Buying a list of foreclosed houses.

[gobiggergoredder]

I see all these advertisements about 'bank owned' and foreclosed housing lists. Can someone explain this to me? Are these really private lists that most people don't have access to? Are they really a hidden gem? Are these houses not listed on the MLS?

 

It just seems like a scam.

 

Thanks

[NUance]

I think if it's a bank foreclosure then people might not have access to any such list. Tax foreclosure properties are published in the newspaper on a regular basis.

[carlfense]

I see all these advertisements about 'bank owned' and foreclosed housing lists. Can someone explain this to me? Are these really private lists that most people don't have access to? Are they really a hidden gem? Are these houses not listed on the MLS?

 

It just seems like a scam.

 

Thanks

You can go into almost any mid to large sized bank and ask to see their portfolio of properties. They won't charge you and if you know what you're doing you can find some real bargains. Make sure that you get a thorough title inspection.

[Bradr]

I'll sell ya my house. Been listed in Omaha for about 3 months now. You don't even need a list!

[HSKR]

The question is why would a bank want to have private lists for not many to see when they are trying to sell it for the most amount that they can get? Now I can see that they may not want to use realtors to avoid those fees but you would think they would still try to get the word out what they have for sale with signs, paper ads, their website, etc. Of the foreclosures that I have seen in my town, they pretty much all used realtors to sell them but I know that varies. One word of caution that I would ad when it comes to foreclosures, especially older houses is you are better off using extra due diligence when it comes to making sure everything in the house is working properly and in good condition because I have seen people really let go of properties once they know they are in financial trouble and the house gets run down fast. It doesn't do much good to save $10K on house if you find out you need $15K of repairs 3 months after moving in.

[gobiggergoredder]

The question is why would a bank want to have private lists for not many to see when they are trying to sell it for the most amount that they can get? Now I can see that they may not want to use realtors to avoid those fees but you would think they would still try to get the word out what they have for sale with signs, paper ads, their website, etc. Of the foreclosures that I have seen in my town, they pretty much all used realtors to sell them but I know that varies. One word of caution that I would ad when it comes to foreclosures, especially older houses is you are better off using extra due diligence when it comes to making sure everything in the house is working properly and in good condition because I have seen people really let go of properties once they know they are in financial trouble and the house gets run down fast. It doesn't do much good to save $10K on house if you find out you need $15K of repairs 3 months after moving in.

 

This is what I don't get.

[T_O_Bull]

A lot of forclosures are crap.

T_O_B

[Conga3]

The question is why would a bank want to have private lists for not many to see when they are trying to sell it for the most amount that they can get? Now I can see that they may not want to use realtors to avoid those fees but you would think they would still try to get the word out what they have for sale with signs, paper ads, their website, etc. Of the foreclosures that I have seen in my town, they pretty much all used realtors to sell them but I know that varies. One word of caution that I would ad when it comes to foreclosures, especially older houses is you are better off using extra due diligence when it comes to making sure everything in the house is working properly and in good condition because I have seen people really let go of properties once they know they are in financial trouble and the house gets run down fast. It doesn't do much good to save $10K on house if you find out you need $15K of repairs 3 months after moving in.

 

This is what I don't get.

 

Because they're banks....and not in the business of selling homes. It's also a bit counter-productive from an advertising/marketing standpoint.

"Bank with us...we foreclose on a lot of our customers!

"

 

They want to quickly and quietly remove foreclosures from their books and reduce their losses as much as possible in the process.