Buying REO property or a foreclosure in Clayton?


	Savvy consumers will turn to a seasoned pro when considering a foreclosed property.

What is an REO?

"REO" or Real Estate Owned are houses which have gone through foreclosure that the bank or mortgage company currently possesses. This is unlike a property up for foreclosure auction. Century 21 Suburban Real Estate, Inc. has experience to share with foreclosures and bank owned properties in Clayton, North Carolina

Century 21 Suburban Real Estate, Inc. has experience to share with foreclosures and bank owned properties in Clayton, North Carolina

If you buy a property during a foreclosure sale, you must pay at least the loan balance plus any interest and other fees accrued during the foreclosure process. You must also be willing to pay with cash in hand. Finally, you'll accept the property completely as is. That might include existing liens and even current tenants that may require removal.

A bank-owned property, on the contrary, is a more tidy and attractive option. The REO property did not find a buyer during foreclosure auction. Now the lender owns it. The lender will attend to the removal of tax liens, evict occupants if needed and generally arrange for the issuance of a title insurance policy to the buyer at closing.

Note that REOs may be exempt from typical disclosure requirements. For instance, in California, banks do not have to give a Transfer Disclosure Statement, a document that usually requires sellers to make known any defects they are aware of. By hiring Century 21 Suburban Real Estate, Inc., you can rest assured knowing all parties are fulfilling North Carolina state disclosure requirements.

Am I guaranteed a good deal when purchasing a bank owned property in Clayton?

It is occasionally assumed that any REO must be a steal and an opportunity for guaranteed profit. This frequently isn't true. You have to be very careful about buying a repossession if your intent is make a profit. Even though the bank is often anxious to offload it quickly, they are also motivated to minimize any losses.

Century 21 Suburban Real Estate, Inc. has experience to share with foreclosures and bank owned properties in Clayton, North Carolina

When contemplating what to pay for a foreclosure, carefully analyze comparable sales in the neighborhood and be sure to take into account the time and cost of any repairs or remodeling needed to prepare the house for resale. The bargains with money making potential exist, and many people do very well flipping foreclosures. However there are also many REOs that are not good buys and may not be money makers.

Prepared to make an offer?

Most mortgage companies have a department dedicated to REO that you'll work with while buying REO property from them. Normally the REO department will use a listing agent to get their REO properties listed on the local MLS.

Prior to making your offer, you'll want to contact either the listing agent or REO department at the bank and learn as much as you can about what they know regarding the condition of the property and what their process is for taking offers. Since banks typically sell REO properties "as is", it's often prudent to include an inspection contingency in your offer that gives you time to check for unseen damage and cancel the offer if you find it. As with making any offer on real estate, providing documentation of your ability to pay may make your offer more attractive, such as a pre-approval letter from a lender.

Once you've submitted your offer, you can expect the bank to counter offer. Then it will be up to you to decide whether to accept their counter, or offer a counter to the counter offer. Realize, you'll be contending with a process that usually involves a group of people at the bank, and they don't work evenings or weekends. It's quite common for the process of offers and counter offers to take days or even weeks.

* MOL = More or Less