Real Deal REInvestor Network

What is the situation?  To say it shortly, in this economy and market, many prospective home buyers have left the market and they along with others who have faced an unfortunate foreclosure may be looking for properties to rent until they can get back on their feet.

Being a landlord can be profitable, especially if you are in a resort area or your properties are located near a college or a university.    It can be a chancy proposition though if you are not educated in rental property ownership or if your personality does not fit with what a landlord has to face and do!  Recently there was a survey and it found the 44% of RPO’s (rental property owners) lost money on their investments.

Yet if done right the profits, tax advantages and building of equity can allay any problems you have being a RPO.

What about NOW?

It’s true that “if they can’t afford to buy, they may be able to afford to rent”.   This means you need to know your market before you jump into the RPO business.  Check out the local rental ads, how many are there? What sort of rents are they asking for, and in what areas? Gauge for yourself how competitive the market for Rental Properties is currently.  Is there a Rental Property Owner’s association in your area? Might be a good idea to check it out, as they keep track of dead beat tenants who try to “play” the eviction game and they can also be a source of good information about the local market for rentals.

Thus, if the market is inundated with Rentals, it may not be wise to enter the game yet.

Plan to Make a profit, not just keep EVEN!

When searching for properties whether foreclosures or owned outright, remember the rule that you begin making your profit by BUYING RIGHT in the first place.  If you want to make money forget the rule I heard when first starting to rent properties.  The other Real Estate people who invested back 10-15 years ago figured that 1% of you purchase price keeps you even.   Yet, you don’t want to be just even, but you want to get ahead for profits to come in to you.

Estimate not only the cost of your loan, (unless you are buying out right) but also include maintenance (including immediate repairs needed) utilities, clean up, insurance, property taxes, etc.  Then you will have an estimate of monthly and yearly costs of your investment.  Look to one of my other pages to help you get a feel for what to look for and how to calculate expenses.

What type of Rental Property do you want?

Single Family Homes- Most RPO’s will tell you that SFH’s are their first priority, why? Because the tenant will usually pay all the utilities and probably be required to cut the grass, shovel snow, and other simple maintenance.  More renters will desire single family homes in that they get the privacy that owning a detached home gives them.  Then if you want to sell, SFH’s are the easiest to market.  Stick to 3 bedroom homes, followed by 2 Bedroom homes, and NEVER BUY one bedroom units.

DUPLEXES or 2-FAMILIES- priority here will be single level buildings, then 2 story residences.  Then the priority goes to bedrooms, 2-3 bedrooms are the most desired.  They also retain tenants whose families may grow a bit during their tenancy.   One bedroom apartments have the highest turnover of tenants and while not to be completely avoided like 1 bedroom homes, they would be at the bottom of the list.  Along with this note residences that have SEPARATE utilities, meaning that while you may have to pay for water and sewer, (as these usually are not separate), you can have tenants be responsible for gas, electric, trash, etc.

MULTI-UNIT Buildings- Some RPO’s will swear by these, but your complications can be quadrupled or more, and when it comes to selling, if you desire to, this sort of building will be the hardest to market and sell.

Author

Jon Porrey

Realtor/Greenridge Realty, Inc.  Grand Rapids Mi 49525

www.how-to-buy-sell-foreclosures.com/landlord.html

 

My Experience At My First HIS Real Estate Live Event

 

Recently, I attended a live HIS Real Estate investor seminar in downtown LA near their office located there. Originally, the event was going to be held at the office, but because there was such an interest, the event had to be moved to a larger venue nearby. Now what I am about to share may be a surprise to many who read this, but here goes.

 

I have been to a fair amount of events and seminars over the past few years, so I have a bit of experience in this department. And I know the routine now; speaker comes up, shares some info, entices and excites you, then bingo-bango, if you want more info rush to the back of the room, but hurry cause there is only a limited number of packages at this price. You know what I'm talking about right? Or haven't you had the pleasure of experiencing this yet? I told you I was experienced in this department!

