Mike's Blog

While California burns and the Mid/Central States flood, we here in Fla are having a blast.

Home prices are down an average of 25% according to the figures released this week.

So, with such an obvious sale, I thought I might clear my calendar for the rush of calls that would shirley be coming in after such a momentuos announcement. I prepared extra copies of my PDF packages and sorted them in piles around my desk.

Warehouses in this stack. Finished building lots in this one. Large entitled land tracts in this pile over here. Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, here I am stuck in the middle with you.

Well, with extra coffee made in advance to keep me focused after the onslaught I knew was coming, I sat in weight while contemplating the incredible deals I had assembled.

As the hours passed, I became increasingly more proficient at commenting on Active Rain rants in 12 words or less.  Growing bored, and realizing the futility in trying to amass a fortune in points in this fashion, I began to make a list of the things that if on sale for 25-40% off, would create a line at the gates.

1. Imagine Ford Explorers at 25% off...I might even want one then.
2. I've seen empty shelves when Levis go on sale 25% off
3. Hamburger at over 25% off will entice me to double wrap and freeze a bunch
4. Remember getting hair cuts at Pennys just to not miss the sale coupon of 30%
5. Hamsters at 25% off would....well ....you got me there...might have to pass on that one

But Real Estate, brand new homes, entitled land for sale for less than the cost of the development fees, and we get nothing but a big yawn. I know, we only seem to want something when its spirralling upward out of control...Never did get that.

But, if anyone here has clients that are interested in buying properties in Fl, please be assured there are still plenty to choose from. We have JV deals, Owner financing, and even deals that cash flow.. We have bank portfolios that have buy one get one free..

In the meantime, I think I will go down south and visit Scott Daniels at List For Less...He offered to buy lunch.

Hello All you Rainers.

There was a time when I thought I knew the answer to this question. But now I am not so sure.

If you are an experienced agent, would you take a small salary and a reduced commission. Now I am saying salary, not draw.

Would you like a much larger commission and then pay for all your advertising, office support thru a monthly fee?......................I have heard of this model too..

If there was an opportunity to make a hybrid plan of these, would you seriously consider moving to an environment where there was real support.

I heard of an office that offers about 5 different pay plans, with different levels of service from the broker to the Agent.  It seems that with most of the agents are opting for less commision and a guarentee of a small amount. The pay plan includes floor time where you are busy with entering listings, web page updates, and many Normal duties that are not hard, and make up about 2-3 hours a day. Of course, when there is a chance to work (sell a listing or work a buyer) then of course by all means then do business.

This question is for experienced agents only. Lets say you have sold at least 10 deals or more??

I have a very close friend that is wanting us to invest in a model like this with him,,,,hmmm seems interesting..They also offer flat fee listings and menu driven listing services...its a very interesting concept...

I am busy with commercial...But I would not mind sponsoring a good business like this...but this seems like its interesting as a concept...

I just wonder...is it just the market, or is this an emerging trend?? Any Comments??

This week the papers and media in general are alive with stories of failure and losses. The stock market is jumping around and gas prices are rising.

Housing in general is continuing its slow downward spiral and Detroit is laying off more workers in their SUV plants. Its not a rosy picture, is it?

But wait, it appears there is more activity on the investor side of the market. Investors are seeing its time to get busy, and are activley seeking newer properties at bargin prices.

I, Mike Norvell Sr,  work for Developers Capital Realty. We work primarily Commercial Properties and Land Deals.

We have never been so busy. Long days and longer days are now becoming normal. Now it appears we may have to bring on more help to handle the load. In the last few weeks I have been in contact with some of the people here on Active Rain. There is no way to handle the upcoming rush of business that is coming into our doors.

In the past few months, I have put out Letters of Intent on distressed Commercial Projects for over 80 million. We are working with Hedge funds, Investment Funds, and Finally, we NOW have an offer to work with private placement opportunity to create our own fund. We are currently reviewing another over 200 million for bid anaysis at this time.... With funds being limited, we have to go after only the best deals.

