Purchasing Properties
Investing with HUD Properties
What Is HUD?
The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, often abbreviated HUD, is a Cabinet department of the United States federal government. Although its beginnings were in the House and Home Financing Agency, it was founded in 1965 to develop and execute policy on housing and cities. It has largely scaled back its urban development function and now focuses primarily on housing. Another program the department offers is sponsoring mortgages so that low- to mid-level income individuals can purchase a home. Read more …
Buying Foreclosures at Auctions and Trustee’s Sales
There are many reasons that a home may go to foreclosure auction, also known as a trustee’s sale:
- Defaulted mortgage payments
- Seizure by IRS because of tax non-payment
- Nonpayment of real estate tax
- Probate after death
- Property abandonment or condemnation
Auctions are the riskiest way to buy foreclosures and should be used only when the investor has obtained experience and fully understands the foreclosure investing business. Read more …
Negotiating Short Sales
Many investors don’t want to spend the time on short sales because their up front costs can make the deal less lucrative. However, with some skill and research, you can negotiate a deal that works for you, the homeowner and the lender. There are three main steps when negotiating short sales. Read more …
Investing with REO Properties
REO Properties
An REO is a property that is ”real estate owned” by the mortgager. These properties begin as foreclosures, but unfortunately, the lack of equity in the home makes the price higher than the home’s value and no one bids on them when they go to auction. When there are no bids placed on the property, as often happens, they become property of the mortgage company. Read more …
Current Foreclosure Market Conditions
What’s Happening in the Foreclosure Market?
As we see the mortgage crisis continue, the number of foreclosures on the market continues to rise. In the release of September 2008 RealtyTrac’s U.S. Foreclosure Market Report, there was a decrease of 12 percent from the previous month but still a 21 percent increase from this time last year. A large reason for this decrease is the changes in state laws that are slowing the rate at which lenders can go forth with foreclosures. While the impact of new state laws are starting to take effect, there are still an alarming number of homes in pre-foreclosure or already foreclosed. Below are the top states for the highest and lowest total number of foreclosures, as well as the rates of foreclosure. Read more …