BiggerPockets

Has anyone had success getting good deals at these auctions?

Anyone had the seller not go through with the sale if auction price is too low?

The biggest issue with any auction is the lack of real due diligence available to the buyer.
Most auctions are run As Is, Where Is, and you do not have any recourse if you find issues such as defects, leins, ect later.
So, unless you can do your homework on the auction list in advance, and go with a cherry picked list to bid on based on that homework, then i would suggest skipping the auction route and just work the REOs thru a Realtor that afford a higher level of protection for you.

My brother picked up a beautiful home from a REDC auction in Birmingham, AL. He got it for around $235k I believe. It was listed for $400k

Sorin,

I have red terms and conditions of Hudson and Marshall auction and it says winning bidders are responsible for any remaining liens. Did you inherit any liens after you bought? If yes have you gamble or you did title search?

Ok, Williams, how are they? Do they sell deed to the winning bidder free and clear? What about reserve and sellers approval?

I would recommend Williams Auction. I have picked up 5 properties in the last 6mths and Title is Free and Clear. There is no inflation of price it is the highest bidder.

Many bids start at 1K and the nicer homes start at 25K or 50k or 100k. If you are the highest bidder you are contacted. They then take it to the seller if the seller approves it then they close you out. They charge a premium of $1,500 or $2,500 or 5% whichever is higher. But you know that from the start. They also have pictures of the homes interior and exterior.

Don't know what market you are looking in, but I would recommend them over any other website. Very reliable and resourceful.

SUCCESS BREEDS SUCCESS

I went to the last REDC auction here in St. Louis. They advertise that some homes start at $500 but all the auctions were started by the auctioneers saying "$500-I've got $5000, do I hear $10000...", so somehow there was an internet bid or they just jump the price to 5k automatically. The only thing that went less than $5k was a junky looking house that is in a warzone, so don't think you'll get a house for $500. I was able to go in and inspect the 4 properties I was interested in before the auction and had an idea of what the rehab costs would be. Got to the auction and my favorite one was pulled from the auction-houses are still on the market up to auction time. Won the first one, $10k bid on a house that's been sitting on the market for over 6 months and is now listed for $25k. Bank rejected that bid. Was high bidder on another one, $11k on a house on the market over 6 months currently listed for $20k. Fannie Mae accepted that bid and I close on the 17th. Decided to pass on the last property as I didn't want to go $20k on a 2 family, going to stick with SFH's for now.

I will definitely at least look at future auctions. I am disappointed and not at the same time I didn't get the one house-it's a house in great condition but the area is shady. Would have made money at $10k but I would have had to stretch my client screening standards to get it rented. What I will share is this:
1. Stay at the auction. I saw at least 20 properties that "sold" at auction that went up for bid again later in the auction as the bidder couldn't 'seal the deal'. These went lower the second time than the first, some by just the last bid, some, quite a bit less. I didn't even stay for the whole auction as I was signing papers and the houses I were prepared for were already done.

2. Be prepared to buy beforehand. The bank had 15 BUSINESS days to accept or reject the offer/bid. You have 30 days to complete the deal. With this auction, they had until April 10 to notify you if there is a deal and then you have to close by April 20. I found out I had an accepted offer on April 9.

The auction was crazy and fun. There were several times I thought the auctioneer made some mistakes and bumped up the bid amount and there were several times where they went back and redid the bidding as bidders had made mistakes. I was looking at low end homes and they seemed to go for about half of what they were currently listed for. One house I was watching, but knew it would be too much $$ for me, went for $80k at the auction and I saw it back on the market listed for $125k a week later so the bank rejected the bid. Another house I was curious about the area went for $70k at auction when it was listed for $85k. So overall, I would say there were no real 'steals' at the auction, although, my lot is worth more than what I paid for it and the house that sits on it.

I think the most important thing is if auction company or government auction provides buyer with title insurance. If yes, all the effort and rejections from sellers might be worth it.