Earl's Blog

Welcome The Rain- check this one out.

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 09:22:10 -0500

This is a short, but very good and thought provoking movie. In these times, we allow to many things to distract us and help us lose sight of the bigger picture. We tend to be so focused on the here and now, that we forget about the things that really matter and why we do what we do. It is time to get our eyes off of ourselves and to be thankful for and focused on what really matters, what will still be here after our storms. Enjoy

http://www.welcometherainmovie.com/?SRC=POIRAIN&utm_source=Walk+the+Talk+Master+List&utm_campaign=dfa9721999-POI_4_28_09&utm_medium=email

How does foreclosure work?

Sun, 27 May 2007 01:06:24 -0500

Foreclosure takes away ownership rights an owner has over a property and gives it to the lender in order to sell the property for the purpose of paying a debt. In order for this to happen, the following must be true:

1. The property must be collateral for the debt, to be sold.

2. The debt must be defaulted on. Payments are not up to date.

3. Creditor must fulfill all the legal requirements of the state the property is in.

The lender does not own the home. Real Estate is owned by the borrower. The property is merely collateral. Foreclosure is not repossession. If you miss just one payment or are late does not mean you are in foreclosure. The creditor must take certain legal steps. Check with the state you are in to see what the steps are.

A property isn't foreclosed on until it is sold at an auction and as per the state's procedure. What being in foreclosure means is the the lender has initiated proceedings throught the legal process to foreclose a property.

Usually, once there is a default, lender initiates a collection process. This is the best moment for a homeowner to reinstate the loan and bring it current. Usually, if after three months the homeowner has not brought it current the lender takes more drastic steps.

This process starts if the creditor fails to collect. This starts with a legal notice to the owner informing them that if the loan is not caught up within a certain time frame, the property will be sold at auction. This period is known as pre-foreclosure. The owner has until the foreclosure date to resolve the loan. Ways to solve this default are: refinancing, paying off the debt in full, or selling the property. If none of the above happens by the auction date, the property will be sold to the highest bidder. The proceeds from the sale are used to pay the creditors. Anything over that will go to the owner.

These foreclosures happen when properties are over- mortgaged. This means they owe more on the property then the property is worth. The only way for the property owner to get out of debt is for a short sale to happen, before going into foreclosure.

The ways properties become over-mortgaged are: when a second, third, and fourth is taken out; liens; 100% financing; and ARM loans.

The problem with 100% loans is that the property quickly becomes over-mortgaged if there is a default, because if the owner stops paying, the debt will usually grow faster then the appreciation. Usually following this are taxes, HOA fees and neglected utilities.

Usually this debt will exceed 130% of the value. These secondary mortgages are at the mercy of the lender who has the first. The secondary creditors will ofter negotiate discount prior to foreclosure to mitigate their losses.

This knowledge is very valuable to investors, brokers, Realtors, and mortgage brokers.

What is a Short Sale?

This is the sale of a property after getting approval from the creditors, for less than what is owed on it. This means that they are willing to settle for less than what is due. Lenders realize they will not win all the time. Changing economic conditions, acts of God, conflicts are some of the causes of unforeseen situations that can turn bad. This sale occurs when debtors agree to settle their liens for a known amount of money as opposed to taking a chance at auction. At auction prices are usually discounted. Lenders are usually willing to mitigate further risk of loss by making deals before auction. Their business is to lend capital, not dispose of foreclosed properties.

Contrary to what you may think, there doesn't have to be a BIG loser to make money in the foreclosure business.

The time leading up to foreclosure is very stressful and volatile for all parties. A professional in this business mediates a settlement that all parties can move on. In a short sale, lender has agreed to settle without further claims, and the property owner clears their obligations without negative effects of a foreclosure and garnishment off additional monies. The professional will be thanked by all of the parties involved.

Why do this?

Learning all you can about pre-foreclosure investing can greatly expand a real estate agents earning potential. If is vital to understand properties in foreclosure. The benefit of being well versed in foreclosure is being one of very few who are able to understand these proceedings and transactions. Many do not want to work with these listings. Due to this, it is easier to obtain listings or obtain listings from other agents.

I'm Free- thanks to you.

Mon, 19 Nov 2007 10:02:15 -0600

I really want to thank all you that helped me get out of jail Wednesday. I really appreciate it very much. If you weren't able to help, there is still time. Just go to my page below and donate there. Remember, this is for the kids of the MDA. These are special kids who need all of our help. I really appreciate it and I know the kids do to. Peace this Holiday season.

