ANYONE FAMILIAR ON HOW TO BUY FORECLOSURE HOMES?

Question

Hello everyone,

Lately I have been interested in purchasing foreclosure homes because the MLS is so competitive. I know it's not an easy route, especially since I am trying to purchase the house using the VA loan. I understand their criteria's to pass an inspection are strict, but just wondering if its possible. People seem to shy away when I ask about purchasing a foreclosure home, anyone have experience with this? Any tips could help! Thank you :)

Will Barnard · Answer

First, lets get the lingo down. When you say foreclosure homes, that could mean a home with an NOD filing (Notice of Default), NTS (notice of sale), or an REO (Real Estate Owned meaning the bank owns the property now AFTER it went through the first two filings, then to courthouse steps and nobody purchased it so it went back to the bank).

If you are talking about finding REO deals, then you would need a contact with agents you specialize in REO properties to get the info before they put on the MLS, but in many cases today, the banks require them to list on the MLS. You can also get in contact with asset managers for the banks but that is no easy process.

If you meant pre-foreclosures where the owner has had an NOD or NTS filed against their property, then you can go direct to the owner to arrange a deal. if they have equity, then you can make an offer. If they do not have equity, then you would need to make a deal with them and negotiate a short sale with the lender. If you do not know how to do any of this, you will have a tough go at it so i suggest learning or hooking up with someone familiar with this process.

Jordan Fulmer · Answer

I think your best bet for buying foreclosures with a loan is actually buying PRE-foreclosures (Before the auction date). That way, you can deal directly with the seller instead of jumping through the hoops of buying from a bank. Just make sure you allow enough time to actually close the deal before their auction date since buying with a loan usually takes about a month.