Robin Sing-Cunningham

Tracey I a sorry you have received some erroneous information. With all due respect to Angela, that is not how the process works. Here is the sequence of events.

1. On August 21, 2008 the auction will take place. As you are the tenant, you must have been formally served. (If not then you should speak to an attorney as to your rights), but assuming you have been served, you have every right to speak to the clerk and to the bank's attorney to see where they stand in the process.

2. On August 22, 2008, I would call down to the clerk's office, give them the case number and see if the auction was indeed held. Often times because of one reason or another, the auctions are postponed. It is very important that you determine and CONFIRM if the property was sold at the auction. You also need to find out who the high bidder was.

3. In the Final Judgment, A Writ of Possession is usually included as approved as a formality giving the new owner the right to forcibly evict you if need be.

4. However, just becasue the property was sol at auction they do not immediately receive ownership.

5. In order to have ownership conveyed the Clerk will issue a Certificate of Title. It's the foreclosure equivlalent of a deed...if you will. This is usually not conveyed for 10-14 days depending upon the backlog in the Clerk's office.

6. Once the bank or other new owner obtaines the Certificate of Title they can request the Sheriff to execute the Writ of Possession and evict you.

7. If it goes this far, the Sheriff will come out and post a notice saying you must leave the premises within 24 hours. At this point you had better make sure you're gone. You don't want to go through this.

I do have to agree with Angela though in one regard, why bother going through the hassle of an eventuality. While you may have as much as a month and as little as two weeks after the auction before you are removed, why wait. Start looking now so that you are not caught with your pants down.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me or visit my website at http://www.robinashley.com for more information.

Good Luck,
Robin
954-709-7461
robins@robinashley.com - Fri Aug 1 2008, 13:09

Hi June!

Can I interest you in maybe a unit with a butler and 24 hour limo service as well?? Just kidding. I love interacting with people who know what they want and ask very direct questions. Aahh..You're a New Yorker..no wonder..

Well all kidding aside, you'll undoubtedly get some great answers here and I hope I can be of some assistance in your search as well.

My website, the Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Blog can be a wealth of information for you. In addition to the many articles about real estate and life in South Florida, you can perform a customized search utilizing many different parameters to search for the home or condo in our area in complete privacy with no sales call intrusion.

Simply follow this link to : http://www.robinashley.com/property-search/ ...once there you pick the areas and search specifically for homes and condos that meet your criteria.

In the interim I took the liberty of creating you a sample search on the site. You can go to the sample search page by going to http://www.robinashley.com/custom-searches/june-phelps-search/

If you feel like changing your criteria from the hundreds of options, simply feel free to do so. By searching in this manner you get a complete true review of ALL properties that meet your criteria, not just the ones that some real estate agent may want to steer you to. I hate that!

Search as many times as you want, as often as you want at no cost. This feature of the Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Blog (http://www.robinashley.com) is completely free.

I hope you will see, as have thousands of users today, that my website is changing the way real estate is searched and purchased, at least here in South Florida.

Hope the searches as shown above help you out and if you need anything, don't hesitate to call or email.

Regards,
Robin
954-709-7461
robins@robinashley.com - Mon Jul 28 2008, 09:21

Hi Jill,

Congratualtions on your move and great job finding a deal on a foreclosure in Weston. Hope you're prepared for the drive during rush hour! (A little humor)

I am sure you have read the other answers below so I am just going to be direct and get to your questions:

You asked-"do we work with a traditional realtor when buying a foreclosed home or are there specialists? " While many real estate agents will SAY they are foreclosure specialists, many have no clue as to how to work the labyrith of issues that can be involved in buying a foreclosure. Of course, it is your choice to work with a traditional realtor, an expert REO realtor or in fact no realtor at all. The choice is totally up to you.

