Are wholesalers considered to be "foreclosure" consultants under CA law?

I was reading the CA law on this topic and the language would seem to indicate that a wholesaler could be considered as a foreclosure consultant; is this accurate and what are the things to watch out for when wholesaling in CA?

I was looking into that also because I seen some houses I was interested in wholesaling, but read that law…maybe I am overanalyzing again though!

Hope someone sheds some light on this!

Since nobody else wants to be helpful I will jump in and answer the question. If you pay close attention to the wording of the foreclosure statute you will notice that it defines a foreclosure consultant as a person that most relevantly …represents themselves as someone that will save the house from foreclosure. As long as you are very careful with your wording when you speak to and contract with the seller, you are not likely to be viewed as a “foreclosure” consultant. You can’t ever be too careful where the law is concerned. Know it, and know it well. Even if that means having to go to a lawyer and pay for the advice, it’s definitely worth knowing if it means keeping you from criminal proceedings.

No one answered because you need someone who is familiar with Florida law and of course it is a legal advice and you need someone who knows the law to answer.

When a new law gets passed, you never know how the court interpret it. Our definition of what it means is not always the same as the court’s. Even a lawyer will give you his own understanding of the law.

Like you said, make sure of what you tell the seller, and how you advertise yourself. Are you advertising as a consultant or a house buyer? do you ever give advice? do you get paid for the advice? do you have disclosures signed by the seller?

I am not in florida, but I never sign a contract with the seller without a mile long list of disclosures stating that:

  1. I have adviced them to consult with a lawyer
  2. I have adviced them to consult with an accountant
  3. There is due on sale clause
  4. they are still responsible for the loan
  5. I do not guarantee the payments
  6. I may sell the house, rent it, or owner finance it and no projected date for selling and paying off the loan
  7. they agree that their only recourse is the house and nothing else

this is from top of my head… if I worked foreclosures, I would have a disclosure just for foreclosures to protect myself in the unlikely event one goes to court.

Thank-you for chiming in Fadi. In regards to how the courts interpret the law, you are exactly correct. For a great example of that and how subjective the legal system is, all one has to do is look at the Supreme Court and the typical 4-5 split on polarized issues.