 

Well, this was the first major difference at this event. Nothing for sale. Say what? It must not have been a real live event then you say. But you'd be wrong. Like advertised, this was a 2-day learning experience with not one mention of an item for sale. Well, perhaps once, jokingly, just to be sure people were paying attention and just in case they were feeling slighted since it was later in the afternoon and nothing had been offered for sale yet. I think I saw a couple people getting ready to run to the back out of habit from past seminars.

 

Seriously though, the team from HIS Real Estate delivered on their promise and uncovered details on their fix-n-flip residential model currently in this area, their commercial investor package, and how to do joint venture, partnership deals and raise private money. And the information provided covered many techniques and a lot of information you could take with you and implement if that was your desire. In addition, there was a wealth of information on how you or someone you may know, could work with HIS Real Estate, their partners, their power-team, and utilize all their experience to get started or expand your business without all the risks associated with doing this all on your own. Plus, it presents you with the advantage of getting into multiple deals quickly and into the world of commercial investing, which can be a daunting task on your own if you are not highly motivated, knowledgeable in this area of investing, and have the resources necessary to do it on your own.

 

On top of that, examples were shown and discussed of recently completed and live deals in the pipeline currently, not projects from years ago, thus demonstrating their ability to get it done in today's economic climate and provide a win-win scenario for their investor clients. While, Rick Melero did the bulk of the presentation, there were guest speakers from the fix-n-flip residential sector and a local attorney that shared information on how to work with private investors. There were various question and answer segments throughout the two days and all questions were answered as the group present was quite inquisitive. But then this is what the ultimate live seminar should be like. A ton of information presented with a quarter ton of follow-up questions to clarify what the attendees just heard. All done in a fashionable manner that was a win-win for everybody in attendance.

 

I believe everybody had a great time, learned a lot, and hopefully left with some new ideas for their business and perhaps some will be doing business with HIS Real Estate in the near future if not immediately.

 

As for me, since I have been associated with HIS Real Estate with the ongoing MMM Challenge, it really brought the pieces of the puzzle together and cemented my relationship with the company. There is nothing like a live event and networking with like minded professionals that can pull together a team and get your mind in the right place. Personally, I really enjoyed being a part of this live event, doing my part to help bring it together, and meeting and networking with the attendees. Plus, I was able to spend some quality time with many of my teammates in the Challenge, as well as, Adrian and Luis (Part of the LA Business Team), Director Sam Ally, and the man of the hour, Mr. Rick Melero. It is too bad the time went so fast, but I am already looking forward to the next live event coming up this fall in Orlando.

 

It would be great to see 'YOU' there in Orlando as well. It will be another great event with a boat load of information and nothing for 'sale', I promise. The scheduled dates are October 22nd & 23rd and you can register now for free if you go to: Live 2-day Investor Seminar or if you would like to get more information prior to signing up, get on one of the weekly Investor Webinars leading up to the event. But do it now; time flies and it will be here before you know it. If you need a flight – the sooner the better, plus these events normally get filled and you don't want to miss out, believe me. OK then, don't Mickey Mouse around, get signed up now and see you in Orlando in a few weeks.

Let me share with you a few networking strategies of A player Entrepreneurs.

Look and Dress the Part

You don't need to dress formally, wear a tuxedo, or jet off to Milan for the latest fashions.  But…when in doubt, dress up – you can always dress down.  Some people wear a suit, and that’s cool…if you find you’re over dressed, you can always take off the tie.  In fact, though, business casual is usually no problem. We are after all, entrepreneurs and sometimes we “work” wearing our underwear! You can dress outrageous if that’s part of your “stand out” strategy…just don't let your appearance or actions be a hindrance to people seeing the real you and what you have to offer. Sharply-dressed, well-groomed and with excellent hygiene are extremely important for your success.

Find Your Deal-Making Style and Stick To It

Don't try to be someone you're not. There are different negotiation and JV making styles. Find yours by trial and error, but use it!

