Foreclosure Clean-up: How to Earn Tens of Thousands with Stuff Lying Around in Your Garage

July 16, 2011 - PRLog -- Low-cost Startup Business

Many people want to start businesses but don’t quite know what kind of business venture to explore.  The best kind of business to start is one that has low initial start-up costs and low on-going overhead. This way, your company can grow “on its own dime.”  One of the best entrepreneurial ideas in a down real estate market is to start a foreclosure clean-up business.  

A foreclosure clean-up business is a solid business to start because (1) you can use equipment you already have in your garage; and (2) you don’t need a commercial office space -- your den, basement or dedicated area of your home will do just fine.  And the market is ripe for profit in this fast-growing industry.  According to a recent report by RealtyTrac, an online foreclosure data reporting entity, foreclosure filings were reported on 214,927 properties in the U.S. in the month of May alone.

Foreclosures equal cash for new start-ups in the form of jobs and lucrative contracts. Read on to find out why.  

What is a Foreclosure Clean-up Business and Who are the Clients?

First, what is a foreclosure cleaning business? A foreclosure clean-up business handles the maintenance and upkeep of primarily homes that have been foreclosed on.

Who do they service? This real estate services business’ primary client base will be banks, mortgage companies and property preservation companies seeking to subcontract work and jobs to smaller companies.  A healthy list of real estate industry contacts and property preservation companies (http://www.e-junkie.com/stonecottagebooks/product/465166.php) can provide a plethora of job and contract opportunities to new businesses in the start-up phase. It’s not uncommon for smaller companies to receive numerous work orders once they properly register with property preservation companies as a vendor for jobs and contracts.

Basic Start-up Equipment Needed to Open Your REO Trashout and Cleaning Doors

Foreclosure clean-up companies generally need the following equipment to get started:  A mower; leaf blower; edger; weed eater; rake; trailer (to attach to the back of a vehicle for hauling debris) or a truck; ladder; tape measure; cleaning supplies such as mop, broom, gloves, cleaning solutions, buckets, rags, and garbage bags; and basic tools for minor repairs (hammer, screw driver, wrench, etc.).  

Other equipment needed can be rented from stores like The Home Depot (i.e., pressure washer, generator, etc.), including the trailer if you don’t have one.

Most Have All They Need to Get Started Lying Around in the Garage

Most people seeking to start a foreclosure cleanup business already have everything they need lying around in their garages to get started. At minimum, the basic services lenders and property preservation companies will expect companies to provide will be the following: cleaning and debris removal (trashouts).  

Be prepared with a small digital camera to take before and after photos to show proof of your work -- almost all companies require this. Also, have access to the internet because most work orders are received and responded to online.  If you don’t have a computer at home, use the library until the business can pay for one.

Take a Peek in Your Garage to Assess Your Equipment and Plan to Get Started

If you are ready to take the entrepreneurial plunge and start your own business, peek in your garage and assess the small business start-up equipment that may be lying around collecting dust. More than likely, you have a gold mine in the tools and equipment that could be bringing in tens of thousands in contracts for your new foreclosure clean-up business. (Our first foreclosure cleanup job paid almost $3,000. After a few smaller ones, the next one we landed paid almost $7,000, and we had barely opened our doors!)

Good luck in your foreclosure cleanup business.

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Cassandra Black, Industry Consultant, Author and CEO of Foreclosure Cleanup, LLC, authoring company of How to Start a Foreclosure Cleanup Business Blog: FREE Articles, Advice, Jobs, Help Wanted & Contracts, http://foreclosure-cleanup-blog.com, and How to Start a Foreclosure Cleanup Business Line of Books, Reports & Forms, http://www.e-junkie.com/stonecottagebooks.