BEST ANSWER
As far as a solid investment I believe that if its on the water or near the water, and you are a long term investor, these could be a good investment. Just move forward 10 years. Do you think that there will be any condos on or close to the beach priced between $30 -$50K? The lure of the beach and ocean is not going away. Some of these properties in that price range were $169,900. just a few years ago, but the owners couldn't hold on to them because of a large mortgage payment. If you buy at these prices, since your overhead is much lower, it makes it more afordable. Now I'm not saying that even at these low prices that every property will cash flow. but you will have an inexpensive place at the beach. It’s not about finding a foreclosure, or even finding a bank owned property. It’s all about finding a good one can that can be the real challenge. Most banks don’t want Realtors to advertise properties as ‘bank-owned’ because that is negative impact for the bank. Many times a for sale sign will not disclose the true status of the property. Nor will the flyers and other marketing materials. Some times it’s hard to tell which properties are taken back by a bank foreclosure or even deficiency judgment proceedings. Many people think the word Foreclosure = Good Deal. Just be careful. Not all foreclosures are good deals. If the property is a condo, there could be home owner’s association problems, assessments, law suits, or maybe just high home owner’s association fees. Maybe the complex has lower than average rental income. These could be good reasons why the previous owner had problems making the payments and could be potentially why the property is a foreclosure in the first place. You don’t want to acquire someone else’s problems. Some foreclosure houses are in various states of disrepair; some of the fixes are cosmetic, but some can be extensive.
One option for finding foreclosure listings: Go straight to the local expert. You can go many places on the internet. Some websites will have you sign up and pay for foreclosure listings. Why pay?
You may be searching a web site and sign up for listing alerts, but that will only the beginning. This type of tool will only give you the tip of the ice berg. This could be only a small portion of what is available.
You need someone working for you. You need the local expert that can give you all the details on the best properties in the local area. When the expert works for you, they can tell you why one property may be average and the other one may be way above average. You need to have the pro working for you in your best interest to get the very best deal.
You’ll also need the leg up on your bidding competition. If you are paying cash have your proof of funds ready. If you are going to finance, have your pre approval letter ready. (And be sure that lender will lend on the type of property you are bidding on) When you are searching for properties online, and don’t have a professional Realtor working for you, you are self represented. You are on your own! Basically you are searching in the dark with a small flashlight.
If you have the expert working for you, it’s like turning on the Stadium lights. Now you can see what is out there.Many banks have properties that are not listed in the MLS listing system. For the most part, the MLS listing info is what you will find on the internet. By relying on this as your only tool, you are only going to see just some of the listings. Many of the best deals are gone before you even know they were on the market!
Your local experts in the market place are going to be way ahead of the curve and can see what is coming to market. They study the market daily. They subscribe to all the bank pre foreclosure and direct bank foreclosure listings. They go to the court house auctions. They go to the tax sale auctions. They go to the bank foreclosure auctions. And they know where the market place is, what will be coming to market soon, and what is in the pipe line for the future. How much does it cost to have a pro working for you? Nothing. Zip. Nada. It’s the best free service there is. Hire a local expert buyer’s agent for Free!
There are some absolutely fantastic deals currently being made with Foreclosures and Short Sales. Now is your time to get your piece of the action. You know what they always say” Buy when they are selling and sell when they are buying”!
Jerry Pinkas Home Selling Team - is your local expert in all your Real Estate needs in the Myrtle Beach Area. Our Team is dedicated to inform our clients on how to be a pro in the local real estate market and avoid common pitfalls that are costly. You will have access to the most comprehensive MLS Listing Service in the area with Free access and with lots of tools for both Buyers and Sellers. Award Winning – Top Ranked – Highly Recommended – Call The Pros - Google or call (843) 222-1926
Fri Oct 23 2009, 08:17
Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity