Investor · Dover, MA · Member since 2012 · 60 posts · 16 votes
There is a multi - million dollar property in my town that I have had my eye on for months. The owner just went to jail (long story) for 7 years, and I know that the bank is going to foreclose. But I don't want to wait for it to hit MLS for obvious reasons.
Has anyone ever been able to successfully contact the bank (Countrywide, now BofA in this case) or the asset manager directly and make an offer? After reading several posts on BP, it sounds like it is pretty much impossible, right? How would I even find out which asset manager to contact?
It's such a bummer that the banks are not more transparent, as it would undoubtedly save them time and $$ in the long run. Maybe it's a regulation thing that they can't?
Tim, I've been in this business a long time and I've never seen this work. I had a very similar situation once where I tried to buy the note (denied), and finally tracked down the owner in jail and bought it from him directly. While in escrow, BofA refused to issue a payoff demand for the loan because they had written it off! I had to practically beg them to take the money. These guys are just too big for their own good. That said, it probably doesn't benefit them to sell to you prior to the property going on the market. Today's market conditions are in their favor.
You have a chance of buying before the MLS with a small local bank. But not with BAC or any large national lender. You have a better chance of getting through to the Secretary of HUD than you do of finding out the proper person to talk to at BAC.
If it's a pre foreclosure the bank can't sell it to you, they don't own it yet. You'd have to do a short sale, but if a short sale is not listed in mls with the ability for buyers to make offers it can be considered fraud.
You could try to buy the note, but that would be a complete waste of time with b of a.
I am a broker and have closed a LOT of short sales with B of A. One of the requirements is that the property be listed with a broker/agent and be placed on the MLS. It is ultimately up to the owner to decide which offer to submit, but the bank will require a copy of the listing agreement and MLS printout. BAC will also do an appraisal, not a BPO, and they usually want market value pricing. The property belongs to the owner, so BAC is not in a position to sell it.