Doug Pretorius (ON) 9 Report post Posted March 15, 2004 Has anyone ever done an L/P consultation entirely by email? That includes everything from the initial contact right through to sending the sample contracts as attachments. I guess the only thing that couldn't be done by email is exchanging the signed consultation agreement. I've heard of investors buying properties entirely by email and fax. In fact, one woman I spoke to did her first few deals without ever speaking to the owners Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gary (MO) 0 Report post Posted March 15, 2004 Doug,It sure sounds possible. If it were me, I would consider completing your clients contracts for them and then converting them to a pdf format and then email them to them to sign. That would make it harder for them to re-use the contracts like they would be if you sent them to them in a Word doc format. I'm also thinking that it's possible to "sign" a document electronically now over the internet...something worth looking into. Another thought for you: you could give your client's a password access to a section of your web site and allow them to simply download their contracts once you email them that they are ready (along with their password). This would get them familiar with your web site address and - who knows - make them aware of the "other" services you offer without you having to sell them. Gary Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Doug Pretorius (ON) 9 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Gary, you make some good points. Personally I wouldn't worry about them reusing the contracts. If they want to do another deal on their own, that doesn't bother me. How many people would even bother anyway? There are a couple of problems with digital signatures from what I can gather. 1) Most courts don't recognize them yet. 2) The key used on the signature usually expires after 1 year. To get around that you'd have to register the document with a time-stamp service. I would think that all of this would be more trouble and possibly more expense than having your client sign the contract and fax it back to you, you then sign it and mail them a copy. Filling out the contracts and having them downloaded or emailed as PDFs is a good idea. The more faxes you can eliminate the better as far as I'm concerned. After a few it ends up unreadable. The thing I like about email consulting is that you can do it anywhere from anywhere. You might not make as much as a CA, but there's also less work and lower cost. Much of your "consultation" can be in the form of a ready-made step-by-step manual which will be reused for each consultation. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Adam King (MI) 1 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Doug,I do consulting through the email all the time. And I usually make just as much as a CA. The phone is the number one greatest tool in this business and that other tool you're talking about, where you can buy a house without ever talking to the seller, is called a Realtor. Regards,Adam Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Doug Pretorius (ON) 9 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Adam, smart ass In this particular case she dealt directly with the sellers via email and fax only. Does the seller pay you "just as much as a CA" upfront, or out of the option fee? If the latter, how have you written that into your contract, and how do you protect yourself? (ensuring that you actually get paid) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Adam King (MI) 1 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Doug,LOLI act (And put it in my consulting agreement) as an escrow agent. All the money comes to me first and then I distribute it after the closing. (Funny story here too about how I was digging in my trash this morning for my TN deal's $500 deposit in the form of a Money Order. Be careful where you leave things when there's an 18 month old walking around with opposable thumbs) And yes, I get paid from the option fee unless I'm simply "teaching" the seller how to LO. Then I take Michael's advice and get paid up front! I don't think I could do one strictly through email. That doesn't sound realistic to me. I have to have some control. Hey, how do even you know if I'm a normal guy, or a guy that goes around with a bad mullet hair cut and a superman costume? You don't! :ph34r: Regards,AdamPS Well, I'm sure "you" do.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Doug Pretorius (ON) 9 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Yeah I know all about you and your rat tail How exactly does acting as an escrow agent help you? Doesn't that make you liable to ensure that the funds are completely accounted for and properly disbursed? If so, how does that leave you with less liability than a CA assignment? As you mentioned, you switched the TN deal specifically/partially to limit liability. Is there some piece of the puzzle I'm missing here, or are you just doing things the most difficult way you can imagine, as usual? LMAO! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tgaspard 0 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Okay - what's a TN deal? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Adam King (MI) 1 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Doug,How exactly does acting as an escrow agent help you? Doesn't that make you liable to ensure that the funds are completely accounted for and properly disbursed? Liability? No, it gives me CONTROL of the money. ALL checks are written out to my company. If so, how does that leave you with less liability than a CA assignment? There is NO liability as a consultant. When I do a CA, there is a still some liability because my name is on a contract or two. My name is on NOTHING with a consulting deal except for the consulting agreement, which says I am only offering opinions etc. The buyer has full disclosure of this. I switched the TN (Tennessee) deal to a consulting agreement because the seller didn't pay the water bill and it was shut off. I don't want something to happen during the year and have it come back to me. Especially out of state. I now do 90% of my out of state deals as a consultant.Hope that clears things up a little,Adam Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Doug Pretorius (ON) 9 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Adam, yeah that's much clearer, thanks. Could you describe how you go about educating your consultee's on how to LP their properties? Do you use some kind of written manual, or do you do it all by phone/email? Also what marketing do you recommend they do? I gotta say, I like the thought of making the same as a CA, without doing any of the marketing or showing myself Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Adam King (MI) 1 Report post Posted March 16, 2004 Doug, Could you describe how you go about educating your consultee's on how to LP their properties? Do you use some kind of written manual, or do you do it all by phone/email? Also what marketing do you recommend they do? There's no magic. I used to have a bunch of ebooks, brochures etc, but no one reads it. I simply give them the minimum basics and get it set up. I make it as easy as possible, or there's no deal. I had one NAILED last night. The guy was totally cool with the fee and ready to sign the agreement. He was thanking me for coming along and giving him the best opportunity yet. But once he realized it would be him showing the house, he got all weird. Uh...I have to talk to my wife...What?Did what I could to save the deal. We'll just have to see.Regards,Adam Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Doug Pretorius (ON) 9 Report post Posted March 17, 2004 Adam, I only just now clued in to what you meant by acting as an escrow agent. I was thinking about the end sale. But you were talking about just the LP, right? LOL, I think my mullet got in the way Have you ever used a rental agent to show a property for you? An investor in Australia who does deals anywhere from 2 to 15 hours drive away, suggested that. Maybe you could salvage that deal by having a local agent do the showing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