Developers Capital Realty is in the process of entering into relationships with other proffesionals in the Fla area. I am bound by confidentiality agreements to not publicly disclose much of what we are doing, but it is exciting.  So very exciting.

I came to Developers Capital Realty with a promise from the founder that we, as a very small company, would target larger distressed commercial properties. My past experience in foreclosures and short sales would be put to good use, only here we don't go for the house, we bid on the whole subdivision. We bid on large land parcels that are in the entitlement process, we bid on Commercial Office buildings with some cash flow. Latlely, we have been getting more of the investment Funds to offer to work with us, and anticipate an even bigger year.

My goals for joining Developers Capital Realty was to do 100 million in sales in the first year. In just over 3 months of concerted effort with basically only 2 clients, we are seeing that may be not nearly ambitious enough. My primary client (not disclosed here, if you noticed) is an experienced 3rd Generation Developer/Business man that has all the ducks in a row for this market. Right now, its all about who can come up with the funding for these deals. There are NO shortage of deals.

Last week we put the (hopefully) finishing touches on a large land DRI project for just under 20 million.  We are representing a Joint Venture of my client and a large California Hedge fund who wants to invest heavily in Central Fl. It is all cash, no banks involved, and should close by this fall...The same client is now actively reviewing over 100 million in other projects here in Central Fl. We plan on continuing to earn their faith and trust so that we can represent them on all of these deals!!

This morning I am picking up the paperwork for contract on a smaller project, over 150 acre development that has been stalled by this economy, and now must be sold and finished by someone else. This project was bid on about 60 cents on the dollar and the banks have finally approved the sale. We are Representing a local Investment Group on this project, who is saving 3 years of commision meetings and engineering costs and about 4 million in expenses. The city has approved a change in the plans here to put in smaller lots and go for affordable housing. Everyone will win..

In the next few weeks, we may announce some Joint Ventures with some of our Co Bloggers here on Active Rain. The amount of business to be done in distressed Commercial Acquisition is just stagering to concieve of. By some accounts, over 3 billion in partially finished projects are up for grabs, and we will do our best to handle as much as we can get funded.

Developers Capital Realty, LLC  have reset our goals upward to 250 million in the next year. I will keep posting as time permits.

Going for the big guys.You know, the ones that when caught, dance on top of the water fighting you every inch of the way back to the boat. Those who know, know. Its not easy bringing in the big ones

As a guy who fishes, I think about how important it is to understand what we are fishing for.

If we are on a lake, in a smaller 16 ft boat, we might be going for bass. Bass like lighter tackle and weedless hooks set just right in plastic worms. If you are working around grass beds, and shallow areas it makes sense to use the right bait to be able to fish in this environment.

I love seeing guys with artificial lures, dangling triple hooks and all, constantly fighting weeds and grass when fishing shallow.  When you dare to ask them why they are using that kind of bait, they tell you some kind of excuse, but invariably, the expensive fancy lure ends up stuck in the weeds and gets left in the water.

Fish won't argue with you, but eventually the logic may speak up loud and clear. No bites, losing bait in the weeds, maybe you should fish with the proper bait for the environment. A simple worm, with a shiny tail,and a weedless hook, and a nice jiggle pull techniche seems to work.

Even if you aren't catching anything, your'e not constantly losing your tackle.

Is Real Estate much different?? I think that most should get the point here. It take certian tools, skills, and techniques to go after business in this market. I would suggest that you look around and see what the old experienced guys are doing to catch thiers.

The right attitude, the right look, the right bait. Patience, Proffesionalism and integrity are extremely valuable in not only hooking a deal, but having the ability to bring it into the closingtable, or the boat. All the talk in the world doesn't compare with a full stringer at the end of the day.

In a later blog, I will fill a post with analagies concerning the relationships of deep sea fishing and the Real Estate business. All I will say now is you should not go after big fish without a big pole. Remember Robert Shaw in JAWS, when he realized what he was fishing for, he said" I'm thinkin maybe we should have brought a bigger boat".

Mike Norvell is an agent for Developers Capital Realty. They specialize in Commercial Projects, and Land Acquisiton Deals. Please contact Mike for assitance in raising cash for your distressed commercial projects.

