About DeedBrook
Smith Washington Jr., Founder — Lake Charles, Louisiana
I'm Smith Washington Jr.
DeedBrook is my company. I'm based in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and I work with people who are holding a note on real estate they sold.
I spent 25 years at a chemical plant across the river in Westlake. That kind of work teaches you that doing a thing right the first time matters more than doing it fast, and that your word is most of what people have to go on. I retired from the plant in 2012.
From there I spent four years as a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker here in Lake Charles. That's where I first saw how often a seller carries the financing themselves — and how little anybody explains to them afterward. I've been buying notes ever since, going on ten years now. DeedBrook is the name I put on that work.
What actually put me in this business was closer to home. Someone in my own family ended up holding a note and struggled with it. The payments, the paperwork, not knowing who to ask or what it was even worth. Nobody would give them a straight answer. That stayed with me.
Lake Charles is home. I know this area, I know its people, and I know what this community has been through. Folks here are resilient, and they work hard for what they have. So when somebody trusts me with a note they've been collecting on for years, I take that seriously.
Why I tell you my name
Most companies in this business won't. You'll get a postcard with no signature, a website with no photograph, and a 1-800 number answered by whoever picks up.
I think that's backwards. You're being asked to hand over an original note and mortgage — often the most valuable thing you own besides your home. You ought to know exactly who's on the other end of it.
My name is on every page of this site, my mailing address is in the footer, and when you call during business hours, you get me.
How I work
I tell you the number and the reasoning.
You'll know why your note is worth what it's worth, including the parts that work against you.
I don't pressure people.
Selling a note is usually a family conversation. Take the time you need.
I'll tell you when selling isn't your best move.
Sometimes the right answer is to keep collecting, and sometimes a partial beats a full sale by a wide margin. I'd rather give you the honest answer and earn the next call.
I answer the phone.
During business hours you get me, not a queue.
Why I write
I've talked with note holders who felt confused or pressured by out-of-state companies that treated them like a number. That's why I write the articles on this site. They explain this business in plain English — what your note is worth, whether selling makes sense, and what to watch out for.
My promise is simple. I'll give you a straight answer, even when the straight answer is “keep your note.”
Where we work
DeedBrook buys notes nationwide. Closer to home, we also operate as Gulf Coast Note Buyers, serving note holders across Louisiana, Southeast Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle — where we can meet in person.
Residential, commercial, and land notes — including the rural acreage, lots, and land contracts that are so common here in Southwest Louisiana.
Find out what your note is worth
Fifteen minutes on the phone. No cost, no obligation, and you'll talk to the owner.