I would recommend you chose a strong aggressive agent that has experience with this area. I have been selling real estate for over 10 years and have purchased many properties of this nature. Since I have been through the process personally I can give you ideas that most agents can't Please feel free to email me if you would like further information.

Peter Chiarkas

Cont:

Hello again, this is Maria. I ran out of space....oops.

I have helped many buyers buy homes significantly less than asking price but we did make other parts of the contract appealing. For Banks especially it is not always about money. Their goal is to move inventory as quickly possible.

9. Be patient, very patient. In a regular transaction, you can expect an answer from the seller is a day or two. No so with banks. It may take up to weeks. It's just the nature of the beast. Just keep in constant contact with your agent.

That's it for now. I hope this information is helpful. I would like to know how you do on this. I do know of a FSBO on E. Irvin Street but I don't believe it's a foreclosure. Good luck and please know that I am here to help. I am now accepting new buyer clients. This is a great time to buy not just because of the $8000 tax credit but because of the historical low interest rates. A buyer of mine locked in the other day at 4.8%...wow!

If this doesn't work out just keep looking. Your new home is out there. Hook up with an agent who will have more access to properites on the market. It's what we do.

Smile,
Maria

Hello...Congrats on finding a property. That's the first step of many. The house on E. Irvin, do you know for sure if it's a foreclosure property? If it is, then the next question would be at what stage is the foreclosure in. If it's listed by an agent, all you would need is to contact that agent or an agent of your choosing. As with all foreclosures, you will need to go into the deal with the mindset of "buyer beware" . You will most likely have to accept the property in "as is" condition. "As is" condition does not necessary mean there is something wrong with the property, it just tells us the bank is "probably" not going to do anything. Keep in mind, they have already lost a lot of money.
I have listed homes that have been foreclosed and one of the bank's requirements is to have the property "checked out" to make sure it is at least safe to allow buyers to go through. So you can be sure the bank is somewhat familiar with what is wrong with the property.

Even though I said "as is", you do have the right to have someone like an inspector go in and inspect the property, but in most cases the home will not have all utilites on. You can still have the structure and other features checked out. In most cases the bank will allow this but will remind you the property is being sold "as is".

So bottom line if you and I were working as a team, here is a list of things I would recommend you do:
1. Go to a bank:
-Get pre-qualified, even better get pre-approved
-Ask the bank what type of mortgage you would qualify for....this is very important. If you have to go FHA, VA, then you are NOT going to be able to consider a foreclosure as a possible home.
-Decide if you will be living in the property or buying it as an investment? As an investment, the interest rate and downpayment will most likely be higher.
-Ask the bank if they offer a Rehab program. Rehab programs will appraise the property taking into account the updates you will be doing and loan you that money to do the work.
-Once the bank tells you what type of loan and the amount of your downpayment...start working on that.

2. If the property is listed...hire an agent. It will cost you nothing and you will get the experience you need on your side. Your agent will do what they can to find out as much as possible about the property. They will have access to tax records. If the property is listed then chances are the title is clean but your mortgage lender will still require a title search to be done.

3. If the property is not listed...you will need to find out who the main point of contact is. In most cases this will be very difficult to do. Again depending on what stage of foreclosure the property is in, you will not be able to get much information. Banks typically do not speak directly to buyers. If for example, you know someone who is going to lose their property and you are willing to buy it...it will take months before you will be able to do anything. Regardless if the homeowner calls the bank and tells them they have someone who wants to buy their property. They have their own timeline.

4. Ok, let's assume the property is listed since this is what I know. Once the agent gets as much information as possible, have someone such as a contractor or inspector to go with you on one of the showings. Remember in most cases the utilities will not be on. Have the contractor/inspector give you a list of items and if possible an estimate of the repairs. With that list, determine how much it will cost you to bring the property to your needs....don't go over board and want to but in a jacuzzi instead of a tub.

5. Either you or your agent contact the utility companies to get an estimate for each....sewer, water, trash, electric, etc. Hopefully you will find out some juciy info such as for water the last quarter they used triple the amount of water (which could mean a leak). Sometimes you will not nothing you already didn't know but then at least you will have an estimate for utilities.

6. Now that you have an idea of what the possible costs will be, met with your agent to submit an offer. Writing an offer will take about 2 hours especially since you are a first time home buyer.

7. With your offer you will need to provide a deposit of appx $1000 or so. If your offer gets accepted, the other agent's company will deposit the check into their escrow account. Then at closing that amount will be credited to you. If you decide to walk away from the deal and have a ligit reason, you will be entitled to your money back. If not, then they get to keep the money. Your agent at any point during the transaction should be able to tell you if or if not you will be entited to the money.

8. When writing your offer, remember it is not just the offer price that the seller is looking at but the closing date, financing and inspections.

Sorry for the delay, just getting back in town. Is the property in foreclosure or is it bank owned? If the property was in foreclosure and the bank has bought it back, then the property will be listed with an agent and we can make an offer on the property. If it is in foreclosure and coming up for sheriff sale and you want to buy it at sheriff sale, you first need to do some homework. You need to be pre-approved and have 20% to put down the day of the sheriff sale and the remaining is normally due within 30 to 45 days. Before making any offers on a property, you need to have a title search done to find out what liens and judgements are against the property because you take it all. For example maybe you buy it for $100,000, but it has liens of over $200,000...you take on the liens as well. If you wait until the bank buys it back and buy it from the bank then all the liens are taken care of for the price they accept. It can be a complicated process. You really should have an agent represent your best interest so you don't get in over your head. Best of luck!

Are you qualified to purchase a home? do you have your pre-qualification and/or pre-approval from a mortgage bank? is the property listed with a broker? if you answered yes to all of the questions then you should contact the broker or agent and make an offer.