I recently wrote an article about this that may be of interest to you. You can find the article by following this link: http://www.robinashley.com/2008/05/13/have-you-thought-about…

Your second question-"given that we're going to be financing our home and not paying cash, does that mean we generally won't be able to bid on auctioned homes (and thus should focus our attn on Lis Pendens and REO homes?)" In previous years, banks would'nt think of looking at an offer on an REO unless it was a cash offer. But that was then and this is now. Another story I recently penned discusses the financing option for those looking to finance foreclosures. You can get to that article by following this link: http://www.robinashley.com/2008/06/18/bank-owned-properties-…

Your last question may be the reason you do need to do a bit of research and find someone who really knows what they are talking about when it comes to buying foreclosures. Your question was: "can we rely on the estimated bid amount and the remaining loan balance as good ballparks for what the homes will sell for? "

Answer, not at all. The home will sell for what someone is willing to pay. A listing price is to be ignored when looking at foreclosures and REO's...in fact in this market you can pretty much ignore a listing price on ALL homes for sale. That is a pipedream and a figment of someone's imagination whether that someone be an agent or seller.

Your offer is to be what YOU deem the home to be worth to YOU and what YOU are willing to pay for it. Some of my clients are getting deals on foreclosures at prices 30%-50% or more of what someone determined the house to be worth. Banks MUST move these properties. That's not to say they are giving away homes just becasue you want a good deal. No, you and the agent you decide to work with will need to justify your offer to the lender or asset manager and support with documentation why you should receive the discount you are requesting.

Here's an article about pricing on REO / foreclosed properties and any property you are looking at buying, it includes an interview with Jonathan Miller, arguably the most well respected appraiser in the USA. You can read that article I recently wrote here: http://www.robinashley.com/2008/07/20/can-you-handle-the-tru…

Jill, I know this is a wordy response but I wanted to make sure that you received the answers to the questions that you were asking. If you need any further information feel free to visit the Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Blog at http://www.robinashley.com, which has rapidly become the source for real estate information for buyers and sellers in the South Florida real estate market.

I hope I was of some assistance to you.

Robin
robins@robinashley.com
954-709-7461 - Sun Jul 27 2008, 13:54

This is one of those questions where you have to wonder if you are being set up ...but hey, I'm game.

The obvious answer is of course I'd love to sell you a condo near federal and commercial. But before I or anybody else can fit you, how about a bit more information? Or better yet, how about visiting my website and from there you can go shopping!

My website, the Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Blog, is quickly becoming the go to resource for prospective homebuyers. Along with hundreds of articles and community information, you'll be able to shop for that home or condo that fits your needs. Better yet, you'll be able to do so in complete privacy from the comfort of your home or office.

No one will contact you until you indicate that you are ready to be contacted. Join the thousands of prospective homebuyers who have found the Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Blog as the most important resource for finding a home or condo in the Fort Lauderdale real estate market.

You can search for homes by going to:

http://www.robinashley.com/property-search/ once there you can customize your search in any manner that you choose.

Let me know if you have any questions as I and my staff stand willing to assist in any way we can.

Now stop pulling my leg Eric, you're making our job too easy...so easy in fact, be sure to ask me about our cash back at closing option wherein you get cash at closing just for allowing us to serve you. - Sat Jul 26 2008, 10:03

Hi Zebra,

Coral Springs is a nice area. If you are looking to rent, you will have to have someone check with both the owner renting the unit and the association if they even allow pets. As has been said, some have restrictions and some do not allow them at all.

I have just run a search and there are over 600 units available in the Coral Springs area available that allow pets.

If you are interested in seeing them you can do so from the privacy of your home or office without having to speak to me or any other agent.

My website, the Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Blog, which is rapidly becoming the #1 resource for buyers and sellers in the Greater Fort Lauderdale area, will allow you to perform a customized search for that right unit.

Once you have narrowed down your search I would be glad to be of assistance to you. But in the interim, feel free to use my website and I hope that you find what you are looking for. Understand that help is an email or call away.

Please go to: http://www.robinashley.com and when you are there click the "Search for Homes" button at the top and you will be able to customize your search in just about any way that you want. Once you are in search mode there are a ton of options for you to select, one of course, is "pets allowed".

I hope this is of some help to you and good luck. - Thu Jul 24 2008, 03:46