Good morning, everyone, This summer I’m leading a cohort of five University of Georgia business students through our Watermark ELIF Fellowship. One of our modules focuses on non-performing loans and distressed debt investing. Rather than teaching entirely from theory, I’d love to expose them to a real-world example and help develop the next generation of note investors and analysts. Would anyone be willing to share an anonymized, closed/historical NPL file or case study that is no longer being actively worked? Even a single loan would be incredibly valuable. If available, we’d also love to review a historical pool. The materials would be used strictly for educational purposes by our team. I’m happy to sign an NDA, and the students can as well. Our goal is to use the case study to help build the logic for a business-school-level NPL analysis tool. Once completed, I’d be glad to share the framework with this community. Appreciate any guidance or opportunities to learn from real-world examples. Harold Waters, Jr. Watermark ELIF Fellowship (Independent)

This non-performing first mortgage was purchased in February of 2024 in Youngstown, OH in a pool of 13 loans. The property was valued at $40k. The 1st mortgage unpaid principal loan balance was $28,300.55. The loan was purchased for $3k. This discount was do to the property's condition, it being in OH (most legal cost & fees are non-recoverable in OH) and some owed property taxes. During the foreclosure process is when we realized that the property may be vacant and that this deal wasn't going to get resolved through the borrower. The goal at this point, was to get the property to the foreclosure sale and hopefully have it purchased by a third party at the foreclosure sale. It took a little over a year to get from the demand letter stage to the foreclosure sale. At the sale we placed a bid of $27,334. At the sale there wasn't any third party bidders, so the property reverted back to us. It took the county another 4 months to confirm the sale. At this point, in order to get our deed recorded, we had to pay all the owed taxes and the fees associated with recording our deed (post-sale cost). That amount was $8,880.84. It took the county another 2 months to record our deed. In February of 2026, we finally got our recorded deed. You need the recorded deed, to be able start the eviction process and get possession of the property (the REO). At this time we hired an REO management company, that handles are REO's. The REO management company sent an agent out to the property to determine if the property was occupied. The agent determined that the property was vacant, so the agent rekeyed and secured the property for us. Since the property was vacant, we didn't have to go through the eviction process. The eviction would have cost us another 2 months and $600. The property was full of junk and not in good condition. The agent hired a junk removal company to remove the junk. We asked the owner of the junk removal company if he was interested in purchasing the property as is (junk and all). He was interested and we agreed to a purchase price of $26,500. At this point, it really wasn't about making a profit. We just wanted to get our money out of the deal and be done with it. As a note investor, it becomes more about the note portfolio, than the deal itself. We sold the REO in April of 2026.

This tape was originally offered in December 2024, and a fund purchased the entire pool. (Discouragement on my part) At the time, I urged caution. The asset had a critical issue: delinquent property taxes with a hard deadline. If not addressed, the property could be lost to tax sale, with payment required by March 31.(the son in the home ended up paying the 2022 taxes) The small UPB assets were later broken out and re-marketed. They were purchased AGAIN; this time by a different fund. (Irritation only part) In December 2025, while discussing unrelated assets with that second fund, I asked a simple question: “Do you happen to still have that small Michigan asset?” (Bulldog mentality on my part… never give up) They did! I was able to purchase it AT my original bid. Initial Situation - Deceased borrower - Multiple heirs (2 daughters, 2 sons) - No probate opened - One son living in the property - ~$6,000 unpaid mortgage balance to - ~$2,000/year property taxes ($6000 total) - Risk of tax sale looming - The mortgage had matured! On January 22, I reached out to the family. One daughter responded. The son living in the home was difficult to reach. (Actually, I never connected with him) The Real Problem (Not the Mortgage) This was not a financial problem. This was: - Grief (loss of multiple family members) - Family tension between siblings - No legal authority (no probate) - Emotional overwhelm - Fear of losing the home The mortgage was only $6,000. The complexity was everything else. Negotiation Approach Instead of pushing for payment, the approach was: 1. Label emotions “It sounds like keeping your mother’s home is very important to you.” 2. Slow everything down - Removed urgency language - Allowed space for grief - Let them “control” timing Structuring the Deal Rather than forcing one path, three options were presented: 1. Incentivized Payoff (discount for speed) $1000 down payment and for every additional $1000 payment I would credit $1200 to the UPB. 2. Traditional Payment Plan - $1000 down payment with monthly payment of about $300 per month until paid. 3. Long-term property structure (tax + probate relief) - the lender would pay for probate, acquire a “ladybird” deed and pay ALL taxes (past and future) for a negotiated time.

This non-performing 2nd mortgage was purchased in February of 2026 in Dundalk, MD, in a pool of 10 loans. The property is valued at $195k, with a $98k current 1st mortgage. Shortly after the loan was purchased we had an attorney send out a legal demand letter. This was another good one, with a fast resolution. The borrower reached out during the 30-day demand period and wanted to get back on track. I have a great two page form that I use to send borrower's loan modification options, it allows me to control the deal (Option's template here for Mastermind Accelerator members) to get non-performing note deals done faster. The 2nd mortgage unpaid principal loan balance was $12,268.67, plus they owed us another $250 in loan fees & lender recoverable expenses. The total 2nd mortgage payoff amount was $12,518.67. So there was plenty of equity in the deal covering our mortgage. Here are the Deal Numbers: - Purchase Price: $2,717 - Lawyer/Management Fees: $250 (Recoverable Expenses) - Total Costs Paid: $2,967 New Loan Modification Terms: - Loan Mod Down Payment: $1,000.00 - Loan Balance: $11,518.67 - Loan’s Terms: 48 months - Loan’s Interest Rate: 9.99% - Loan Payment: $292.09 Non-Mastermind Accelerator members → Apply for a 1:1 Strategy Session [free] We’ll review your goals, deal criteria, and show you how to get deals like this done. ➡️ Book a Free Strategy Session

Last week I closed a matchmaker deal that earned me $21,700 - here’s how I did it: First, I built a relationship with the seller. I do more than just connect them with buyers. I try to add value wherever I can: - analyze their non-performing note acquisitions - monitor their performing loans - create charts & forecasts on their portfolio - manage their loan servicers & other vendors - other stuff to help them make money They also know that I’m part of the Mortgage Note Mastermind so they know that I have trusted buyers to sell their loans to - so they hired me to manage their trade desk (I’m their exclusive loan sale partner). So when they had a portfolio for me to help them sell last month I put out the trade to our community of note buyers. I got bids from 22 investors and after showing my seller all the results they agreed to award the 16 buyers with top offers. I assisted with the due diligence process: answering questions, locating missing docs, organizing all the files, etc. I prepared and sent the Loan Sale Agreements to all parties and used e-signature to make it easy for everyone to execute the contracts. Once the deals are done, I also prepare the transfer docs (assignments & allonges) and facilitate the servicing transfer - I make it easy for everyone to follow instructions and get the deal done. Last week, the first deal funded for $310k. I’ll send my invoice to the seller for $21,700 (7%) at the end of the month (along with all of the closed deals I facilitate this month). These same simple steps have earned me millions of dollars over the years and will make me almost $100k in sales fees this month. And even better - this buyer is picking up over $600k of notes with tons of equity coverage (they’re going to make WAY more than the $21.7k I’m taking home). Let me know if you have any questions!