen's affairs in this way.
Jack, we need Roy's help. Would you please bring this matter to his attention? Express my appreciation to him for his communication with the EPA over their goofy new lead paint edict, and ask him to help us get the SAFE Act stopped! Dead! Now!
It's all a matter of jobs. Over 50 people in our district are employed, paying taxes, and keeping a roof over their head because we rehab houses. But with the EPA's handcuffs on our rehab efforts, and Barney Frank's hamstringing of our sales efforts, each of those 50 families is just that much closer to the welfare line because we can't continue to bear the weight of the government on our back.
Help us, Jack. Please talk with the Congressman.
Day on the Hill
I just returned from Washington DC and the National Real Estate Investors Day on the Hill.
This is a very important event for HomeVestors Franchisees and all real estate investors. We learned about some upcoming legislation that could be harmful to property owners as well as real estate investors across the country.
You have probably read about both Senate and House bills on the country's financial overhaul. Senator Chris Dodd and Representative Barney Frank have bills that have many good parts. They are aimed to protect the consumer, which sounds very good and is very popular. The main focus for this legislation is to regulate Wall Street and the mortgage industry from unscrupulous lending practices that have hurt the public. But the challenge is in the fine print.
These bills are one big net directed at mortgage regulation. One of the many challenges of this legislation - passage would require people to become licensed mortgage lenders if they decide to sell, through owner financing, more than one property every three years.
That is why it is important to develop contacts with our Congressional representatives. Watch for more specific details coming up.
David Hicks with Representative Sam Johnson
Newest Graduates from Ug University
Congratulations to the newest graduates of Ug University!
Left to Right John Word, Chattanooga, TN, Stephen Bowen, Boston, MA, Chris Taylor, Chattanooga, TN, Mike Falotico, Boston, MA, and of course, Ug, now in 85 markets!
Preacher asks why anyone would buy an Ugly House
A preacher puts us in pretty good company. He wondered "why anyone would want to buy an ugly house. Yes, who in their right mind would want to live in an ugly house? He said this perplexed him until he found out that an investment company specialized in purchasing unsightly houses that needed repairs. Once purchased, the company takes their resources and works on the houses until they are transformed into beautiful and desirable homes.
At that point, he cried out that he is so glad that Jesus is like that company. " Read the entire article from St. Matthews United Methodist Church, PA