I'm starting to think there are too many people getting into this end of the business just because they can't make a go of it in the current market any other way.

I had a guy I know very slightly call me the other day and grill me about BPOs, REO, and the like. I told him that I didn't mind discussing how this end of the business has been for me but I wasn't about to just hand him my hard-won business. He got really snotty, implying that I was practically taking the bread from his mouth by not handing him my loaf.

What really irked me, though, was how he went on and on about he'd done some BPOs but really hated "being stuck doing lowly clerical work" and dealing with "bureaucracy" in the process and "couldn't wait" until he got all these REOs so he wouldn't have to do that. I informed him as nicely as I could that dealing with forms and bureaucracy was an integral part of the REO world and suggested gently that it might not be a good idea to get into this end of the business if he had no tolerance for either.

He didn't get it, but I really get disturbed when I see people trying to get into this end of the business not because it interests them, but because they think they can make a quick buck. I advised him that slow as our market is for "regular" real estate, if he wasn't making it with that he probably wasn't going to make it in BPO/REO either because both making a living in "regular" real estate in this market and BPO/REO take a lot more work and toleration for frustration than this guy demonstrated to me.

Honestly, I'm at the point when I hear people say they want to do BPOs "to hang on" in this business I feel like telling them that they've already gone under, they just don't know it yet. Who else thinks we ought to advise people like this that the days of easy money in real estate are over and to just place their license inactive and get a different kind of job?

I love hearing about (and reading posts here on this forum by) agents doing BPOs and trying to get REOs who have NEVER sold a house in the traditional way. How in the world can they be an expert?! A few classes, a license and MLS access do not thereby make...

Most of real estate is clerical, whether it be traditional, BPO or REO. Sounds like he needs to get a job busting rocks or something. I would be tempted to set him up with a nightmare AM or company just to be spiteful. (man, I am grumpy today. I missed my morning meditation and it shows!)

I bet I am meaner than you are

That's awful. I had an agent in my area who is 'the REO King' give me some advice about REO networking, and some tips on how to get in on them. I didn't solicit the advice, he freely gave it to help. He isn't even in my office.
I like to think the reason he gave it so freely is that he could see just how hard I was working at it and decided to throw me a bone.
Not patting myself on the back here but I did work hard and people around me knew it.......and WANTED to help BECAUSE of it.
People who just want it 'handed' to them won't know what to it with it once they get it, or are too lazy to follow through with it once it's handed to them.

Your not a meanie. That guy probably got into "regular" real estate in the first place because he thought it was an easy buck. And it was for a bit, but now that they have to work they see REO agents that seem to have lots of listings and think they are making an easy buck. I haven't done REO listings myself yet. And not sure I want to because of all the extra stuff one has to deal with. Nothing good is easy.

In my view there's too much talk here about doing bpos. Everyone and there brother is signing up with all the companies and our levels of orders are bound to drop. Simple supply and demand. I never underestimate my competition or their tolerance for this kind of work. And it not about "being positive" or not; it's being realistic. Every time I see a post about doing 450 orders in 30 days or whatever I just cringe.

Too many agents here are trying to get BPO work when they should be prospecting for listings or buyers.

Real estate is a competitive business. It's sink or swim. The ones that are good at adapting to the REO side of it will survive in doing REOs, and the ones that aren't, won't.

Roswell
being the "REO King", his biggest clients most likely have been closed to new agents a long time ago (fidelity, pas, fannie mae etc). In addition, he has established rapport with AM's over the course of a long time, thats why he feels secure about sharing tips, he knows that the majority of his business is not going anywhere. Most of us do not have that luxury and always have to be aware of someone "moving our cheese".
Maybe I'm wrong and he genuinely wants to help though.;-)

I have found that the REO side of RE is no easier or harder than regular RE - just different. I had a lot of business hawking FSBOs and expireds. Either way you have to continually prospect for business.

I gravitated to foreclosures to get my hours a little closer to 9-5 with weekends and major holidays off. You know - banker's hours. So I signed on with the banks. Plus in the REO world you are somewhat insulated from the bulk of your competition.

Regular RE washes out most newbies with all the Realtor dues, MLS dues, E&O, license renewals, continuing education and general lack of business. Add to that the expense of rekeys, yard maintainence, repairs, trashouts etc and newbies go down in flames. It is the old 80/20 rule where 80% of the business is done by 20% of the agents.

In my market if you divide the number of houses sold by the number or Realtors then everyone gets like 4 or 5 houses a year. The way I look at it I just put about 6 or 7 agents out of business because they didn't sell anything. Maybe I am just a meanie too!

REO is a different world. It is closer to doing commercial RE than doing residential. Once residential agents that are very emotional see what REO is like, they won't get it.

When they have to do a CFK and see a family with children telling them they have no where to go, they may quickly forget to whom they owe a fiduciary duty.