2011 The year that REO is predicted to overwhelm the nation.  With 2 1/2 years behind us, the Subprime Mortgage Meltdown has left its print on the REO industry with moratoria, freezes, shadow inventory, and policy change in record volume.  As a resilient market, the US real estate market is poised for the start of a comeback.  2010 turned out some impressive numbers in states like Arizona and California while Florida continued to feel the pain of it’s regional and state laws.

“Necessity is the Mother of Invention”

During the worst recession since the Great Depression the entrepreneurs of the world have been working overtime in their creative labs.   Incredible technology and efficiency has erupted through changes in marketing, automation, reporting, videography, and design.  Our generation has been privy to a slew of evolutions such as the explosion of social media and online digital marketing, improvements in smart phone technology (I, personally, operate on a Garminfone which is a fusion of phone, GPS, and Google Applications running on an Android platform), and BPO auto-fill to name a few of our industry’s leaps in efficiency.  Let’s be honest here, who would have believed me 5 years ago if I would have told them I had an Android phone – excluding the developers of Android and sci-fi fanatics?

“To Much to Handle”

Regardless of your technological proficiency it’s most likely that everyone reading this article has been completely overwhelmed with technology’s invasion into our everyday lives in the past 3-5 years.  Just 5 years ago it was acceptable to still operate your business under the notion that business could continue to prosper without the bells and whistles of online marketing strategies.  Heck, a hand-shake and a phone call was more effective that any other form of communication.  It still holds true that a hand-shake improves your odds of building a long-lasting business relationship, but when the media posts that staggering numbers of consumers reach for their iPhone or Android and jump on Facebook before ever considering who they do business with it is time to reconsider that strategy.

The overwhelming amount of change that is taking place – from Facebook, Twitter, Groupon, blogs, forums, instant message, Skype, and everything else under the High Speed Sun – is almost unbearable.  Having taken on a role of online digital marketing expert over 5 years ago I can say without a crack in my voice that I have been nothing short of short-circuiting in the last year in my attempts to harness in everything that is critical with the future of business while leaving behind the white noise of fly-by-nights like Google Buzz.  Let me reiterate at this point that THIS IS WHAT I DO FOR A LIVING….Full Time.   My sympathy goes out to the millions of entrepreneurs in the country, excuse me, the WORLD who have to think about their niche AND try to harness in these changes.  Quite frankly it’s grounds for pleading insanity.

“Taking over the REO Marketing Business”

While it’s a bold statement (some may even think of it as preposterous) I am staking claim on the highest bar ever set for REO Marketing Performance in history.  It has been somewhat of a no-brainer to be successful in the REO training and networking business between the years 2008 and 2010.  Let’s face it, everyone wanted the knowledge and getting new business was not all that difficult.  A new REO or Default Servicing training company was popping up faster than anyone could keep track of.  Fast-forward to now and you can see that the internet is a proverbial ghost town of these businesses.  The reasoning is simple:  It’s challenging now.  But, I am always ready for a good challenge and I feel more incredible about NFSTI than ever before.  Our training, our technology, and our ability to provide top-tier service to the masses is better than ever before.  Through fire we’ve been refined and the agents and brokers get to benefit from it.

We’ve taken the ability to leverage every type of technology mentioned in this article and stream it through one centralized location while simultaneously offering training, certification, marketing assistance, and lead development.  I’m not sure, but I think we have something great here.

Best of luck to everyone in 2011 and may the best entrepreneur win.

Coming in 2011 NFSTI will be reestablishing it’s Foreclosure Training Program.  This will coincide with the recent announcement by Fannie Mae that foreclosures will resume.  Current members of NFSTI will be included in the portal with a 1 year membership with an updated username and password.  The new Training Program will bring about a deeper understanding of the REO and related industries as well as an enhanced certification exam.

As of 2011 all members, whether they have been previously NFSTI Certified REO Specialists or not will be required to pass the updated exam in order to be promoted as such.  This will reflect the current changes in the REO and related industries and will provide the assurance that each NFSTI Certified REO Specialist has appropriate credentials to service distressed assets properly.

We look forward to the new year.  Be merry, be safe, and be prepared for a very busy year in 2011.

August Membership:

Membership showed a significant jump in August, 2010 most likely due to some email notices that were sent out regarding user log in information. Now that activity has ramped up to a significant level NFSTI will be launching a few projects that have been in development for a while.

The goal for NFSTI over the next few months is to increase the awareness of default servicing for those agents still looking to break into the niche while simultaneously offering training, networking, and insight for the most seasoned default servicing real estate professional.

DWE Web Design:

As you may have noticed we’re also promoting a new web development and social media integration service started by the founder of NFSTI. The purpose of this service is to improve on the amount of reach real estate agents have on potential clients. During the economic downturn we’ve realized the need for 2 things:

• Top search engine ranking for specific key words.
• Efficient customer capture and a strong ROI (return on investment).

The 2010 Five Star Conference

If you intend to attend the Five Star Conference in Dallas this September please get in touch with someone on the NFSTI team and let them know.  We have a growing group of members who enjoy meeting up and networking in groups.  Great success has been achieved by networking the REO conferences in tight-knit groups of like-minded professionals.  If you don’t know anyone on the NFSTI team yet, simply email Dan_Waterman@NFSTI.com and he’ll make sure that you get plugged in.

eBrokerHouse is a real estate technology company that provides the most innovative and yet user friendly business management software that exists for real estate brokers and agents. All of our software solutions are developed in collaboration with countless real estate professionals to ensure we are providing the most effective, practical, and affordable solutions available. EBH employs some of the brightest minds in the real estate technology industry and this shines through in our products. We offer solutions for individual agents to manage their personal businesses and brokers to manage their entire offices.

Real Estate Professionals can now manage and streamline their entire real estate business under the eBrokerHouse roof. This web based solution caters to traditional, short sale, REO, or any combination of business you or your agents may have. Don’t get stuck using several softwares to manage the different aspects of your business. You have many needs when it comes to managing your business and we understand that you need a flexible software that can meet all of those needs. No longer will you need to be tied to your desk and to your paper files. Moving to a web based system to manage your team members, listings, leads, offers, files, and more will allow you to work much more efficiently, more productively, and from anywhere.

eBrokerHouse is a real estate technology company that provides the most innovative and yet user friendly business management software that exists for real estate brokers and agents. All of our software solutions are developed in collaboration with countless real estate professionals to ensure we are providing the most effective, practical, and affordable solutions available. EBH employs some of the brightest minds in the real estate technology industry and this shines through in our products. We offer solutions for individual agents to manage their personal businesses and brokers to manage their entire offices.

Real Estate Professionals can now manage and streamline their entire real estate business under the eBrokerHouse roof. This web based solution caters to traditional, short sale, REO, or any combination of business you or your agents may have. Don’t get stuck using several softwares to manage the different aspects of your business. You have many needs when it comes to managing your business and we understand that you need a flexible software that can meet all of those needs. No longer will you need to be tied to your desk and to your paper files. Moving to a web based system to manage your team members, listings, leads, offers, files, and more will allow you to work much more efficiently, more productively, and from anywhere.

Listen to Thomas Moore, CEO of eBroker House, as he and Dan Waterman discuss upcoming technological adjustments on the horizon for the real estate community:

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Listen to a demonstration of NFSTI’s DS Core Series.  This one is on-the-house!  Here’s your chance to see what our courses are like.

Stay tuned for the entire series…coming soon.

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