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January 29, 2007
More Money Than Brains?
We know you don't have to have been a genius to have made a lot of money in the real estate market over the past decade but c'mon...Either that or there's little correlation between spelling prowess and investing acumen.
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Comments
Who cares if you are the spelling bee champ or not!! All that matters is the stack of y-o-u-r greenbacks.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 9:54 AM
I live in Victorian Flatbush and we get letters like this left on our porch about once a month. They always make me laugh. Who are these people?
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 9:56 AM
Yep, Michael has been by my house too....
Posted by: anon Fort Greener at January 29, 2007 9:59 AM
There is clearly no correlation - ever read some of those ads posted by real estate agents? I've seen more misspellings in those than I can count.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:06 AM
Get these all the time in Bed Stuy. Indeed, who is this person?
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:13 AM
i get these " flyers " aswell . I once called one and asked them what they would give me for a 4 story brownstone .Without looking he said 400k cash .Fucking crooks
Posted by: eletricgreek at January 29, 2007 10:14 AM
I got my 4th one from Michael just last week in Bed-Stuy
He doesn't even answer his phone!
Posted by: NewStoner at January 29, 2007 10:22 AM
I personally think that it's a great idea.
Many people are more open to unofficial marketing letter.
As some of you know in marketing you should think out of the box.
That's a great example of it.
I assume that the fact they do that all the time means that it proves itself.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:22 AM
my mother sold the house she lived in for 30 years to a woman who left a letter saying that she'd always loved the house and if mom ever felt like selling, etc etc. mom thought about it and decided she did want to scale down and did want to sell it to someone who loved it as much as she did, etc etc. the key point was that she got her/market price. otherwise, I don't see the problem
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:23 AM
i suppose it's possible that the forces behind these flyers are intentionally 'dumbing dumb' the language to increase their sense of authenticity. but it's pretty clear you don't need to be in Mensa to sell houses. i can't wait until agents are totally obsolete.
Posted by: Jimmy Legs at January 29, 2007 10:24 AM
not agents . investors
Posted by: eletricgreek at January 29, 2007 10:25 AM
I got one of the exact same ones at my house last week. The company who blankets much of brownstone Brooklyn with these fliers is trying to use a down-home approach to get people to sell their homes. They are betting that it is much more palatable for a prospective home seller to sell to an individual with a hand written note rather than a big agency that sends around slick glossy postcards like those recently sent by Corcoran and Brown Harris Stevens.
The language is also important to the note, because their offer of "all cash" seems to offer an easier escape than a broker to a homeoner who is in dire straights or in forclosure.
The truth of these fliers is that they are sent by some of the worst sharks in the real estate business. Their "all cash" offer means that if they can get your property for 50-60% of its market value, they will pay you all cash. In most instances, all it means is that they will pay a very small deposit on an exceptional deal to them, and then flip the contract.
Posted by: Shahn Andersen at January 29, 2007 10:26 AM
10:22...
Michael? Is that You???
Posted by: Anon at January 29, 2007 10:30 AM
This isn't anything new though . Most of the time the people buying the homes in this manner sell the contract to there friend's . There friend's in return fix the homes up ( as cheap as possible ) then flip em for as much as double the price
Posted by: eletricgreek at January 29, 2007 10:33 AM
It's a numbers game with these guys. They dump 20-30,000 of these notes on people's doorsteps or doors and hope 100 people call them, and they can purchase 1 house. It probably still works.
Posted by: jbjb at January 29, 2007 10:42 AM
I live in Long Island and I bought a home around the block from me by just speaking face to face with the owner. I let him know my interest and offered all cash. We closed within the month and take it from me, it was the EASIEST transfer I have ever dealt with. Hey guys, it cant hurt?!
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:42 AM
This is clearly a ruse. There is no Michael, it is just a shark looking to make a deal and steal some unsuspecting person's house out from under them by offering cash. Creepy at best.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:45 AM
I have to admit that I sent a letter like this to a homeowner once. My husband and I really loved the house and the block and just wanted the owner to have our contact info if they were ever interested in selling. I was a little embarrassed about sending it—but we didn’t want to miss the opportunity to buy it. We weren’t investors or developers—we hope to live in the house that we buy for a long, long time.
Michael’s letter and intentions however is very different than ours….
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:47 AM
I'm sorry: "down-home approach" is not ever going to work with me. My house and the other houses on my block go for $2M - $3M. If I'm gonna sell, it's gonna be through a broker. What I can't figure is why Michael doesn't realize this and target more up-and-coming areas with his fliers rather the ones that are already well established.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:48 AM
It's a Morman master plan to buy up NYC RE one property at a time...Salt Lake East
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:52 AM
20-30,000 notes? Was this note actually hand-written or a xerox?
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:55 AM
I get this letter from "michael" in bed-stuy every 3 weeks or so stuck right in my gate - exact same xeroxed letter for the last 2 years. I just wanted to add - since it isn't clear in the pictures, that this isn't actually a personalized handwritten note, but rather a copy of one intended to look personal. whoever said %%)*)&*^)* crook has got it right!
