I think you are putting it nicely by implying some of these deals happen privately. I know for a fact that the hot deals are offered to the brokers and realtors first, and we the general public never have the slightest chance. Several years ago a realtor friend of mine bought a distress sale for roughly sixty percent of market value, way before the bubble. She told me that these deals just come along once in a while and even as realtors, you have to act fast before other realtors snap them up. So yes, I feel we are at a tremendous disadvantage when it comes to getting the killer deals. There are several foreclosure agencies, which of course charge a fee for their services, but I’m a firm believer that the really great deals are made way before they’re made public. It’s the nature of this evil business, and I don’t think there’s a damn thing we can do about it.
