Saturday, August 30, 2008

Preforeclosure Home Buying Tips

By Margaret Taylor


Pre foreclosures are those properties that have reached the final stages before they get foreclosed or taken back by the lender or bank. At this point the original owner is still in complete control of the home, although the bank or lender will repossess the home if the owner doesn't rectify the situation or cure the default. Normally, if the owner catches the payments up to date, the foreclosure process will be stopped and things will go back to normal.

When buying real estate, there are several benefits to checking out pre foreclosures first. Although there are many ways that you can buy a home, pre foreclosure may be one of the best. In spite of the many advantages to buying a pre foreclosure home, many people miss out simply because they aren't familiar with pre foreclosures and how the process works.

The most important benefit of a pre foreclosure is the discount price. Usually, the present owner has no choice at that point other than to sell the house. So they will usually seriously look at just about any offer that comes in. Today's real estate market presents an excellent opportunity to purchase homes at up to half off of market value.

Accompanying the low prices you can get when buying a pre foreclosure home, you will also have the benefit of dealing directly with the owner instead of a hard nosed third party. This creates a significant advantage, since buyers are able to assume control with much less difficulty. Should the home seller decide to turn down the offer, he may face not finding another buyer and losing the property. Even a low sales price may provide the opportunity for the seller to save their credit.

The process of locating pre foreclosures is substantially the same process used to find properties which are already owned by the bank. One good source is the legal advertisements in the local newspaper. Internet sites such as Craigslist are also excellent sources for pre foreclosure leads. Once you have located a pre foreclosure, you will need to negotiate carefully to get the home of your dreams at a great price.

There is much less competition over pre foreclosures than foreclosures already owned by the bank. This can lead to steep discounts. Anyone who is in the market for a new home needs to check out pre foreclosed properties first.

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