Couple Served Foreclosure Notice Via Facebook

Daily Real Estate News | June 22, 2011

Couple Served Foreclosure Notice Via Facebook 

For lenders who can’t find a defaulting home owner, they may turn to Facebook or other social networking sites to track them down. That’s what a lender in Australia did. The lender used Facebook to track the defaulting couple down and send them a foreclosure notice via the social networking site, AOL Real Estate reports.

The lender was unable to find a physical address or e-mail for a couple in Australia who defaulted on their six-figure mortgage. So the lender’s lawyer located them on Facebook, verifying the couple’s identities by matching up names, birthdates, and the fact that they “friended” one another.

Australian courts recently upheld the lender’s right to use Facebook to send foreclosure notices. The court ruled that the couple didn’t have any privacy protections on their Facebook accounts and were frequent visitors so it served as a reasonable way to send a notice.

While industry experts say they haven’t heard of lenders sending foreclosure notices via social networking sites in the United States, “it’s bound to happen,” Marc Rotenberg, president of the Electronic Privacy Information Center in Washington, told AOL Real Estate. "The real concern the courts have is whether it's a fair notice that the person actually receives."

As long as it’s obvious the person is a frequent user of the site, legal experts say the ability to serve foreclosure documents via social network sites seems like a justifiable way to send a foreclosure notice.

Source: “Your Facebook Status: Foreclosed,” AOL Real Estate (June 17, 2011)

New Phone: Motorola Cliq XT powered by Android

So after having plenty of issues with my T-mobile MyTouch and 3 exchanges later, T-mobile finally decided to replace my phone with a different phone all together. They sent me a Motorola Cliq XT. So far, I'm not gonna lie, I really like the phone...even more than the MyTouch. The only problem that I'm having right now is that it's on the 1.5 version of Android and the MyTouch was on 1.6. On the 1.5 version of Android, there is no navigation in Google maps. Being a real estate agent, I used that navigation on my MyTouch like it was going out of style!

All in all, it's a pretty neat phone. Being an avid Facebook junky, I like that there are a lot of social media tools on this phone. When someone calls or I call them, the contact's Facebook picture shows up on the phone! I like this feature because people update their Facebook pictures frequently and so I will always have a current picture of someone in my phone! Another pretty sweet thing is that there are 5 screens as opposed to the MyTouch's 3 screens. I definitely will be filling those screens up with my favorite apps and widgets!

My only complaint is that my contacts transferred over strangely and it will take me a little bit of time to perfect them.

Anyways, I am hoping that this phone will allow me to be an even more efficient Realtor!

- Ashley

Thinking Positive Thoughts!

I think a lot of people are under the impression that most real estate agents are sitting around right now and doing nothing but playing solitaire and counting sheep in these economic circumstances, but that's not at all true! I really believe that these kinds of conditions make or break a real estate agent. It forces us to become more creative and think of new ways to generate business for ourselves. I'm very fortunate that I'm busy these days, especially with the first-time home buyer credit ending on April 30th. A lot of potential buyers are feeling the time crunch and wanting to get in to take advantage of this credit.

One of the most important things for me has been my thinking and my outlook on the industry and my situation as an agent. If I woke up everyday and thought "I think I'll sleep an extra hour or two because nothing's going on in the real estate market anyways" I wouldn't be helping myself at all. Instead, I look at it and think "there are interested buyers and sellers and I just need to figure out a more creative way to connect with them". Let me tell you...it has been paying off! I don't know whether other agents are shying away or if I am just getting lucky, but I've had many good contacts lately! I really strive to connect with my potential clients through various avenues such as social media (I have a Facebook fan page, MySpace page, this blog, etc) and community events.

I really appreciate all of you who take the time to read my blog posts and are my fans on Facebook! I hope that we can work together, whether you have immediate or future real estate needs, and I can help you sell your home or find the home of your dreams!

Don't forget, you can always search the entire MLS of available properties on my website at http://www.ashleywydra.com/! You will see the listing with all details and photos on the MLS. If you know anyone else, also, who is looking to possibly buy a home, please share this valuable resource with them! They can visit my website and see all available properties in one place!

Enjoy your Saturday everyone! : )

- Ashley