What is a Zombie Foreclosure?

There has been a strange phenomenon happening in the real estate industry and I thought this would be a good time to warn you about it.


Many of my clients in Libertyville have been asking me about a strange phenomenon called Zombie Foreclosures. A Zombie Foreclosure is a situation that occurs when you have left your home and it has been foreclosed, but you are still on the title to the property. This is essentially a property that is in your name because the bank did not come back and repurchase the property in a sherriff's sale.

It's extremely important to figure out if you are still on the title to the property because it can prevent you from purchasing a new home. FHA rules state that you cannot make a new purchase until you are off of title for 36 months.

Don't let a zombie foreclosure drain the buying power out of you!

Zombie Foreclosures are difficult to detect and most loan officers will not take the time to do a thorough check for them. However, there is one way to find out, and that is by contacting the Recorder of Deeds Office and purchasing a copy of the deed for your home. You can also call your local title company here in Libertyville and have them search for your name (this costs around $75).

It's extremely important before going through the mortgage process to figure out if you have a Zombie Foreclosure because it could affect your buying power for years to come. If you need any assistance in this process or if you would like to learn more about Zombie Foreclosures, please feel free to contact me via phone or email.  

My “#WineAboutLife” Interview With Nik Champion


I recently got a chance to drink some wine and share my backstory on the very first episode of “#WineAboutLife.” I hope you enjoy!

On my recent appearance on “#WineAboutLife,” I got to talk with host
Nik Champion about the experiences I’ve had that made me who I
am today. Nik Champion is the owner of Champion Allstate in Warrenville, IL. Nik can be reached at 630-332-2555 or via email at
championagency@allstate.com

For your convenience, I’ve provided timestamps of the interview
so you can jump ahead at your leisure:

0:54—Two important events that shaped my mantra on life
2:47—How I apply this mindset to my business
3:47—The best advice I could ever give to anyone
5:02—The most emotionally gratifying mortgage transaction
I’ve ever participated in  
7:19—How I got my nickname: “The Lake County Loan Goddess”
8:39—Other niche services I offer, including being a CLDP
Nik is always looking for more businesspeople and community
leaders to sit down for a future episode of “#WineAboutLife,” so
if you’re interested in being interviewed, go ahead and reach out
to him!

As always, if you have any questions for me or there’s anything I can help
you with, don’t hesitate to call or email me. I’d love to help you.

Self Defense Training for Realtors



How many of you watching this knew that I was a Realtor?

There were a number of times that I was showing a home or sitting an open house and I was extremely uncomfortable.

Fortunately for me, there was never a disaster, but looking back after watching the Beverly Carter story about an agent who was tortured and killed during a showing and reading local headlines I felt that it was important to provide some sort of training to help keep our Lake County agents safe.

I recently attended a self defense class sponsored by two police officers, Anne and Kevin at Crossfit Freedom in Libertyville and decided that this is exactly the type of  skill that our agents need to be prepared for any situation.

I am sponsoring a Realtor Safety & Self Defense party and Luncheon on February 7th from 11am – 1pm, cohosted by Real Estate Attorney, Shameen Thakrar. Come dressed to play, be hungry, lunch will be provided by Real Clean Paleo our favorite healthy food!  


Go home with skills and swag.

The regular price is $45 per person, but my sponsorship will cover $25 of that so your cost for the class and lunch is $20! You can RSVP at the Empower Self-Defense Facebook page or on my business page, Jan Leasure Diamond Residential Mortgage.

Let’s make 2019 Safe and Prosperous!