We are seeing our declining market accelerating and what I means by declining a home of $500,000 to $600,000 selling at $250,000. How this happens and happens so fast in such a little time? All these homes that the bank are getting back have been turn to asset management that will manage the sale of these home. There is not enough of this asset management for too many properties. These asset management have no much experience is real estate sale, all they do is to hire real estate agent, title company, property management for repair and cleaning, a locksmith. All offers coming from agent will come to the asset management that will then be sent to the lenders or investors. A lot of money could be save and a higher quality of these transactions could be done if these lenders and investors will go directly to a Real Estate Brokers and let's them manage the transaction. Real estate broker already has all these parties involve in a transaction.



A typical real office will handle both sale and home purchase; property management; will hire a Title Company. As the selling agent, we will price the property accord Ely with local home sale, will suggest maintained and improvement to help the sale, will hold open house, advertising, marketing in local newspaper. Our goal as a Realtor is to sell for the highest price. We already have a large list of buyers but now we are loosing few of them due to the poor service provided by these REO sales.

Going back to the asset management, they hire a real broker base on how many REO they did and how many they do a month. It is all about quantity and volume. Even if your office or agents did hundreds of transactions, have done hundreds of REO sale representing buyers; you will not qualify. How come than somebody that has no real estate experience and I mean experience working with buyers, sellers, contract, marketing, negotiating, disclosure, Title Company tell us that we cannot qualify.

By doing so many of these REO transactions on the buyer side, I can see that this type of sale is a complete failure. What happen to the credit crisis and nobody did anything to avoid, is happening with REO sale. Their main goal is to move these properties as fast as they can and if your home or neighborhood is near by, all the hard work, savings, love you put into your house will vanish.

A real estate agent will hold an average from 30 to 40 properties, will close 15 a month. No much work (marketing) is done into these properties, their only marketing is the MLS, some REO website, and of course a low, low price. Next they will submit all offer and go back and forth until transaction is closed. Agent will update asset management with property condition, market condition.

Our next biggest problem with these REO is their Title Company and Escrow officer that are not local, they are hundred mile away and it create even more confusion. These title companies have so many transactions to handle hundreds at the time...

And I think it is a shame, we had a survey with our local board of Realtor asking what could be done in our community in today's market. I ask to my congressman and I also respond to this survey. I was suggesting instead of having a handful of agent handling these REO, spread them around, it will create job and keep them into their home. And same with Title Company, stay local, it creates job and our community will benefit from it.

Why do we need someone that is hundred miles away from your homes to manage and control our local real estate market and economy?

It will not benefit us; they are just here for the quick buck. The service is very poor, and as I say the faster they can move the better they will score.

Should we keep less than 5% of the real agent to handle of the REO?

They are overwhelmed and most of them have no real estate sale experience, they just entered data into asset management software, contract in! Contract out!

So what is in it for you? If these REO come by you neighborhood and are handle like they are now, you will better off to give your house back to your lender.

Contact your state representative and let them know that you are concern about the declining value of your home. These foreclosures should be handle by local Real Estate Office and local Title Company.

How much time before they come to you neighborhood? Are you next?