BiggerPockets

Forbes magazine had an article about an investor who attends court house auctions and approaches the bank AFTER nobody bids and the property reverts to the bank, he is able to strike a deal right there on the spot. I've never heard of this.

Forbes (the recent issue) profiles a guy who claims to have done this twice and then flipped the properties for more than $400,000 profit after cost of selling.

This would certainly streamline the REO process if more banks had their reps show up...i've never seen one come to an auction in Portland though.

Did the article mention what city this investor is working in?

I imagine it is a specific bank he is working with...probably a local one that has less loans out there than the slow moving giants. They will have more time and resources to do due dilligence, especially if they are a local bank.

Yes, it is true. Two different investors working in different counties in the Atlanta area have reported. These are cases where they have already been in contact with the loss mitigation dept. and can call that person direct. There are no reps. at the auction. Let's say they would not short sale the property, or the second would not cooperate. Right after the auction, and the property has gone back to the bank, the file is still on the loss mitigators desk. This means immediately, not the next day. The loss mitigator will sometimes agree to sell at the short sale price, before it goes to another department, and in " limbo" . Also, the second is wiped out.

Yes, you do still have to have cash for the offer. And, it is a relationship that does not start then, but over time with working on a short sale, or with a certain loss mitigator.

I have not done this myself, but when some of my cash isn't tied up in other properties, I would like to try it.

Don't know about there, but its true, at least to some extent, here in CO. Some portion of the HOA dues can be filed in a position senior to even a first mortgage. However, that doesn't eliminate the redemption period for the other lienholders. If someone what holding a $200K mortgage, they would certainly redeem a $2000 HOA lien to protect their interest. No idea exactly how the law works in CA.