Let Earl "The Pearl" Sorrells help you discover your jewel.
Coldwell Banker Hartwig
661-400-9485
efsorrells@aol.com
www.activerain/efsorrells
MDA Lock Up Drive -check out my page and please support. Thank you.
https://www.mdaevent.org/ParticipantInfo.aspx?j=e9f438a2-5b80-4a2c-8a01-c9dd1eaa7a7f

Choosing a car (office on wheels)

Thu, 26 Apr 2007 01:26:24 -0500

I am going to be in the market for a new car soon. I currently have a Daewoo Lagunza and a Nissan Xterra. My Daewoo is paid for and I only owe a few more payments on the other. My wife wants to get a Range Rover and get rid of my Xterrra. I am thinking about keeping the Xterra and getting a nice car. I want something that is very comfortable for us and clients. Something that looks great and gets good mileage. Obviously saftey is important. What do you all drive and what do you think of your ride? My wife likes volvos. Help. Thank you.

Reverse Mortgages- Is it right for you?

Sun, 05 Aug 2007 00:22:47 -0500

There is a lot of talk about reverse mortgages. I am going to try to give you an over view of it and how it may be able to help you.

First of all, you have to be 62 years old to be able to take advantage of this. Here is a list of some advantages of using this type of loan.

1) You convert your equity in your home into cash for anything you may need it for. Best thing, you have no payments until the last person on the loan leaves the home. Helps you feel secure by having access to monies you need for health-care, business, helping family, etc...

2) It is not taxable as income, since it is a loan.

3) It shouldn't affect SSI, disability, pensions, etc... since it is a loan.

4) You can take the money out in a lump some, monthly cash payment, line of credit, or a combination of these.

5) If you move, sell, or die- loan is due and payable. Bank gives you 9 months to figure out how to pay loan- sell or refi. You can also, get a 3 month extension.

6) 25-30 days to close, after counseling.

7) Growing equity line on money left in account. Only owe on money used and interest.

8) Only have to be in house once a year, but it must be your primary residence.

9) You can do more then one reverse loan. You just want to make sure that you do it only about every 2 years, so that when the limits go up you will be able to pay off the original loan and have money left over for whatever you need.

FHA Lending limit is $362,790 here is LA county. January should bring it up to 417,000. You can get 48% to 60%. You get more the older you are.

This loan has an adjustable rate, right now 6.125 and will cap out at 10%.

How do you qualify? All homeowners on title have to be 62 years old. There are no income or credit requirements. It is based on the equity in your home.

The process:

1) meet with loan consultant

2) Get information on mortgages available

3) There are costs

4) Have to meet with a HUD approved counselor. There is no costs to your for this. You will learn all the ins and outs and they will let you know if it is good for you. You may have to meet AARP counselor too. A lot of times this can be done over phone. You will get a certificate, then continue on.

5) Seek advice from tax person

6) Appraisal and inspection- they will be looking at eves( chipping, railing, plumbing, strapping of water heater. Basically want home in good general repair. You will have 6-9 months to get anything fixed that the inspector found, after receiving money.

7) Approval and closing

Questions:

Are there any payments? No, the loan will be paid off with equity when sold or refied.

Will I owe more then house is worth? No, appraisal is done @ maturity, besides at beginning of loan process. You will never owe more then worth. You have built in MIP (mortgage insurance plan). Your loan is covered against any differences between loan amount and house value.

Is there any out of pocket cost? No, it is financed in loan, as is the MIP. It comes out of the loan proceeds first.

Fees: MIP insurance; closing costs and servicing (between 14-17,000). The older you are the less fees. % origination fee and MIP.

Do homework- May not be the best for everyone. Call 1-800-961-4150 (Countrywide) Also, check www.ncoa.org

AARP 1-800-209-8085

Any questions, feel free to contact me.

Earl "The Pearl" Sorrells

661-400-9485

efsorrells @aol.com

Internet addiction

Fri, 11 May 2007 02:21:27 -0500

True Internet addiction

You Are Maliciously Internet Addicted When:

You kiss your girlfriend's/boyfriend's home page.
Your bookmark takes 15 minutes to scroll from top to bottom.
Your eyeglasses have a web site burned in on them.
You find yourself brainstorming for new subjects to search.
You refuse to go to a vacation spot with no electricity and no phone lines.
You finally do take that vacation, but only after buying a cellular-modem and a laptop.
You spend half of the plane trip with your laptop on your lap... and your child in the overhead compartment.
All you daydreaming is preoccupied with getting a faster connection to the net: 28.8... ISDN... cable modem... T1... T3...
And even your night dreams are in HTML.
You find yourself typing "com" after every period when using a word processor.com.
You refer to going to the bathroom as downloading.
Your heart races faster and beats irregularly each time you see a new WWW site address in print or on TV, even though you've never had heart problems before.
You turn on your intercom when leaving the room so you can hear if new e-mail arrives.
When looking at a page full of someone else's links, you notice all of them are already highlighted in purple.
Your pet has its own home page.
You've already visited all the links at Yahoo and you're halfway through Lycos.
You can't call your grandmother..... she doesn't have a modem.
You realize there is not a sound in the house and you have no idea where your children are.
You check your mail. It says "no new messages." So you check it again.
You have commandeered your teenager's phone line for the net and even his friends know not to call on his line anymore.
Your phone bill comes to your doorstep in a box.
You code your homework in HTML and give your instructor the URL.
You don't know the gender of three of your closest friends, because they have neutral nicknames and you never bothered to ask.
Your husband tells you he's had the beard for 2 months.
You miss more than five meals a week downloading the latest games from Apogee.
You start looking for hot HTML addresses in public restrooms.
You move into a new house and decide to Netscape before you landscape.
You tell the cab driver you live at http://123.elm.street/house/bluetrim.html
You actually try that 123.elm.street address.
You tell the kids they can't use the computer because "Daddy's got work to do" and you don't even have a job.
Your friends no longer send you e-mail.... they just log on to your IRC channel.
You buy a Captain Kirk chair with a built-in keyboard and mouse.
Your spouse makes a new rule: "The computer cannot come to bed."
You are so familiar with the WWW that you find the search engines useless.
You get a tattoo that says, "This body best viewed with Netscape 1.1 or higher."
You never have to deal with busy signals when calling your ISP... because you never log off.
You forget what year it is.
You start tilting your head sideways to smile.
You ask your doctor to implant a gig in your brain.
You leave the modem speaker on after connecting because you think it sounds like the ocean wind... the perfect soundtrack for "surfing the net".
You begin to wonder how on earth your service provider is allowed to call 200 hours per month "unlimited".
You turn on your computer and... turn off your significant other.
Your spouse says communication is important in a marriage... so you buy another computer and install a second phone line so the two of you can chat.

I am down 12 lbs in ...

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 10:31:37 -0500

I am just so excited that I had to share this. My wife and I started a lifestyle change 12 days ago. It is the KimKins plan. It is a very low carb, high protein eating plan. We thought it would be very hard, but it really hasn't. My wife has lost 13 lbs in the last 12 days and I have lost 12. I was 245 and now am 233, as of yesterday morning at the gym. I noticed that I had trouble keeping my shorts up today. We haven't cheated, but did a few times eat meals off the maintance plan and not the losing plan. Our bad, but we didn't know. I have eaten double servings, even. We have eaten out a few times also. It has taught us what to eat and not to. We have been very careful. No sugars and no bread( I love bread). And under 20 carbs a day. But we are not starving. Just thought I'd share. Peace and have a blessed day. Earl "The Pearl" Pearl

In Honor of those who have served

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 10:14:29 -0600

In Honor of Those

Who Have Served

We wish to salute all the brave men and women who have sacrificed in service to our country. They are the reason the United States of America continues to be the land of the free and the home of the brave.

This Veteran's Day, take a moment to honor the service men and women you know with a sincere and heartfelt thank you.

A Father Deployed

A Veteran's Voice

Defining Freedom

SHARE THIS VIDEO

Help me, I need your bail money- Being locked up for "GOOD"- MDA

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 10:10:27 -0600

I NEED YOUR HELP! I'm going behind bars for "GOOD" PLEASE HELP BAIL ME OUT! *Your donation is my key to freedom!* *Be proud of the fact that together we're providing help and hope to kids and adults served by MDA in our community.* *Thanks for making a difference!*
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MDA in your Community

$85 -Fund One Minute of Research
$100 - Support Group Session
$800 - Send one child to MDA Summer Camp
$2,000 - Assist with Wheelchair or Leg Braces

I'm proud to tell you that I'm being locked up...that's right, I'm going behind bars to help Jerry's Kids© and MDA. To be released on good behavior I have to raise bail and I need your help!

All you have to do is click here to make a secure, online donation before 11-12-08, Tommorrow. Help me please.. Your donation will help families living in our community and help guarantee me an early release. I can't wait to add you to my list of contributors.

Thanks in advance for your help. Don't hesitate to call or email me with any questions.

Together we'll make a difference,
Earl

P.S. I'm counting on you, click here to donate.