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 10:55 AM
don't confuse this flyer for a heart-felt message from a neighbor, i think the examples people are giving are genuine, decent ways of buying your dream house. long-time owners like the idea of selling to somebody they know will honor the history of their homes. 'michael' is an impersonal gentrification machine.
Posted by: Jimmy Legs at January 29, 2007 10:57 AM
i have received that same letter. i actually called because i am sick of receiving these letters, and told him i want $4 million, he said that all he could afford was $650K. i told him that that was a joke and to never send these again to me!
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 11:09 AM
I especially like the "and have a blessed day". Is the Michael in question an archangel...? Bhahahahh.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 11:44 AM
I especially like the "and have a blessed day". Is the Michael in question an archangel...? Bhahahahh.
My suggestion is do with this piece of junk what one usually does with junk mail and throw it in the trash.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 11:45 AM
I especially like the "and have a blessed day". Is the Michael in question an archangel...? Bhahahahh.
My suggestion is do with this piece of junk what one usually does with junk mail and throw it in the trash.
...and have a blessed and profitable day...
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 11:46 AM
I actually called the number once, and the first few questions they ask you are along the lines of "are you in a state of foreclosure?", "are you involved in a divorce", and "do you need the money for bankruptcy."
Basically, they prey on poor dumb ignorant people.
Posted by: Jeffro at January 29, 2007 12:34 PM
Well its more reason for ppl to get Educated. Survival of the fittest.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 12:54 PM
we got them just about weekly during the summer months
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 1:29 PM
I get these about once a week in bedstuy--stuck in my gate. I just ignore
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 2:01 PM
WTF you mean to tell me every one is getting the michael's letter!!! Damn I thought i was special.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 2:19 PM
...yeah, that "blessed day" reeks of fakeness and hypocrisy...just gets under your skin.
Posted by: jbjb at January 29, 2007 5:32 PM
Doesn't hurt anyone. If people are desperate enough to sell something for 1/10th its value (or even 1/2), then they're gonna be self-desructive with or without Michael's help.
You know what REALLY GETS ME? The piles of circulars that litter my block. One of these days, I'm gonna track down where they come from and litter their headquarters with dog doodie.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 29, 2007 6:07 PM
These notes are aimed at the little old ladies who have owned their brownstones for 40+ years, go to church every Sunday and don't follow the RE market. I know several of them on my block. But here's the rub -- they ain't anybody's fool and they are NOT about to be taken for a ride!
Posted by: NeoGrec at January 29, 2007 6:45 PM
Darn sweet of him to give me his permission not to call if I'm not interested. I was going to call just to say, "no thanks", but he saved me the trouble.
Posted by: Mark at January 29, 2007 7:02 PM
Maybe it's this guy.
http://therealestate.observer.com/2006/10/whats-the-frequency-lockhart.html
Posted by: JJ at January 29, 2007 10:29 PM
I worked for a company based out of Utah. Many coworkers are LDS and the "blessed day" is Mormon all the way. They did this where I worked in Boston back and eventually bought up enough real estate to build this cathedral/temple that is the tallest piece of real estate west of Boston. It ruined the entire nabe of historic colonial houses and turned it in to Salt Lake Boston. The Governer, Mitt LDS Romney, helped swing the whole deal since it was built in his east coast "home town". If you think Rattner's bad you should see what these guys do,as all of us "sinners" (see: not Saints) can't even walk in the door of these high rise nieghborhood destroying Temples.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 30, 2007 11:45 AM
Pretty much everyone i've met who says "have a blessed day" instead of "bye" has been a moron. (Yes, I mean moron, not mormon).
Posted by: Curmudgeon at January 30, 2007 1:19 PM
I hate that when I don't call because I'm not interested (as instructed), they still leave more notes the next week. If I catch one of the mofos leaving Michael's little note, they will leave with it stuck up their ass. And who cares if they pay in cash or get financing, the seller gets real money either way. It's not like you get an IOU or something. And fuck these predatory real estate parasites (and fuck the survival of the fittest argument). There is a moral obligation on the part of all people to be honest and not take advantage of poor, desperate or otherwise uninformed people.
Posted by: Drew at January 31, 2007 9:44 AM
I called the guy once just for the fun of it, cause i knew before hand that i wouldnt sell for their offered price, but the one thing i have to take Drew up on, is the fact that there's a price for everything and if someone is desparate for whatever reason and wants his money "YESTERDAY" instead of being dragged around 6 Months, its their perrogative as long as he/she doesnt go back on their offer or use other gimmicks to force a change on the deal.
Posted by: Anonymous at January 31, 2007 5:32 PM
If someone chooses to sell to this type of buyer because the sale will be completed more quickly and they understand they are getting below market value in return then I have no complaint. But I still have a moral problem with people who seek out the poor and uninformed in order to profit from their condition.
Posted by: Drew at February 1, 2007 4:09 PM
I found the exact same note stuck into the gate of my (actually my little old landlady's) house in Bushwick a couple of weeks ago. It's obviously a con, but I had no idea "Michael" was so organized and prolific. Interesting.
Posted by: Anonymous at February 3, 2007 5:51 PM
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