Jan 27, 2010
Fort Lauderdale Foreclosures – Risks and How to Avoid Them
Being a buyer’s market, it’s not wonder that Fort Lauderdale foreclosures are some of the most sought-after properties in the city’s real estate market. Unfortunately like any other city or state in the country, these properties are bundled with several risks and pitfalls. For first-time buyers who are interested in buying an affordable property, foreclosures are probably the most enticing. But the risks and responsibilities exponentially increase for them. In order to avoid falling into a swamp of financial disaster, here are some risks and ways in avoiding them.
Wrong agent
The foremost important part of buying Fort Lauderdale foreclosures is the real estate agent. Without one, you’d end up buying a regrettable property or even nothing at all. It’s crucial to choose an agent that is fairly knowledgeable in the city’s real estate market. Furthermore, you have to make sure that the agent will be truly dedicated in helping you find the property you want and have your best interests at heart.
Foreclosure property
The most common mistake buyers make when buying Fort Lauderdale foreclosures is not inspecting the property. Once you receive notification of the list of available properties to be featured on the auction block and chose the one you think is right for you, it’s your duty to visit the property in person. These properties are oftentimes abandoned by their owners and even stripped of vital fixtures. The bank that owns the property doesn’t normally maintain the home and leave it as is since it’s quite costly to maintain and repair abandoned homes.
Make sure that you see the property in person and look at possible red flags. There is a lot of work to be done with foreclosures and successfully buying one is just the half of it. Clearly assess your current financial health and see whether it can withstand the responsibility of repairing and restoring the home for use.
Financing
When you opt to buy the property at an auction, you should know the terms beforehand. There are two scenarios to expect when it comes to buying auctioned homes. First, you are only required to bring a personal or cashier’s check that will indicate your planned bidding amount. Second, the auction or tax entity/bank will require you and other buyers to come up with a percentage of the total value of the property as deposit. If you a preset deposit amount is needed, you must be able to come up with at least 10%; otherwise you’ll not be able to bid.
Pre-approval
Lastly, the importance of getting pre-approved when buying Fort Lauderdale foreclosures cannot be stressed enough. In order to complete the purchase, winning bidders are typically given four to six weeks as grace period. If you already have a pre-approved mortgage, completing the purchase will be easier; if not, you must ensure to respect the grace period and come up with the money otherwise risk forfeiting your deposit.
Mark Michael Ferrer
Fort Lauderdale Foreclosures
Watch the video related to property foreclosure
With real estate down, the number of foreclosed-upon properties growing and buyers looking for deals, are foreclosures a smart purchase? Bloomberg On Demand explores the risks and rewards of the buying at every stage of the foreclosure process.
Help answer the question about property foreclosure
Where do I go to find property tax foreclosure sales?
I just saw John Beck’s Free & Clear system crap and I was wondering where do I go to find property tax foreclosure sales so I can buy a property for pennies on the dollar, pay the back taxes and hold the title to the property. So where are these sales and what do I do first?
I am a realtor in Santa Clarita, CA and would love to assist you with this purchase. I work very heavily with pre-foreclosure and foreclosure sales, and have contacts in almost all 50 states, so I could probably get you to someone in most any area if you are not in CA.
Foreclosure information is directly available from the government. Check your local bankruptcy court and banks that have properties in foreclosure.
You need a US social security number to get a loan. But if you pay cash you can buy anything you want. You could even borrow the money in Canada as long as you showed up with cash in USA.
You can buy directly from the bank at their foreclosure "auction". It is not a real auction because no one shows up. It is just a formality. The bank enters a bid for the amount they were owed by the previous owner (their borrower). They often tack on late fees and attorney fees. You have beat their bid to win and it is seldom worth the amount of the loan. But you could try. In the last 2 months, banks have started accepting lower offers. The sales are advertised in one local paper in the city of the foreclosure. You have to read all the papers to find the one. You don't get to see the inside of the house you are buying and you don't even get a key.
After that "auction", the bank hires a realty agent and a For Sale sign goes up. YOu can find those homes online at sites like realtor.com, realestateabc.com, trulia.com ( i don't work for any of them). Or ask any friendly agent to email a daily list of repo's. Then you buy one just like buying any other house. Except that the bank will do no repairs for you.
That depends on the purchase offer negotiated between you and the seller, your loan financing and other variables.
Foreclosures for Freddie Macs are handled nearly identically to those for mortgages held by private lenders. All Freddie Mac foreclosures are handled by licensed real estate brokerage firms. Simply contact the listing agent who is handling the property in which you are interested.
Prices for Freddie Mac's are similar to those of other comparable properties on the market.
you need to know usually they are an as is sale, and there could be lots of damage. You need to have it inspected, which you will have to pay, as usually a foreclosed property will not supply an inspector. Also you need to make sure ALL liens are cleared off the property, because its foreclosed, some liens follow the property and not the person. Make sure the taxes are not too far behind. Some times they are great deal, but sometimes there are things that will bite you in the butt…Just do your homework, I am sure there are sights that give you a list of must before buying a foreclosed home! Good luck!
who ever buys the property isn't buying the debt. they just buy the property. the debt has to be dealt with prior to the sale. bankruptcy can sometimes wipe out a line of credit or second mortgage look at the bankruptcy discharge paperwork to be sure. good luck
It happens with regularity. Not long ago, we had a FHA removed from listing for a similar situation. FHA discovered that it did not have clear title to the property and immediately removed it from the market.
You need to understand just how large Freddie Mac is, and the variety of departments involved in disposing of their REO inventories. Now and then, the marketing department releases a property for listing before the legal department has cleared title.