If the link above does not work, please cut and paste the address below into the address bar of your Internet browser.
https://www.joinmda.org/lancaster/efsorrells/

Check out this video- God In America

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:17:25 -0500

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEUfRsQxq2A

This is a very awesome video. We really need to take this to heart and remember what this country was founded on. It isn't about our views of right and wrong, but God's. What would we do if Jesus was right with us, watching what we are doing? How would we act, or vote? How would we treat others? How would we run our business? Remember, He is with us, watching us. It is time to think again. What would Jesus have us do?

Crackdown on Sect 8 in the AV

Thu, 19 Jul 2007 12:00:08 -0500

From Jan to May, nearly 100 residents have lost their Sect 8, due to major local enforcement targeted at finding those who are defrauding, or breaking the rules of, the government aid program. (I am one who feels about this like I do about Welfare. I feel that these are great programs for those who are truly in need. Sometimes this is the only way for families to get ahead. Sometimes families hit unavoidable hurdles that they cannot overcome alone. That is what these programs are, a helping hand out, not to be a way of life. People still need to learn to be able to get on their own feet and take care of themselves. The problem is that too many people get use to this help and never are able to get on their own. Sorry, enough of my opinion, back to the crackdown.)

Lancaster and Palmdale have 3 investigators( there are a total of 9 for LA county, 3 for the AV, 5 for the rest of the county and 1 for Bellflower and Paramount) that has gotten hundreds of defrauding tenants, some more series then others, some that only require correction. This only makes it better for all of the property owners and people living in the neighborhoods. Lancaster has 1790 tenants with section 8 while Palmdale has 1014. Due to the crackdown, 39 Lancaster and 54 Palmdale lost their section 8. This enforcement is vital to the well being of the program.

The enforcement is much great here then in the rest of Los Angeles county. Outside of the AV, Los Angeles county has 14796 tenants on section 8 and only 45 lost their subsides in the same 5 month period. This enforcement is due to the greater number of complaints here and additional resources from the two cities. The cities actually respond to the complaints, while other cities don't. In the last year, the Section 8 fraud hot-line got 447 calls of supposed abuse of the system, while they only got 244 calls for the rest of their jurisdiction. Big difference, thus causing more focus in the AV. The cost for this enforcement is expected to cost over $316,000 this coming year.

Hopefully we all can help enforcement to keep the Section 8 system working for those who really want to use it for its original intentions and not for those who are looking to steal and defraud taxpayers. After all, we are the ones paying for these programs.

Closing

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:18:01 -0500

I just wanted to update you on my last deal. It is closing today. I am so excited. I was able to help a long time friend, from school, get out of her current living situation, and get a new life going. I am so thankful that she chose me. These are the times that you really love being a Realtor. Times when you are truly helping others, and not out there just to get the next deal. I love seeing people happy and moving forward in life. Funny how a change of sceenery, or town can do that. I wish much success to My dear friends and clients. Enjoy!

Finish Strong

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 09:44:36 -0500

Check out this little movie. It gets you thinking about what is holding you back from becoming what you should be. We tend to come up with all kinds of "reasons" why we can't do something; "I'm too young," "i'm too old," "I'm too short," I'm too tall," I'm not good looking enough," I'm not smart enough," "My body isn't built for that," etc... Life is full of people staying where they have always been, or worse, slipping backwards, due to lack of trusting in what was put into us and He that is above us, and stepping out. If we chose to do nothing, we have still made a choice for our future, and our families. Life is full of risk, let's make them count. Let's finish strong!!!

http://www.finishstrongmovie.com/

Fitness and Real Estate

Wed, 25 Apr 2007 02:07:03 -0500

I am looking for a good way to do both. I belong to a local gym that is open from 5am to 10pm. I have a hard time wanting to get up at 530 to be to the gym by 700 to work out for an hour or so and then go to work. What advice can any of you give me. I need to get myself back in shape. I am tired of being tired. haha Maybe I need a workout buddy to keep me motivated and accountable. I am sure my wife would love me to be in better shape, if you know what I mean.... get your head out of the gutter. She would like to be seen more with a fit me then what I am now. ;) I look forward to reading your advise. Peace Earl

I am going to jail for the Kids. Help me help them.

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:42:09 -0500

I am going to be locked up for a GREAT cause. It is for the MDA drive. I need your help. I have only until this coming Wednesday ,Nov 12th to raise more money. I don't care how much you can donate, just PLEASE help. If you can find God in your heart to help, I would sure appreciate it. If you can not, I will still be your friend. I can not do this without you. I am trying to send some kids to the Painted Turtle camp for a week, so they can enjoy life, even if it only once in their lives. Please help me. I really thank you all from the bottom of my heart. Peace and God Bless you all. Earl The Pearl Sorrells

Go to this website to donate. Just click on the to donate button. Thank you.

https://www.joinmda.org/lancaster/efsorrells