Bank Owned Property

[Linda M.]

When you find that the bank owns the property but it's not listed for sale, the neighbors  complain that the property is not secure, someone is going in at night , it looks like a forest in the back of the house so no one is caring for the property. What are the steps to take to buy the property from the bank?

[Nat C.]

This has been asked on the forum many times. Unfortunately there's very little you can do. If it's owned by a small regional bank and you have a strong relationship with them you could definitely go in and ask to buy the property. If it's owned by BoA, Wells Fargo or another big bank, there's basically no chance. You just have to wait until they list it with a realtor to sell. This could take months or even years. Banks will hold properties and only release a certain number onto the market at a given time to avoid too much supply flooding the market and causing prices to drop.