In three days it will be exactly 22 years since I met my wife. A few weeks back we celebrated our 5th year of marriage with a weekend at the beach.

Twenty two years and three days ago I was a single dad with four sons. In the movies, this situation is easily remiedied by the perfect person coming along and after a few wonderful mishaps, a few hours later they are happily married an driving off into the sunset.

In reality, most single women hear that you, a single dad, have 4 kids and suddenly have other plans. Sock drawers need organizing, plans to enter the convent, stuff like that. I had resigned myself to a life of an occasional pity date and relying on my Mom, my Sister, and my Church for assitance in raising my kids.

For those of you who want a formula for changing the storyline, try what I did. Have a dentist appointment for a bad tooth on a Wed, and take the required anti biotics and go home to prepare for the next day when they will remove the tooth and hope the swelling will go down.

Then, get a phone call from a friend who needs a ride home from a local juke joint and will I come to get him home safely. After securing said children with Mom and Sis, go to the juke joint and attempt to retrieve said friend, who is now winning at pool and refuses to leave while winning.. Take a seat in the dark to avoid the large swollen side of your face from being so noticeable.

While sitting there in pain, you can't help but to notice the most beautiful women you have ever seen wearing very funny pants dancing with a girlfriend and a guy you know. Imagine the three of them come by your table, and try to imagine making a good  first impression while dealing with being totally awestruck and sounding like I am gargling marbles due to the swollen jaw.. Somehow I manage to give her a business card after telling her I would love to see her again after I get my dental work done.

SHe actually takes my call the next day after my surgery,and agrees to meet me at Pizza Hut. I had told her the night before that I have 4 kids, and her eyes did not roll back or glaze over, a good sign.

With a mouth full of packing I try to be charming when I should have been sleeping off the codine pain pills. I spent three hours in Pizza Hut without eating a bite.. I could not wait to see her again and I had no feeling on the left side of my face...Teresa would warn me when the side of my mouth was drooling...Romantic Huh...

Fast forward 17 years and we are finally married. We had agreed to make a life seperate, yet together for these years while we raised our families and dated...When the youngest went off to college, we set a date and got married, just like we had promised each other..

Then one day, my Wife tells me a normal check up did not go well, and she was scheduled for more testing. MY  heart nearly stops, but I try to not go crazy with worry......More testing, and more testing, and our doctor begins using the C word. Her calcuim levels were thru the roof, and the thyroid drugs began not regulating anymore. The C word will take over your life. It was not conclusive, but once it is shared, it cannot be taken back. Its like a weight on your chest that get heavier, but you have to pretend not to notice. That is not easy to do....

Months go by, with more testing, MRIs, Sonograms, Xrays, and still the results were being read as Possible Cancer of the thyriod, causing all these other issues. Finally, wanting another opinion, we went to a Thyroid specialist, and started over with the testing...

I remember this last Jan when we were given the news that it was not cancer, it was a rogue Parathyroid, just doing whatever it wanted and throwing my Wifes poor body for a loop. More testing, another kind of special MRI and more sonagrams and we meet with a wonderful surgeon. All the tests are inconclusive, but in her opinion there are lumps on the Thyroid and one of her four Parathyroids must be acting up, but they can't find it.

After our weekend in Daytona Beach celebrating our 5th year of being married, we  we quietly aware of the upcoming surgery the following Thursday. We had high hopes, but with all the tests not being able to find anything, we were apprehensive..  Finally, get get up early that day and meet just about our entire family at the hospital.

The surgeon tells us it should be about an hour. One hour goes by, then two, and then three..Finally, the surgeon meets me in the little room and says they found a nodule lump on the thyroid, an attatched lymhp gland sticking to the thyroid, and after all that, found the rogue Parathyroid on the other side of the neck, behind the thyroid. So, all three bad things were removed, and biopsied. No cancer, but a much longer surgery, and a five inch incision accross her neck from one side to the other.

Her blood testing taken immediately after the surgery showed a dramatic drop in the calcium PCHT levels, from 63 before the surgery down to 16 after. Between 15 and 20 is normal. I was able to bring her home the next day, and we spent a week together at home while she recovered. Its been three weeks now, and she is feeling better in many ways now that the thyroid is regulated.

