FAP Turbo

Make Over 90% Winning Trades Now!

Monday, May 4, 2009

Real Estate Foreclosure Investing and How To Get Started

By Gary Z. Bryant

As many people succumb to the pressures of the recent economic downturn, the rate of homes in foreclosure is increasing dramatically. While this is terrible news for the person going through foreclosure proceedings, it can mean finding some excellent bargain investment properties for any wise investors watching the markets.

What Exactly are Foreclosures?

Banks begin foreclosure proceedings when a home owner falls behind on mortgage payments. When those payments are so far in arrears, the bank begins to take steps to recover the money is it owed by those home owners. If there is no possible way for the home owner to raise enough cash to cover the outstanding debts, then the bank has no other choice but to sell the house used as collateral security.

Why Invest in Foreclosed Properties?

When a bank is beginning foreclosure proceedings, they simply don't care how much the house is really valued at on the real estate market. They only want to recover the money they lent out to the home owner. This can mean that smart investors have an opportunity to purchase properties at prices far below their real market values.

Typically there are three possible opportunities for buying foreclosed homes. Each option has its advantages and disadvantages.

Finding Foreclosed Properties

The first option is to try and buy property during pre-foreclosure. Pre-foreclosed properties are homes that are still owned by the home owner. This means the bank hasn't taken possession as yet. The current owners are very motivated to sell the house to get themselves out of trouble, so you could easily pick up a great bargain.

Court Actions

The second opportunity during a court auction after the property is foreclosed. The disadvantage is pretty obvious. During an auction, depending on the potential value of the property, the price can skyrocket. The advantage is that the property is now free from all debts.

When Property Has Been Acquired By The Lender

The third option you have for buying homes in foreclosure is to wait until the property has been fully acquired by the bank. As bank's have no interest in investing in real estate, they'll happily negotiate a fair price with you that covers their costs. This can sometimes mean finding a bargain priced investment property that cost much less than the real market value.

Whichever option you choose, it's always vital that you inspect the property thoroughly and investigate the true extent of any debts outstanding against the home.

Once you're sure the numbers stack up the right way, you could easily be purchasing an investment property that is valued so much higher than the price you paid for it. Wise investors also understand that by keeping purchase costs low, they also have the opportunity to build an ongoing source of income as the rent can often exceed the costs associated with owning and maintaining the investment property.

Always be sure to spend some time researching into any potential foreclosed home you're considering buying and you'll soon find that there are opportunities to make great profits very quickly. - 23199

About the Author:

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home