My primary interests are foreclosures/pre-foreclosures and short sales. I have been taking a close look at software to keep myself organized and ahead of the game.
Any comments about the SharkBait software from www.foreclosure.com or any other programs that are helpful?
Thanks!
Have you found a software program yet?
I was disappointed that nobody responded to my post. Anyways, I still have the SharkBait software in my radar. There is another, not so intense and cheaper, software program that I have seen advertised that may be of interest to you. It can be found at http://www.fixingandflipping.com/index.php . They offer an Excel based layout that covers the costs of purchase, holding and rehab, to determine the potential profit of your deals. If you are an Excel Guru and have the time, you could probably create something similar for yourself.
Another great rehab software is National Home Improvement Estimator found at http://craftsman-book.com/products/info/nhi06-full.htm . The program is $25 and will give you a detailed breakdown of your entire rehab costs and a printed report that can be used with your loan packages, Of course, you will need to make the proper notes while inspecting the prospective house and carry the info over to this program.
I hope this helps.
-Larry
I dont have any first hand experience with sharkbait, but I know several people who have shark bait, but prefer not to use it. Appararently, it is very time consuming to master and set-up. The folks I know who bought and no longer use, now use ACT!
-Joel
I have since heard the same thing…
Thanks!
-LA
=[:-)]
Hey,
What is ACT!? Just bought a proprietary program and now wonder if I paid too much.
Peace,
Richard
ACT! is a fairly populat contact manager that you can purchase at Costco or just about any other software retailer. You might also want to look into Goldmine or the Business Contact Manager that comes with Outlook. Microsoft makes a product to compete with Act!, but you have to run MS Small Business Server, and most of us investors dont have the time and $ to support running a server.
My only complaint with ACT! is how unworldly slow it runs on my computer. I have an 8 month old pc and ACT! really bogs my system down. I gave it up and went back to Outlook.
rhm76384, what is the name of the software you bought?
-Joel
Hey,
The program is “RE-Source” by Dynamic Real Estate Solutions, No apparent website but they live at 1630 Welton, Suite 530, Denver, Co, 80202. Tle: 303-468-9333.
Just got it in so after I have used it I will report on its usefulness. I have high hopes as I paid high bucks for it.
Peace,
Richard
Hey,
Take a look at www.foreclosurewizard.com as a possibility.
It’s a Vb platform for PC, but simple to use and set up.
Also includes a scheduling database.
Only limit is that it’s only good for pre-foreclosures.
But it covers the basic requirements for calculating equity, and rehab costs.
Hope this helps.
Renovator 
Renovator,
Are you currently using this software program?
Hey,
The above mentioned RE-source is a very complete data base designed by and for REI’s. It is able to keep all your records for each house/transaction including photos in one place. It automatically calculates and places in a spreadsheet all your needed financial info. It has a place to keep track of all your contacts re: that property. I like it. It is easy to use and intuitive.
Peace,
Richard
For those you are thinking of purchasing the Shark Bait software, I caution you to think twice. I purchased mine. I changed my mind after receiving it in the mail. Without bothering to download, I sent it back asking for a full refund (minus shipping and handling). They refused to refund in full. I was refunded 80% of the price even if the software was never downloaded. Recently, the Discover Card company sent a letter of dispute and hopefully, I’ll have this situation resolved.
If I were you, I would not purchase the product, Shark Bait.
Hey,
It appears you were the bait and got eaten by the shark. However, they don’t know you didn’t download it. That said, I would think that they would have a “key” that you would access after you recieved the software so they could track if you had downloaded it for use. Good luck with the other 20%.
Peace,
Richard
chuckle Yep, I was eaten by a shark. Thanks for your two cents.
I am inclined to stay out of the water when the shark’s are feeding. With that said, I will stay away from this program!
Thanks for the warnings!
I guess you got the message, but to broaden it even further I would NOT buy anything from foreclosure wolrd - they do not keep their return policies, etc.
Actually, if you have Office 2003 Small Business or Professional you already have Business Contact Manager. Also, you don’t have to have Small Business Server - BCM runs inside Outlook and has it’s own MSDE standalone database that resides on the hard drive. I and another fellow RE Investor use this software to track our opportunities, leads, existing customers and business contacts. We also can do mass marketing using mail merge to MS Word. Check out this link to learn more about BCM:
http://www.microsoft.com/office/outlook/contactmanager/prodinfo/default.mspx
It’s all about using what you already have to the fullest, so if you already have Office 2003 Professional or Small Business Edition you should check it out…
I have been using Sharkbait foreclosure software for more than two years now. I believe it is a great training tool for new investors and gives seasoned pro’s a “organizational advantage” over other investors who can’t database and track properties efficiently. One or two extra properties/year in our biz is a lot of money!
In the beginning, it was difficult to find people to talk to that were using it successfully, and actually the first two investors that I did finally speak with got refunds from the company!
The keys to Sharkbait are: having an accurate and timely data source, including comps…I formed a partnership with a local data compiler here in Arizona so we have a daily feed for data and another monthly for comps…and learning to utilize the program every day.
I have lots of students and customers that use the program successfully, but it’s not for everyone…the posts are correct…it’s a PITA to figure out how to get it running…and it is a program that you have to feed data into either daily or weekly…but we teach our folks to work the biz everyday anyway.
I have Goldmine, ACT! and Outlook too, but
if you can get familiar with Sharkbait (and most folks that use it successfully won’t teach you) you’ll be amazed how much you can get from the program. You can’t estimate rehabs, print property reports, pitch investors with profit estimates, do mapping or other RE specific stuff that’s available in SB.
Tim Rocho
Has anyone tried the Millionaire Mindset by Dwan Bent? She has an infomercial and set sells for $150.