Being the naturally beautiful person that she is, she is unreasonably worried about the scar across her neck. SHe is worried that I, and other  people are going to notice the scar. I am just so happy that she is doing better, and that the problem has been solved. Trust me, I am so happy she is better I do not see a scar. Its just so wonderful to not be scared anymore..What scar...

For our 22nd anniversary of being together, I cannot begin to express how much weight is off of our heads now that she is doing so much better.  The little voices in my head that had been worrying me so for the last few months have finally been quieted.

There is a joy in my life again that is hard to explain. The future is there again for the both of us together, and I finally feel like I can breathe again. This 22nd anniversary will be a special one, one that has our hopes and dreams back intact again for our future together.

I wish everyone would take another look at your loved ones and cherish your time together. I feel like we are being able to start over again. I wish the same for everyone, take the time to enjoy your family.

I guess its my turn to be unpopular again..But I do try so hard to be consistant. I found a featured post by    Teri Ellis, a vey nice & proffessional person, and read it with a sense of disbelief. Having worked in this field now since 1992, I too have seen many changes in the market  .file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Administrator/Desktop/The-New-Buy-and.htm

http://activerain.com/blogsview/548647/The-New-Buy-and

This market is not without its challenges, but the homeowners that bought in the last few years were encouraged by the entire proffession to jump into loans that were intentionally difficult to understand. They were encouraged to buy homes that everyone knew were just off the charts, but buy now and refinance later.

Who did not get the teaser loans brochures in the mail. By telemarketers. In fact the TV and other media were alive with the new social acceptance.

Everyone was doing it and getting rich. Who among us did not sell homes to OUR CLIENTS while turning our heads at the prices, the paper work, the entire industry promise of the increasing market will justify all decisions. You know it. I know it.

Now there is a trend toward those responcible home owners who cannot stand another increase. Interest only loans that have increased the rates to nearly double home payments are eating into your savings. The promise of refinance is now an ugly memory, its just a matter of time before there is nothing else to cut out of the budget to keep the payments up.

So the post discusses how terrible it is for these people in this situation to go find another, smaller, now much cheaper home and purchase it, and default on the original home. The home that was driving them closer every month into bankruptcy.

When I read this story it was hard for me not to personalize this post into the faces of a handful of couples that I know are doing this now. One is a family member, who can do this or face the obvious consequences. The post seems to have quite a following, and I really don't understand. Here is my response..Like it or not..

I came back to see these responces...I am surprised at this outrage....I guess its better for these people to just whittle thier savings down to nothing, go into foreclosure, and join the ranks of all those with ruined credit and still have no home...Have you tried to get someone in foreclosure into an apartment...Sorry...you didn't pass the credit checks.....

I take those who read back to a  fact...A recession is when someone down the street loses their home..

                                                       A Depression is when you lose yours..

If the mortgage fraud police go back a few years and start putting everyone in jail that participated in No Doc loans, then we as a society better kick all the murderers and robbers out to make room for the thousands and thousands of Realtors, mortage brokers, Bank Employees, Loan Officers, Appraisers, and all the rest of us that need to show up and turn ourselves in now. Lets just get off the high horses and go turn ourselves in..

Quit blogging, just go turn yourselves in for all the home loans and mortgage fraud that has already happened in your presence over the last few years. Just because you did not sign the docs yourself dosen't mean that you weren't involved..Just because everyone was doing it does not clear your concience.

How many here did not turn your head as YOUR CLIENTS signed these loan docs with the full intention of Re-financing before the new rates started kicking in...This situation is always about the family that has to make choices..The majority of these deals are interest only with increasing payments...They will NEVER PAY THE HOUSE OFF...

Like it or not, this is my opinion... One last Question...What would you do if it was your situation, your financial ruin that was coming up...

I am all done now

Lately I have had the pleasure  of meeting a lot of people. Some of these people were from Active Rain, and I am glad to be a part of such a great forum.

We can reach out and tough people that we would not normally be able to meet, I believe this increases our visibility beyond our wildest dreams.