Just Do It!

“I only hear and I forget. I see and I may remember.  But I do and I understand.”

Thomas Edison’s quote is an eloquent and simple manner of expressing a simple fact, a fact that high achievers have always known: The best way to grasp information is to apply it.

There’s no secret, we can definitely learn by hearing, reading, watching, seeing, and analyzing…but when it comes to getting results with joint ventures you simply cannot learn better than to learn by DOING.

You learn best by doing. When you network with the JV mindset, you are coming to do joint ventures. Do it!

Smile

People want to network and JV with winners. Winners smile. Smile and get more JVs. Simple enough said for you?

Look for Opportunities to Triangulate

Learn to triangulate the deal if necessary. If you don’t have what they want or need, who does that you know? What do THEY want? Do you have it? Does the first person you’re negotiating with have it? Triangulate and watch your JV possibilities multiply.

Think People Not just Profit

Solve people’s problems and you’ll get paid. That's the best networking and joint venture tactic of all. Help others!

Never forget that long term internet marketing success— and business success…and for that matter LIFE success— is based on the relationships you establish.

The relationship is more important than the deal.

Remember that, and you're ahead of the pack!

Follow Up, Follow Up, Follow Up!

If you say you’ll call/email/respond at a certain time, do it. Become known as a businessperson whose word is their bond and you'll never lack for JV opportunities.

Always follow-up. Circumstances change. Your rejected offer of today could look great in three months. Follow up. Follow up. Follow up!

Don't Just Socialize…Connect!

Be professional always, upbeat and smiling at all times, courteous and accommodating, and seek to connect with your new relationships— not just talk. Ask questions. Ask questions. Ask questions. Listen. Build rapport. Seek not just to chat, but strive to connect with your potential JV partners on a deeper level than surface conversation and you will make excellent progress towards cementing a potential joint venture with that person.

Make a Great First Impression

Use the “halo effect” to your advantage. People see us subconsciously through the lens of our first impression we made on them. Don't let this be sloppy, rude, arrogant, incompetent or another negative.

Invoke the Law of Reciprocity.

Give and then receive later. Give, give, and give some more and you will always receive (and not even always directly back from those you gave to!).

This is a universal principle and will work for you WITHOUT FAIL if you apply it.

An interesting question was posed to me recently by a friend & self-proclaimed anti-guru, let’s call him Cody.  What is the best real estate investing educational product?

 As a veteran of boot camps, webinars, and one who has truly spent tens of thousands (my wife calls all the pretty leather binders etc in my book case my "wall of shame") one thing I can truly say is whatever program lights a fire under your rear to take action is viable. I have learned valuable nuggets from many, but most importantly, that it is truly a process. One that starts w/mind set, which often times can take a great while for a great many of us. It is also important to note that you must continue to educate yourself & stay in the conversation. Each so called guru typically has several things in common, foremost is they are action takers, which is only rivaled by the size of their respective libraries. They are voracious readers, (or those more technically inclined mp3, ipod , & their vehicles become mobile universities) which I was not until stopping to realize common traits of the successful. Ultimately understanding that it is not an overnight process (regardless of your success in other industries) & expecting it to be would be nothing short of a recipe for failure & the claim that whatever program you were following didn’t work, or was a scam. I have learned a great deal from a great many. I have learned to surround myself w/like minded & serious pro's & eliminate the negative nellies from my circle (yes even/especially family/friends). As for the best, it's all relative to the individual.

Personally there are many that have provided knowledge, value & put me on path to find the coveted "yellow brick road" or Definitive Purpose in the words of Dr. Napoleon Hill; even though I achieved what many would consider substantial success prior. A lesson learned early on in this process went a long way...Don't ask about cost, conduct your diligence & learn what it will pay you. $20, $30K is a great deal of money to most, yet when you can complete just 1 transaction & get it back & more, especially now during the greatest RE fire sale in our history, maybe it's not really that much hmmm?

