The Business Journal occasionally checks in with L.A.-area executives and asks them to describe their daily routine. This week, Kelley Gibson of Asset Foreclosure Services Inc. discusses her duties:
I live in Norco and work in Woodland Hills, so it takes me anywhere from two to two-and-a-half hours to get to work in the morning. Still, I usually manage to get to the office around 9 a.m. As the default operations manager, I’m in charge of everything that goes on down here. I do anything that needs to be done and make sure everything runs smoothly.
My clients are banks, mortgage servicers, mortgage sub-servicers and private investors. I have to keep in mind that our clients must be properly represented in the foreclosure. We have to protect their rights to the property and get them all of the legal advice they need.
I spend a good portion of my day answering e-mails and returning phone calls to address client concerns. The foreclosure process can be complicated, so sometimes the clients aren’t sure about exactly what’s going on. We guide our clients through every step.
When one of our clients decides to foreclose, we help them start the process and file all of the paperwork. We file a notice of default which is a preliminary notice of foreclosure and, after that expires, we file a notice of sale. The notice of sale contains information about the trustee and the property along with a warning to the borrower that the property is about to be lost at a public foreclosure sale. Then we conduct the actual sale of the property. I get bidding instructions from the client and then we hold an auction at the local courthouse. The last step in the process is usually finalizing the sale to the highest bidder. Sometimes, there are no other bidders and the property reverts back to the original client. In that case, we find a real estate agent to market the property and the case turns more into a real estate deal.
If a client has an unusual situation or isn’t sure whether or not to proceed, I ask him to explain the background details and why the borrower is behind on payments. Then I work with the client to determine if foreclosure is the right option.
My day also involves contacting potential new clients. I’m really excited about expanding our client base.
I contact people I know at different companies and try to establish contacts at new companies. I also attend trade shows to get out information about our firm. At the shows, we set up a booth to market our services and we give out little things like T-shirts, bags they can carry around, letter openers, or any other kind of marketing tools with our logo. Throughout the year, I’ll attend anywhere from five to seven shows, maybe more.
My big project right now is to develop a bankruptcy and reconveyance department at the firm.
As of now, if someone files for bankruptcy during foreclosure, we outsource the bankruptcy to one of our contacts and act as a liaison between the attorney and the client. But with the new department, we will handle all of this in-house.
In whatever time I have left, I catch up on mortgage and foreclosure news by talking to our attorneys and reading relevant magazines. I got into this business in 1998 and one of the things that still keeps me interested is that every day there is something new in the foreclosure world. All of the laws are constantly being revamped, so there’s always something I get to learn. That’s my favorite part of the job everyday is different.
My day ends at around 5 or 6 p.m. I then make the two-and-a-half hour drive back home to my husband and dogs.
As told to Victoria Degtyareva