I just did comment on a Realtors post who was asking for help on a  listing she has on a resort property.  She feels that she has had a large amount of time wasted by dealing with some here  that have responded. This gives me pause for thought.

When we put ourselves, and our needs out for all to see, are we asking all the right questions?? Its hard to put everything on a post, but I am putting together a package now to send to anyone who contacts me from now on, Active Rain or not. For as much as many of us treat this as a social network, there are many more who realize this is an opportunity to do great business.

So, if you want to chat, cool. I like to talk, when I have time.  If you want to know about the commercial deals I am working on, please don't be offended when I ask to send you a NCND package to protect both my interests and those of my clients. I have stated here, and will continue to state that I represent only my clients in a SIngle Agent form of Representation. In Fla, that is a relationship close to that of an attorney client priveldge.

So, fun is fun, and I love fun. I love social. I love making friends and would love to set up a Central Fl social meet and greet. Whoooppppeeee...

But.......................Lets remember that business is handled like business should be handled. There are opportunities for many of us to do great things here. My main goal  here is to do business, make money, take care of my familys financial future.

If anyone has any thoughts on this, then lets have it.  Me, I am just looking back over old post while it rains for yet another day here in Sunny Fl

Another week here in Central Fla means there is another ten or more great deals

that Developers Capital Realty has to offer. No kidding, deals are now coming to us in bundles of properties..Some are almost buy one get one free.

The housing crisis has put so much pressure on the builders, the lenders, and everyone in between. Banks are very reluctant to making the decision that is becoming inevitable. Strip Centers, Office buildings, and even medical complexes are feeling the ripple effect as the lenders have no choice but to start calling notes.

Many of these projects are very close to completion, are in lease out stages, with more time needed to survive this hopefully temporary downturn. Anyone who has ever been involved in new construction knows that a project that is coming out of the ground now had to be started years ago, and has gone thru possibly millions in fees, engineering studies and an unbelievable amount of red tape.

Developers Capital Realty, LLC is in contact daily with many of these troubled developers in an effort to find funding for many of these projects. These are not projects that will be found listed on websites  like Loopnet, and most people do not even know they are avialable for aquisition. Relatively small amounts of money are required to buy these projects on a JV basis now, the deals are actually unbelievable...

Please, this is not a call for Realtors to list these deals. This is a call for people who represent cash investors to purchase equity positions in projects and property without having to wait years for development. Large cash investors and their broker representatives will be of course protected.

In the arena of existing properties, the opportunities are nearly endless. Developers Capital Realty has submitted over 80 million in contract offers in the last 90 days on commercial deals that average 60 cents or less on the dollar. Most banks can't help now, we are using private investors and hedge funds to bid these super deals.

I have never been busier in my life. I can only say that this will be a time that people will look back on and wish they had not missed the boat. Again, all brokers and individuals are protected, lets go buy deals..

Contact Mike Norvell Sr at Developers Capital Realty, LLC          If you represent large cash investers, we can do business right now....  Next.....How many apt buildings would you like????

Now, where is this post going? I have to admit, my subject line in many of my emails

tends to show some age..

It normally looks something like this >>>  RE Re RE RE RE RE RE RE RE RE:  Christmas Party Directions...

I am guilty of replying to a reply and just doing it again and again...At some point we just have make a decision to break the chain and start a new thread. But, what do we put in the subject line? Its basically a potentially publically visalble part of the email, so its not the place to go into very personal, confidential stuff.

So, recently when I was riding down the road running thru old emails on my Blackberry, I noticed the emails I tended to look at first had a quick tag line in the subject area....I suddenly wanted to try my new theory on my wife, who works for a law firm that specializes in Real Estate. She is a very busy person, even in this market..So getting her attention during the day is not always the easiest thing to do.

So I started my email with the CHina for a dollar a day, and then just said,,,I love love you still, love me...Gottcha! 

The responce was almost immediate...(Love those Blackberrys!) and she replied " I love you too too! China??"

I promise to be more specific in my email subject line..and more truthful too.

Have a great day and keep on looking for great deals...