Ultimately, the afore mentioned mentors have led me to finding my passion. It's not about the money, it's about the positive impact I have on the lives of others (yet another lesson learned). Every mentor would recite those same words, & many followers would refute same simply stating it's easy for them to say because they've got money. Yes it is difficult to dream about tomorrow when you can't eat today; but then again, that is the true test isn’t it? What are you willing to settle for & what are you willing to do to change your circumstances? We don't plan to fail, yet most simply fail to plan. For a guy who used to handle everything by the seat of his pants, that may very well have been the biggest lesson learned.  To settle for less is simply not an option for me.  What about you?

 

Hey everyone. Figured I would post a quick blog just to say hello to my R.E.N family! I’m back..

Well where did you go? After a long, much deserved 2 month hiatus I decided to re-develop my connection with others here on the network. To be honest, those who may remember me from this last MMM Challenge, already knew that even with my late line start and novice skill set within Real Estate that I may still be that firecracker to look out for. Actually I choose to take the time to further educate myself on this, which sometimes can seem evasive but also self-rewarding business. I needed to find a way to get focused and start learning my trade as any apprentice who didn’t get chosen this go around. Preparedness is yet another path to Success.  

I delved back to my days in that small four walls, three roommate, but full of life dorm room. Here with your life in front of you what will be your next move? What discipline, or the lack there of, will you act upon to forward ride you rollercoaster of expectations. Ways in which you are almost mandated to hold up your end of the bargain- someone gave me a chance, I landed a job with a Realtor Office as a Realtor Assistant and took off running. I loved everything about it, the search and rescue for a property or land, knowing every nook n cranny about the home, becoming skilled in every sq. inch in terms of value and the purse strings. And not to mention the connection with people and helping them find/finance/and now partial own their one and only dream home! Ahhh what an extraordinary accomplishment. But wait... Why was I still taking the bus and my "mentor" who I have to say was pretty good, especially in the way she explained things- I just got it- why was she pimping me out and enjoying her successes, speeding out of the company parking lot while I waited for the 559 to arrive in the next 30 mins with my umbrella and galoshes.

There's Me, You and the rest of the Herd. If I allow myself to involuntarily loose myself and who I am, then there is no longer me, there is only you. If you allow yourself to be encompassed with someone else's life, meaning they make all the decisions for you and you just follow along, then there is no longer Me, or You just the rest of the Herd.

Flash Mob Dance to 2006 and several life experiences later I choose to get into a different aspect of Real Estate. Luckily I was able to use my college education, so while working for an Architecture Firm I decided somehow there had to be more to the rat race, or could I get out at all. Of course, not being from Royal blood - at least none that I can prove as of yet- the rest of use have to work hard for what we want/have. A phrase we have all heard several time before, and one I believed in. So I joined a friend who was already working for a mortgage-lending firm. This is when the craze was going down and they were giving anyone, everyone and they momma a house. We had an awesome team based out of San Diego and quickly realized I much enjoyed the lifestyle we were building, not necessarily seeing the demise soon to come. When all else failed and the company filed bankruptcy, shut down and left town owing more than any one of use could have imagined, we knew we had to start from scratch n build again, but HOW? Many had to move back with their parents or other relatives; others struggled to keep their heads afloat with mortgage payments of their own, car note, and college loans to pay back. Keeping the wife and kids from knowing anything had changed was a challenge in itself. Jeff a colleague of mine that I later grew close to and his family, practiced his devious deed of pulling from his 401K, shareholder investments, other retirement funds he had set to the side, and even from his daughters college funds for over two years. The epitome of robbing Peter to pay Paul- except Jeff was Peter! While most scrambled to find another way, many had no other way and the unemployment line would do no good. I too was one that had to stay with relatives until something panned out.

