Singing Pig

one of the leads i got in my brief sojourn as a Repossession Angel was a guy with 3 kids who was about to be repossessed in 3 weeks time. 

 i arrived as he had received his  letters to appear in court. He was in total "denial".  I looked at his paperwork, and then explained to him the realities of his situation - he had been refusing to face up to them  - 

he had remortgaged two years earlier, from one of those deals "on afternoon tele" and as his initial cheap mortgage rate period had come to an end, his monthly payment were about to almost double. He did not know what to do.

 i told him he WOULD be put out on the lawn with his suitcases when the bailiffs arrived, and asked  him what was he going to do about it ?  He had heard of a local landlord who had a house coming empty in 3 weeks time.  i suggested he get an AST signed and go to court with it  (sadly -  i could not accompany him on that date). The judge granted him a stay for 1 month, he left, got the rented house and the lender sold the property at the next auction, and his debt was paid off. 

 About a month later, he phoned  me to tell me that i had scared the pants off him, but that he wanted to thank me nevertheless , and to apologise for having wasted my time   -  "i can now take my kids out, we can go to Mcdonalds and go to the cinema and have some fun"   - his rent was around £750 pcm - his mortgage would have gone up to about £1500 - i was pleased to help.

i got nothing out of that -except the knowledge that a family was happier - job done ......

what would you have done in this situation ? 

Exactly the same as you Clottie

You gave him good advice at the expense of any profit you could make and came way with nothing but a warm spot in your heart!

A true Angel but I reckon you are in a minority of 1.

These courses seem to brainwash people into thinking they are offering some kind of Mecca at no expense to the poor victim who loses a fortune to get peace of mind and is not in any fit state to think clearly anyway otherwise WHY TARGET REPOSSESSIONS?. Because thats where the EASY money is !!!!!   

 I still think the name suggests a charity Citizens Advice Bureau and implies they can help you out of a hole out of the kindness of their heart!!. As was stated they may appear as angels to the victims in the same way as offering another little package to a drug addict may seem angelic to the addict.

Thanks Clottie

I read some of your comments re Inside Track some months ago and think you tell it like it is!

"" Because thats where the EASY money is !!!!" - believe me its not easy money at all  !!!!   There are also many other reasons (in addition to repossessions) why folk will sell Below Market Value - to prevent a chain-break in EA deals; emigration; divorce; new job - lots of different scenarios.

 I don't think i am in a minority of one at all  - there are many property professionals on here, and elsewhere, who give folks helpful advice for no financial gain, just because they are decent people.

IT continues to peddle their "dreams" and if you want to get angry at  folks being deprived of money in a wholly immoral manner - have go at them !!!!!  i get PMs all the time from folks who are in severe financial difficulties thru having been given a "idealised" picture of "millionaire-ship"  - that's what I call  "un-angelic"

i always do tell it like it is  -  gets me in bother sometimes tho !!!! 

Hi Specs

Glad my angle enlightened you , and I can really understand why, on the face of things, your initial reaction was what it was.

I can understand your disbelief at how some people want thnigs to be structured...but as the essence of any successful business is to find out what propects want..then find a way of profitably of giving it to them..this is what I, and others here, do.

Its a crazy world out there anyway...even more so when you are dealing with the marginal minority who have distressed and complicated lives..combined with irrational desires!

I take your point Rialto but relieving a person of say a quarter of the value of their only asset when the balance of their mind is disturbed is not really doing them a service!

Its catching a person at their most vulnerable and engineering the deal so even though the client is happy,they have been relieved of a vast chunk of their equity probably without even realising it!

Under the Financial Services Act the new legislation now requires a full client questionnaire which helps prevent the client from being sold something they dont really want or need. You arent allowed to catch a customer when he or she is not thinking straight and sell them a deal where they will lose substantial equity or its not the best plan for them. I know they may be sold it in such a way that they THINK it is but its not really.

I knew a double glazing salesman whose technique was always to reduce the cost of his deals by quoting can you afford £x monthly and if rejected,can you afford £-x weekly,and if rejected,ok what about £ -x daily. By the time he got down to "surely -xp an hour is affordable" the customers had signed and they thought it was a great deal!

I appreciate there are people who are happy to walk away from a deal if its fleecing the customer but if the average BMVer needs 25% reduction on equity to make it worthwhile to them,all of these deals cannot possibly be of ultimate benefit to the customer.

In the short term yes perhaps he has been helped out of a spot but at considerable cost to himself in the longer term so how is that "angelic". NOBODY would take a property from me , that I had spent years paying for, and not gives me its TRUE value but instead relieve me of 25% or more of it. Its absolute madness and if someone had done that to a friend of mine,I would be furious.

