Are you in the market to purchase a home or condo? Have you heard all the talk of the growing amount of foreclosures? If you’re looking to buy, it’s time to get on the search train and take advantage of the great prices out there. Unfortunately, the economy and all of the bad loans out there has created a large flux of properties for sale. So, so many forclosures are available. If you were to look for foreclosures in the Savannah area a couple of years ago you may have found a few properties at any given time. Those were of course due to normal happenings, loss of jobs, deadbeats, etc. Today, there are new properties that show up on our mls system daily as foreclosures. Many of the homes were sold way above what they were worth in the past few years. Today’s prices are so much lower. Will they ever reach what they were a few years ago? No one knows that answer for certain.
Just how do you buy a foreclosure that’s on the market? The first thing you’ll need to do is find yourself a Realtor. Your agent can get you a list of the current properties that will fit your needs. Prior to looking at any homes you must be pre-approved for a loan. This is a very important part of puchasing these type of homes. The banks have already lost this property once and they won’t even consider your offer without full evidence that you are credit worthy. If you are purchasing with cash, a bank will need verification of funds from your banking system as proof.
Your Realtor and you will begin the searching process. There are many homes to look through. You’ll find that many are actually in good condition. You’ll also find that many need repairs. These properties are being priced competitively with the market and typically somewhat under value. If you see something that appears to be so low that it’s unheard of, chances are it is in extremely bad condition.
You will be purchasing a foreclosure AS-IS. This means that you are buying the property with the bank not considering doing repairs. There are some instances where a bank will consider repairs (if the bank has accepted a VA or FHA offer and repairs are needed to qualify property for loan, if bank has disclosed some form of willingness to do repairs up front, etc.). The one saving grace is that you will have a due diligence period in which you will have the right to inspect the property for major defects and/or structural issues. If you find something major that’s going to affect the structural or habitability of the home that you can substantiate (maybe the home was full of toxic mold, the underneath of the structure was crumbling beyond repair, the walls are completely full of termites, etc.) most banks will allow you to get out of the contract. YOU MUST KNOW WHAT IS IN THE CONTRACT THAT YOU HAVE SIGNED! Every contract is different and you must read what you are signing. Time frames in the contract are critical. This is where your realtor is needed.
Once inspections are done and you are comfortable with the home, you’ll proceed on to closing. In the Savannah, GA area the closing will be held at an attorney’s office. You must close within the time frames of your contact! Many bank owned properties will charge you a daily rate, somewhere between 50 to 100 dollars per day if you go over your intended closing date. This can really add up, so you must be realistic in setting a closing date when your contract is written.
This is just a quick run through of what to expect in looking for a foreclosure. There are the negotiation stages, the waiting for the bank to respond to your offer, the emails in between while bank is negotiating, the waiting for the bank to actually sign the contract after they’ve verbally accepted your offer, the waiting for the bank to get the utilities on so that you can do the inspections, and more. Again, that’s why you need an experienced realtor. If you’re looking for a foreclosure in the Savannah, GA area please keep me in mind. I have been an agent for over fifteen years and have sold many foreclosures. I’d love to be your agent if you need one.
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