A lot has come about since then. I was able to take my own work experiences and use to that my advantage. Working from my own home office I was able to afford those small business owners a solid support team and savings on normally large over-head costs of employees. Our working job market is timely changing and with more and more of the job duties being outsourced to other countries, American's are looking for other alternatives to just making it. I have been fortunate enough to be able to do what I enjoy and make some decent revenue from. I recently added a Wellness Program to my business services line-up, after being asked by several of my clients to offer a more continuous program along with their treatments we have specialized for them. See I also run and operate a Private Holistic Therapy Co. I have been treating those clients of mine for over 5 yrs. now, which is pretty much on autopilot and have been a bit reluctant to take it to the public. I have been keeping my clients just to minimum because I still want to have a life and nurture other aspects of myself as well. It can be sometimes overwhelming dealing with minor league sport teams, doctors offices, hospitals- dealing with insurance etc. After some tense words from one of my favorite members (who I meet through a demonstration I had @ the local birthing centers) she demanded that I "get with it and make it available to everyone!" So I said why not. That is another project in itself but I am excited about the possibilities.

Recently I have been taking classes, attending seminars- of course some better than the rest, a host of webinars and truly networking with those that have helped further my knowledge of the industry. With so many in my corner it’s nice to have the help and dedication from others in my ventures. Because of all the great support I have received over the past 6-9 months it is really amazing. So I thought back to The Real Deal Community and even those relationships I managed to develop in the short time since I was first introduced to the group(s) here. Many of these friendships and working relationships have come to be more than I could have ever asked for- those of you know who I am talking about- so Thank You Thank You Thank You! Those that I have yet to become acquainted with I am sure I will in due time. I am looking to showcase more here on the community and staying in touch with those that can help me. The whole point is to create a successful team, not just in bringing in the numbers, but building a positive, healthy work ship. I’m in the midst of coming to a close on my first deal, which I hope to see the fruits of my labor by the end of this month. Exciting stuff! 

With that said I am Back! Ready to learn and get my feet wet!
Again to all those that I have talked with in the past I look forwarded to connecting with you in the very near future. For those that I have yet to speak with- don’t be afraid to connect. I don’t bite.. Unless provoked. Lol

Until next read,
Mona

I left off of Part 1 by stating that the banks are involved in not only knowingly defruading you in order to steal your money and property, they are also committing insurance fraud on the grandest scale, all of this allegedly. Of course everyone in this country is innocent until proven guilty, right? So, when there is a default, who is really the injured party? If anyone, it's the insurance companies.

There is really a lot to this whole thing, more than we can actually fit into the confines of a blog. My intention is to raise some points to give you food for thought, and hopefully you will have direction to investigate and come to your own conclusions. What I have learned about all of this has come from more than 2 years of tracking the papertrail of my own notes, and interviewing countless experts in banking, including present and former banking officials, public officials, and other researchers. And, reading many thousands of pages of documents; banking guidelines, Federal Reserve guidelines, MERS rules, regs and guidelines, UCC and USC codes and laws, the US Constitution, Federal, State, and local laws and statutes, Acts of Congress (HJR's) and more. I am also currently in the process of filing criminal charges (and civil litigation) regarding bank fraud and extortion against the banks, trustees, (and MERS) with the specific evidence that I have uncovered on my own mortgage transactions. The complaints will be filed with my state's Attorney General's office, the US District Attorney's office, and the FBI. 

I want to touch on a couple more issues with this, and if you have questions feel free to message me and I can pass along more info. There's a huge trend of note buying going on right now. I know several gurus who are selling programs to teach investors how to go to the banks asset mangers and purchase their non-performing "notes". If 95+% of the notes that were created since about 2005 are basically destroyed or no longer can be recovered, what are investors getting when they buy the so-called "note" from the bank? They are only getting a simple release of lien, same with short sales, and trustee sales. The problem is the party that is listed as the "lender" (servicer) does not have the right nor the authority to issue such a release. They get away with it because no one questions them. Most judges and attorneys have absolutely no clue about how this transaction works, if you've read Part 1 of this blog and up to this point, you are now more informed than most judges and attorneys! Loan mods don't work; if you know anything about the success rate of loan mods, you know that they go right back into default shortly after they are completed. Again, the lender/servicer has absolutely NO RIGHT to modify a loan, all of that is governed in the prospectus and pooling agreement of the trust. They are blatantly lying to you (9 times out of 10) that your loan can be modified.