There is the CAB,Social services,Building society,Family,friends and many other avenues before involving a firm like "Repossession Angels". If they eventually get to that stage I think their mental stability must be questioned in which case they are not in a fit state mentally to make a rational judgement or decision anyway.

I certainly couldnt do that line of work and make a living off other peoples despair and desperation to find a solution. It is in no way "angelic" sorry

specs- some folks are so proud they would rather stay in their own homes and lose equity , rather than have not only family, friends but also the neighbours watching their eviction -  knowing that they were financially incompetent.

 
Lisa Orme bought a house off someone who was wanting to emigrate, and they did not want anyone coming round to look at their house and sold it for a stunning amount below market value  -  they were Very clued up and knew exactly what their home was worth.  Their privacy was worth a fortune to them.

 
One  thing i learned is that there is no such thing as an "average" re-possessee and that it is wise not to judge until you have heard the full facts.

I appreciate specs, to a certain degree, what you are trying to say...but i think your view is too broad...and naive.

By the way ..you arent really taking a quarter of the value of their asset..youre taking much more..just to make a point.

Example..house worth 100k..60k mort/40 equity..buy it for 75 k..you are taking over 60% of their equity (the rest belongs to the lender!!) How naughty is that?

your term..'catching' a person at their most vulnerable suggests a trap.

Usually it is a trap...one that they got themselves in by poor and sloppy financial management. When peple are int his trap..they need help.

Our business is not regulated by the FSA. (fact).if it was, in many instances, similar regulations to FSA red tape would ensure that people who NEEDED (not wanted) a quick sale would probably become repossessed.... rather than carried on living in their homes...because of the delays beaurocracy brings.

Your double glazing analogy is not quite the same. ..........buying double glazing is a luxury process (nobody needs double glazing)...making a decision about if you stay in your home debt free or make yourselve homeless is completely different..there is absolutely no comparison whatsoever! I should know this...I have done both jobs..and could write a book.....hey, now theres an idea...hmmmm...

Your emotive terms such as 'fleecing the customer' and 'catching people' suggest you are a highly principled, perhaps ultra suspicious, person.....which is maybe commendable. However, may i say you seem a little naive also?

 You are most certainly conversant with typical situations that arise from the reckless decisions that adults (who act like children) make - to their detriment - and then need other adults (who behave like adults) to help them...its called the natural order of things.....

In a perfect world, we would all be in total control of our lives and destiny...no one would have bad luck, screw up,  be ill, be ill prepared or even die...and therefore not need another persons help at anytme for anything

You said...........

I appreciate there are people who are happy to walk away from a deal if its fleecing the customer but if the average BMVer needs 25% reduction on equity to make it worthwhile to them,all of these deals cannot possibly be of ultimate benefit to the customer.

Really? Well you ask one of my tenants who is still iving in their house - when three months earlier it looked 99.9% certain that they would be living in a homeless local authority flat (one bedroom..2kids..) with no money/respect/cash/... what they prefer now they are still in their family home, debt free with 10k in the bank and happy. No brainer specs..its just that you (with the greatest respect) dont have a clue what youre talking about.

I dont know what you do for a living? roadsweeper? brain surgeon?..doesnt matter...but i know that i would never question your method of working unless i was conversant with the genereal aspects of it.....your naivety ..and bitterness?..is quite apparent it seems.

Your cringeingly, badly constructed, arguments (of a busines you obviously know nothing of) are embarrassingly painful to read........... I suggest you try to see the whole picture before you comment about something you understand little of before you criticise what is in general, a very honourable profession.

it would be interesting if you could inform the board about how you make money in your life...perhaps we could deconstruct that for you?

specs said 

In the short term yes perhaps he has been helped out of a spot but at considerable cost to himself in the longer term so how is that "angelic". NOBODY would take a property from me , that I had spent years paying for, and not gives me its TRUE value but instead relieve me of 25% or more of it. Its absolute madness and if someone had done that to a friend of mine,I would be furious.

You would GLADLY sell 25% BMV if it meant saving your family from eviction.

As someone who has experienced the downward spiral of debt due to a failed business (yes its the first time Ive mentioned it on  Singing Pig) I can assure you, no one wants to sell BMV. but if you need money fast, its a great option.

Just as selling your car to the dealer, you get less than a private sale, but none of the hassle + cash in the hand NOW 

I wish it were around 20 years ago. It would have saved me 5 years rebuilding my life.

Hard work has got me back up there now, but if only the options now , were available then, Id be years ahead