Foreclosure 101
With more homes being foreclosed on than ever before in history, savvy buyers are picking up homes are in great condition and are priced below the market. With a little patience and some preparation, homeownership could be a lot closer than you think – and a lot cheaper, too.
1. Be Ready – Foreclosures are cheap for a reason: banks want to sell them fast. In many cases banks will find buyers within 3 days of their initial listing. If you know you want to buy then be ready with a mortgage preapproval before you start looking; banks will require proof of financing before they will consider your offer, no matter how strong your offer is.
2. Get Out Your Elbow Grease – It is totally possible to buy foreclosures that are in mint condition but they usually fetch higher prices than their “handyman special” neighbors. If you want the bargain basement top-notch deal on a property, be ready to get your hands dirty!
3. Know Your House Inside and Out – The whole idea behind buying a foreclosure is to save money, right? Then spend a little extra up front – on the home inspection. Banks make no representations (or guarantees) about the properties they sell and they are not liable for repairs after closing. Get the best inspector you can afford and look for things that might be costly trouble down the road. To save money, do your due diligence.
4. Be Prepared To Pay Close to Full Asking Price – In some of the hotter foreclosure markets (Florida, for example) banks are not willing to negotiate much on great houses. They price them at 60%-80% of fair market value up front in order to sell quickly and, if you waste time nickel-and-diming the bank, someone else is likely to purchase the home you like. This is especially true of new foreclosure listings.
5. A Realtor Will Do You A World Of Good – Agents spend lots of time combing the market for good deals. Good ones know their marketplace intimately and have often worked closely with many of your future neighbors. Use their experience to help you find the best deal possible. They will have the objective, professional eye you need to spot resale potential before you purchase. This single choice will save you thousands down the road – and agents usually charge buyers nothing to work with them!
The markets right now are a perfect storm for sellers – but there has not been a market like this for buyers in several generations. Home prices and interest rates are really low right now making homeownership more affordable than it ever will be again. Now is the time to buy. If you wait until prices are rising again, you will have waited too long.
Alexander Krumm is a professional Realtor living in sunny Sarasota, Florida and a partner in . Be sure to visit the most useful and innovative in the world, the only one of its kind anywhere and Astounding!