Here are some resources with great free information for you to follow up on, if you are in forclosure or you know someone who is about to lose their home, please have a look at these and share them with others. I am not an affilite of any of these sites, I make no money to share these with you and I am also not offering any legal advice what so ever; everyone should always seek competant legal help from an attorney. With the disclaimer out of the way, have a look at these sites, I recommend you download any of the ebooks that are offered for free:
www.consumerdefenseprograms.com (listen to the audio)
www.freeandclearin90.com
www.showmetheloan.net
www.securedassetsgroup.com
www.yourremedyisinthelaw.com

We hear so much about how the banks in their haste to make the big money and land grab, falsified and forged documents. The use of so-called "robo-signers", who are people that do not really exist and whose names pop up all over various documents, for instance; the same name might show up as a Vice President of one company, but then (sometimes within the same chain of title) pop up again as an officer of another company. This, in and of itself is fraud. What does that mean, well it means a breach of contract, and it carries a criminal penalty as well... theoretically. A contract that has been breached due to fraud is null and void. What does that mean? Well, it's complicated to say the least.

How is the fraud being dealt with? The Attorney Generals of all fifty states have given big notice to the citizens of this fine country that they will look into the situation, and that the guilty parties will be held accountable for their actions. Their plan is to allow for a correction of the deficiencies in the chain of title, and to reach some type of settlement with the banks to allow troubled mortgages to be modified. You know, it's really hard for me to say all of this with a straight face. All of this is more or less being chalked up to a clerical error.

Now, for the "Beyond" part that I so dramatically titled this post. Indeed it is dramatic, and I hope you will listen up. All of the events of the past couple of years were no accident. High default was created by design, in order to take your property and your money, so far it has been a huge success for the bank. The robo-signing thing was just sloppiness on their behalf and a bit of a ploy to keep everyone distracted from the bigger fraud. The banks began re-constructing the transaction, so that the mortgage note itself was equal to it's face value as money, based upon your signature and credit. Essentially, the note is what funds the deal, the bank not only risks nothing, they are paid in full within a very short period following the closing of the transaction. The receipt of the face value of the note goes onto their books as a liabilty, and indeed, they claim it as a debt owed to you when they file their taxes. Meaning that it is recognised as an asset that you created, that they are borrowing to use. None of this was disclosed to you, the alleged "borrower".

It gets better. When the originating bank sells the note, which actually tracks through a very complex path, it eventually ends up deposited into a pooling trust. At that time, it is converted from a negotiable instrument, into a stock certificate or equivalent. This is called securitization. Once this type of securitization takes place, the note ceases to be tied to the property, because it has now been forever severed from the deed of trust or mortgage. (This is one way that the bank creates money, read "Modern Money Mechanics, which is the guideline pamphlet published by the Federal Reserve). The trust which contains your note is ruled by a lengthy set of documents called the 424B-5 Prospectus, within that set of docs is a sub set of docs called the Pooling and Servicing Agreement (PSA). This is what the bank never wants you to see, because this Prospectus is filed with the SEC, it can only be filed if the note has been converted, which makes it cease to be attached to the property. The note can NEVER be converted back, this is a permanent change, and within a short time after the note is deposited into the trust, it becomes a permanent fixture of that trust, it can NEVER be removed. The trust itself can never own property, it's against the rules.

