Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Investing in Foreclosures

When your financial future is at stake you want to make the best decisions you can with your money.  One of the best ways to ensure a good return on your investment is by investing in foreclosures. You can find these properties for pennies on the dollar.  There are so many repossessions on the market right now it is the perfect time to consider this option.
You can find many good deals just by watching the sheriff sales in the local paper.  Sometimes there is a list each week which tells what the appraisal value is of the property.  The sale generally asks for two thirds of the appraisal.  This means a $90,000 house can be bought for only $60,000.  This is great for an investor.  You would already have equity in the home.  Financing is not hard to get when you have been preapproved by the lender.  This is the only way to go when you want to buy a home from the sheriff's auction.
Investing in foreclosures can be very profitable if you do your homework first. This means making sure the property is worth the investment.  You need to know if the neighborhood is up and coming or deteriorating.  If the property values are falling, you should avoid the sale unless you plan on using the property as a rental unit.  This means you can buy it at way below market value, rent is for a few years, and sell it for a profit when you decide to liquidate.
You must never buy properties which are offered for the same price as the appraisal.  You do not want to find yourself in a position where the property can not give you a return on your investment.  Most investors who have been buying and selling properties claim that buying a property for a price 50% or less of the appraised value is the only way investing in foreclosures will work.
In many cases you can find foreclosures listed with many financial companies.  They are not in the business of real estate and having these properties on the books looks bad for them. The lenders need to sell the properties and are usually willing to make a deal with qualified buyers.  If you have ever considered investing in foreclosures it would be wise to speak with a lender who has properties to sell.  There have been times when they will sell the properties for only what is owed.  This can mean getting a property for literally pennies on the dollar.  I know of one investor who was able to buy a home like this for only $15,000.  The appraisal showed the property to be worth $85,000.  The finance company needed to get the property sold and made a very good deal.
This sort of thing happens all the time to people investing in foreclosures.  They find the properties listed with banks or the HUD office.  They approach the finance company with an offer. Many times the offer is accepted.  There are times when the offer is refused, but in most cases like this the lender comes back with a counter offer.  You can make good money investing in foreclosures if you just follow a few simple rules.
Make sure you know the property.  Understand the market you are buying in.  Never pay full price for a property.  Know what you want the property for before you buy.  Do not borrow more than you can afford to pay back.  Do not think of it as a get rich quick scheme.  Have the property inspected for unseen damage.  Do not spend a lot of money on repairs.  This a quick guideline on investing in foreclosures.


Sarah Miller can give you expert advices on foreclosure investment in real estate college station. She is one of the few trusted and reliable remax realtors college station

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