Buying a Foreclosure: Tips on What to Avoid

Buying a foreclosed home may be an affordable way for first time home buyers to enter the market place.

Purchasing foreclosed homes can save the new buyer tons of cash! Many times the seller (either a bank or the county) want to make sure they do not lose money on the deal as opposed to actually want to turn a profit. If you are considering taking the plunge into the sea of foreclosed home purchasing, then knowing what you should avoid is as equally important as educating yourself on the purchasing process.

Tip 1: Don’t buy at a court auction

When you are looking at foreclosed homes, you should avoid shopping at a court auction.

When consumers opt to purchase a foreclosed home through a court auction the property is usually purchased site unseen and the inspection process is totally omitted from the process. A home inspection is the one step no one should avoid when looking at foreclosed homes because many home repairs are more than surface deep and there will be no way for you to budget for the proper repair amounts.

Additionally, court auctioned homes may have tax liens on them the new owner will be responsible for paying off as well.

Tip 2: Shopping online? Don’t pay for listings

If your search for a foreclosed home takes you online, avoid paying for bank foreclosure listing information.

Banks do not want to hold onto these properties and generally have their own Web sites promoting their listings. To view this information should cost you absolutely nothing. All you need to do is search “foreclosure listings” and the bank name and the results directly linking to their listing page will come up.

Tip 3: Don’t buy a home someone is living in

You should also avoid buying a foreclosed home that still has the original owner living in it.

The foreclosure process is timely and many times the original owner is putting off the final result until the last second. If you purchase a foreclosed home with the original owner in it, you may be in the position of having to evict them. They may be angry at your intervention and do some damage to the property.