Effect of Pandemic on Note Management (so far)

[Andy Mirza]

I'm starting this thread to share info on the short term, immediate effects of the coronavirus pandemic as it pertains to the active management of note portfolios. We can save medium and long term implications in a separate post :)

So far, I'm seeing a slowdown in communication from some but not all of our vendors. This is understandable given that we should all take care of our personal and family needs first and foremost. Some vendors remain very responsive almost as if nothing else were happening. My guess and hope is that things start getting better in the next week or two as the immediate fear dies down and those that are used to working in an office transition to working remotely.

Cook County, Illinois postponed most cases for an automatic 30 days so this has affected some of our NPNs. We've been waiting to get a sheriff's sale date for one NPN but the sale can't take place until May anyhow; we're just delayed in getting the date.

In Las Vegas, NV, our eviction hearing was held telephonically. I believe that telephonic and video interactions will become more widely acceptable for court hearings. We won the hearing and have a date of possession for mid-April. Our attorney mentioned that we got that date because of the pandemic so I assume that possession is usually granted much sooner.

(I'm personally ok with extensions for a month or so regarding possession; although we've had quite a few borrowers treat us poorly prior to the pandemic, I think everybody should stay put until things settle down for everyone's sake.)

Finally, I don't think people will be rushing to invest capital in note funds at least for the next couple of weeks or maybe months. The stock market has most people's attention and the people that are scared will hold onto cash or possibly make bad decisions if panic takes hold. Hopefully, I'm wrong :)