When you make a payment, you have a statement that shows how much principle and interest you are allegedly paying. However, when the paper trial of your payment is followed, all of the money is being dispersed partially to the Servicer (your so-called "lender") partially in other fees and partially to the trust itself. The only accounting for your payments is one that is made up for purposes of sending you a statement, it's theoretical, there is no actual accounting that shows a "loan" being paid down. All of this is major fraud, never disclosed to you the borrower, and millions of dollars were made by the bank and investors because your signature appears at the bottom of the note, not because the note has anything to do with the property. In the case of default, everybody is insured, the servicer and the trust, so everyone is paid, then, the property is taken back, (illegally, because only a creditor or holder in due course of the negotiable instrument, ie; the note can foreclose) and the property is sold. To recap, they make money from you on payments, they make money from selling it many times to investors and fractional banking, they collect insurance, and they take over the property and sell it, that looks like quadruple dipping to me! At the very least it's insurance fraud, how are they able to collect insurance money, AND take the property too to resell, all of that money is more icing on the cake.

Stay tuned for more when Part 2 of this post comes out in a couple of days.

When I was in High School taking a fire fighting vocational class one of my favorite teachers, Retired Captain Charles Newcomb, read us a poem that he lived by. A lot of people mistakenly think the title is "The Man in the Mirror", but it is actually called "The Guy in the Glass". It is something we can all think about. I'm sorry ladies, but the value is for us all, not just the guys like the title says.

                 When you get all you want and you struggle for pelf,

and the world makes you king for a day,

then go to the mirror and look at yourself

and see what that man has to say.

For it isn't your mother, your father or wife

whose judgment upon you must pass,

but the man, whose verdict counts most in your life

is the one staring back from the glass.

He's the fellow to please,

never mind all the rest.

For he's with you right to the end,

and you've passed your most difficult test

if the man in the glass is your friend.

You may be like Jack Horner and "chisel" a plum,

And think you're a wonderful guy,

But the man in the glass says you're only a bum

If you can't look him straight in the eye.

You can fool the whole world,

down the highway of years,

and take pats on the back as you pass.

But your final reward will be heartache and tears

if you've cheated the man in the glass.

As I was growing up, my parents would take me to the local VA to meet the older veterans who no longer had families for one reason or another. We would bring groups of kids, or women bowlers to spend time with them bowling. They enjoyed knowing someone cared enough to be there. Especially the women that they would flirt with. We would all laugh as it was as much fun for us as it was for them!

The older I got, the more I notice how many veterans were living on the streets. It seemed to me they had done their job protecting our great country and yet they seemed to be discarded as some of the people no longer wanted to be around them. It definitely isn't everyone, but even the ones who weren't turning their heads to avoid seeing these homeless heros haven't done enough to stop this from happening. It seems with all the wars, conflicts or whatever else our politicians call them as they constantly developed, they were sent to do battle. That seems to be happening a lot over the years, so the problem keeps getting worse!

The program I have been researching with the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) locally is for a non profit organization that would be started in 1 location to get it started and get the model running and working. I planned on combining it with other working programs to give all the existing programs help to give the veterans the best program possible. I realize tat I don't have the knowledge to make this happen by myself, but I figure I can network and recruit the people to fill the  holes I have in making this happen that way.

If we work with the VA it should be possible to setup 1 location per state and then  using the transportation the VA has in place, we can shuttle the homeless veterans to a nearby location to be picked up and taken to the program's facility. This is just the start, as it will allow the veterans to eat, get medical attention as required and start job training. Getting them off the street is just the first step. If they can't be readied to go back as a functioning member of society, they will be back on the streets.

I hope this will help others get a glimpse of what I'm talking about. I urge anyone with expertise or desire to learn and assist in this program to contact me so we can talk in more detail. This is a good way to thank out homeless heros. They were there for us and now it is long overdue for us to take care of them!

Thank you for taking the time to read this! I know I'm not the only one working toward this type of program, so let's make them happen and soon! I will share with you the ONE BIG FEAR I have about this program. What worries me most is getting the program going and taking in the homeless veterans only to find I have done something (probably paperwork) wrong and the veterans get tossed back on the streets knowing I let them down! I definitely need help getting passed that FEAR!!!

Thanks again and Part 2 will be posted in a week or so. If you are in a hurry to know more, just contact me and we can talk about it.
Bill