Foreclosures: Vultures, Voyeurs and Lawyers
By Glenn Roberts Jr., Friday, May 23, 2008.Bookmarking Sites
The swath of blight and financial troubles carved out by a rise in foreclosures has also cleared the path for a growing cottage industry.
A production company in Florida is seeking to syndicate a reality television show starring Tom Bruzzesi, a Realtor and foreclosure investor who has bought and sold over 250 foreclosure properties in the past five years.
"In each episode of 'The Foreclosure Shoppe,' camera crews follow Tom on a typical wild and crazy day at the office," according to an announcement this week that promotes the series.
"Tom (affectionately nicknamed 'The Maniac' by his peers) confesses that he is a master at frustrating people. 'I know how to get underneath their skin and throw off their bidding strategies,' Tom admits. From irritating bidders at the courthouse, to walking through his purchased properties for the first time, to evicting tenants that won't leave, to picking up his large paychecks, viewers get an inside pass to witness Tom navigating through the messy foreclosure process."
Bus tours of foreclosure properties are also springing up in hard-hit markets across the country (see Inman News article).
CondoVultures.com offers market intelligence to investors about the condo market in South Florida, including court foreclosure listings for several counties.
Foreclosure-related real estate sales represent a substantial share of sold and for-sale properties in some market areas, and many agents have sought training and specialized in this growing niche (there are several membership organizations for agents who work with foreclosure properties). Lawyers, too, seek to cash in on the growth and growing interest in foreclosures.
Christian N. Folland, a real estate lawyer and Realtor in South Florida, for example, promotes his combined experience in working with buyers to "find and buy pre- and post-foreclosed or otherwise discounted properties while avoiding the legal pitfalls of problem or 'red-flagged' properties."
He lists possible complications with foreclosure properties: title issues, fraudulent developer contracts, lawsuits over construction defects, high numbers of renters vs. owners, pending special assessments, large numbers of pre-construction buyers who fail to close, downgrades in unit finishes due to the high cost of materials, and lender blacklisting due to fraudulent sales and appraisals.
Tom Bruzzesi, star of reality TV show about foreclosuresAll rights reserved. This content may not be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, in part or in whole, without written permission of Inman News. Use of this content without permission is a violation of federal copyright law.
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Submitted by Rick Belben on May 25, 2008 - 12:06pm.
I guess this is just a sign of the times - Reality TV & Foreclosures. Both seem to be pretty popular right now.
Submitted by Chuck Ardezzone on May 27, 2008 - 5:10pm.
This guy sounds like a cool dude, I'd love to watch a show on him and the foreclosure biz.
Submitted by Matthew Dollinger on May 28, 2008 - 10:42am.
Nice. Glad to see that we in the industry are moving away from the stigma that has befallen us. Forget that our goal is to help those achieve the American Dream... forget that people choose to share with us their hopes for the future and financial statements... forget the fact that less than 5 years ago the Realtor profession was ranked just above Used Car Salesperson by USA Today... Let's show America that we truly are heartless, faceless, money driven capitalist driven by greed and the almighty dollar.
For those of you reading this post and are as disgusted as I am by this portrayal of our industry, why not say something, do something, make a difference? A great start would be to tune in to 1000 Watt Consulting's Blog www.1000wattblog.com and see that you're not alone ... and Turn On.
Matt Dollinger
Matthew Dollinger
Performance Coach
@properties, Chicago IL
Submitted by Chuck Marunde, J.D. on June 1, 2008 - 7:03pm.
Interesting, but I think we are probably about to surf a very large wave of foreclosure businesses, niches, services, and reality shows, and we are at the very beginning of the swell. Get ready for a big ride. Are you on a surf board, or will you be a spectator?
Chuck Marunde, J.D.
Real Estate Attorney (Ret.)
Broker/Owner/Realtor
SequimPortAngeles.com
Submitted by Mary Davis on August 25, 2008 - 6:03am.
Tell me about lawyers. I hired this asbestos attorney and I almost had to sell the house I was fighting for.
Submitted by Larry Hotz on September 3, 2008 - 1:35pm.
Competition for these foreclosure properties in our Denver market has increased dramatically in the last couple of months.
The last three offers we made on behalf of clients were facing competing offers from at least two other buyers. The homes priced below $300,000 are particularly hot. It's not unusual to have seven to 10 multiple offers on these homes. As a result, the banks have figured out that it's in their own best interest to be slow to reply. At the beginning of the summer we could expect replies on foreclosed properties within a day or three. One I am working on right now will likely take more than a week. They know the longer they wait, the more offers they will have.
Denver Real Estate Blog | Denver Relocation
Submitted by Alex Pablate on September 17, 2008 - 10:33pm.
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http://www.lawyersindemand.com/
Submitted by Kim Gibbons on November 18, 2008 - 10:47am.
Everyone seems to think of South Florida when condo foreclosures come to mind. There are foreclosures NW Florida, not as many but this is a sign of value. The market here is not swamped with foreclosures and as a result property values are much more stable.
Destin Real Estate | Destin Condos
Submitted by oliva barnand on March 16, 2009 - 2:00am.
Its fantastic TV Show about foreclosures, i think one of the clever mind foreclosures investor with great concept.become quite popular show in people.
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