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How to Buy a Foreclosed Home

Are you ready to take the plunge and buy a home? If you answered yes, you may be considering buying a new home. Have you thought about buying a foreclosed home instead?

Motivated sellers, increased bargaining power, conducting home inspections during the standard contingency period are some of the top advantages of buying foreclosed homes (HGTV).

You may think only experts or experienced home buyers can only pull this off. Believe it or not, you can buy one if you learn how to buy a foreclosed home.

Don’t know where to start?

We’ve got you covered.

Here are the steps you should follow to buy a foreclosed home today.

forclosed home

 

Consult a Local Real Estate Agent

While it isn’t impossible to buy a foreclosed home on your own, you should always consider consulting a local real estate agent.

An expert can help you locate foreclosed homes that meet your needs.

Search for local experts who possess Short Sale or Foreclosure designations.

Consulting a knowledgeable expert ensures guidance every step of the way when buying a foreclosed home.

A realtor can also provide a list of available foreclosure homes for sale in your area.

Believe it or not, locating these properties is more difficult than you think.

foreclosed home with real estate agent sign

Choose Your Home

After looking at the list of foreclosed homes, you should narrow it down to your top 3 or 5 choices.

Before choosing potential homes, it’s important to discuss them with your realtor.

Your agent can provide insight into the potential ultimate cost and process to close the sale.

The real estate agent can also contact the seller to learn more about the property’s condition.

Place an Offer

Like when buying any home, you’ll need to place an offer on the property.

Your realtor can offer insight into the best offer to close the deal based on their experience.

 If the property is on foreclosure auction, you’ll need to provide a cash payment immediately.

cash and keys in front of foreclosed home with sign

Conduct the Standard Due Diligence Home Inspections

Most homebuyers focus on getting the best deal on a foreclosed home.

Yet, inspecting to ensure the property is worth the investment is vital.

When you buy a foreclosed home, you can conduct a home inspection to learn about the property’s condition.

However, buyers can’t obtain home inspections on properties bought in a foreclosure auction.

Buy Your Dream Home

After covering all your bases, it’s time to close your foreclosed home.

If you buy it during a foreclosure auction, you’ll provide the cash payment at the auction.

When it comes to Post-foreclosed, Bank-Owned and pre-foreclosure properties, you may obtain a mortgage to buy your home.

foreclosed home with sold sign

So You Learned How to Buy a Foreclosed Home; now What?

Learning how to buy a foreclosed home is the first step to buying your dream abode below market value.

Being a homeowner is no small feat. Unfortunately, taking ownership of your home is not the end game; you must continually manage and take care of your property. Don’t let this intimidate you; instead, look at it as an opportunity to take your investment and improve it. To give you a good head start, check out this list of some of the most common home repairs.

Before going house hunting, you should figure out your budget. Start by taking a look at your finances and your monthly budget.

What mortgage payment can you afford?

Consider consulting a potential lender to obtain insight into your chances of approval and mortgage rates.

Doing your homework will ensure you shop around for an affordable home that meets your needs.

Did you find this article useful? Keep checking the rest of our site to find more helpful tips and articles.

About Julee: Julee Morrison is an experienced author with 35 years of expertise in parenting and recipes. She is the author of four cookbooks: The Instant Pot College Cookbook, The How-To Cookbook for Teens, The Complete Cookbook for Teens, and The Complete College Cookbook. Julee is passionate about baking, crystals, reading, and family. Her writing has appeared in The LA Times (Bon Jovi Obsession Goes Global), Disney's Family Fun Magazine (August 2010, July 2009, September 2008), and My Family Gave Up Television (page 92, Disney Family Fun August 2010). Her great ideas have been featured in Disney's Family Fun (Page 80, September 2008) and the Write for Charity book From the Heart (May 2010). Julee's work has also been published in Weight Watchers Magazine, All You Magazine (Jan. 2011, February 2011, June 2013), Scholastic Parent and Child Magazine (Oct. 2011), Red River Family Magazine (Jan. 2011), BonAppetit.com, and more. Notably, her article "My Toddler Stood on Elvis' Grave and Scaled Over Boulders to Get to a Dinosaur" made AP News, and "The Sly Way I Cured My Child's Lying Habit" was featured on PopSugar. When she's not writing, Julee enjoys spending time with her family and exploring new baking recipes.
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