The Bottom Line: Is Buying A Foreclosed Home Right For You
Buying a foreclosure can be a unique opportunity for homebuyers looking to pay lower prices or below market value or for complete home restoration projects. Keep in mind that many foreclosed homes could have severe damage and structural issues, and are usually sold as-is.
Get in contact with an experienced real estate agent if you want to take a risk on a foreclosure. Your real estate agent will help guide you through the foreclosure process, because most lenders dont sell to individual buyers.
Once you find a home youre interested in, get an appraisal and property inspection completed. Youll also need to secure funding with a mortgage preapproval. Follow up with your lender and agent to finalize the sale once the results of your inspection look acceptable.
If youre ready to get a mortgage approval, get started online!
Find a local pro.
What Happens After A Foreclosure
After a foreclosure sale is completed, and a new homeowner signs a deed with the lending institution, you officially transition from homeowner to tenant. After this is completed, its imperative that you find a new place to live, and start preparing for your financial future. In order to do this, there are several possible options moving forward.
Preforeclosure Vs Foreclosure: Whats The Difference
The preforeclosure process is composed of a few steps, the first of which begins when a monthly payment is missed. When a homeowner misses 3 months of mortgage payments, theyrein default of their mortgage. That’s the unofficial beginning of the foreclosure process.
When it becomes clear that you cant make a payment, the best and first action you should take is to contact your mortgage servicer. It may be the last thing you want to do, but in most cases, lenders will work with homeowners while they get back on their feet if theyre notified as soon as the problem arises.
Legal fees make the foreclosure process very expensive, so lenders try to avoid it if possible. Lenders can work with borrowers to arrange a mortgage forbearance or a pause in payment and help them devise a repayment schedule that both parties can live with. Keeping the lines of communication open is vital to maintaining that relationship.
Rocket Mortgage® services your mortgage even after it’s sold, so homeowners who borrowed from us wont be alone when theyre faced with a difficult situation like foreclosure. Speak to one of our Mortgage Experts, and theyll help to connect you with professionals who are best suited to helping you through the process.
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A Word Of Warning: Beware Of Mortgage Scams
Facing a foreclosure and the possibility of being forced out of your home can be extremely upsetting and can make homeowners feel desperate. Be aware: there are scammers out there that attempt to frighten homeowners into believing their home is being foreclosed upon in order to steal money from them. Before agreeing to anything or paying any money to a party that attempts to contact you about foreclosure, make sure the request is legitimate. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau offers resources to help you spot and avoid foreclosure scams.
Hire A Real Estate Agent
Most lenders hand foreclosed properties off to an REOagent who works with standard real estate agents to find a buyer.
Not every real estate agent has experience working with REO agents. A qualified foreclosure agent can help you search for foreclosures, navigate your states REO buying process, negotiate your price, order an inspection and make an offer. Research real estate agents in your area and connect with an agent who specializes in foreclosure sales.
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Phase : Real Estate Owned
The lender will set a minimum bid, which takes into account the appraised value of the property, the remaining amount due on the mortgage, any other liens, and attorney fees. If the property is not sold during the public auction, the lender will become the owner and attempt to sell the property through a broker or with the assistance of a real estate-owned asset manager. These properties are often referred to as bank-owned, and the lender may remove some of the liens and other expenses in an attempt to make the property more attractive.
How Foreclosures Affect Your Credit Score
Foreclosures on your credit report are typically frowned upon from a lenders perspective. According to the , It may not be as bad as bankruptcy, but not paying your mortgage and losing your house is very close. The presence of a foreclosure on your credit report probably will make it difficult to obtain new credit at the best rates, especially if you also have problems with other credit accounts.
Foreclosures typically remain on your credit report for seven years, meaning that your creditworthiness is affected for a fairly long period of time. But by taking control of your debts and building a history of positive payments, youll be able to slowly build your credit back up to a satisfactory level.
In order to maximize your debt recovery efforts, be sure to pay credit accounts that are regularly reported to credit bureaus. Doing so will not only help to pad your credit score in the years following your foreclosure, but a creditor or lender who manually reviews your credit report will be able to see that the mortgage was the only thing hurting your credit score, which could result in an application for future credit going in your favor. In addition, its best to keep credit card balances at the recommended 30 percent of your credit limit.
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Rights Of Tenants During A Foreclosure
If there are tenants in the house that was foreclosed on, the new owner must honor the existing lease. BUT when the tenants have a month-to-month lease or the owner/landlord also lives in the home that is being foreclosed on, the new owner can evict the tenants or former owner/landlord. In these cases, the new owner may either offer the existing tenants a new lease or rental agreement or begin eviction proceedings. If the new owner chooses to evict existing tenants , the new owner must give the tenants at least 90 days notice before starting eviction proceedings.
- There are other rights that tenants have in eviction cases done after a foreclosure. If a tenant is not named in the complaint for the eviction, he or she may be able to challenge the eviction at any time during the case or even after the judgment for eviction is made. If you are an occupant of a foreclosed property where the new owner filed an eviction case, talk to a lawyer or call the Tenant Foreclosure Hotline at 1-888-495-8020 to learn about your rights.
Tenants in some California cities may still have a right to stay in their buildings. Cities with eviction or rent control laws prohibit new owners from using foreclosure as a reason for evicting tenants.
Help for tenants during a foreclosure
Purchase Your New Home
Read your inspection and appraisal results then decide if the home in question is really right for you and whether youre okay with buying a home as-is. Contact your mortgage lender to finalize your loan if you have the money or skills to make any needed renovations. Your real estate agent will help you submit your offer and prepare you for closing.
Find a local pro.
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A Note About Purchasing Through Short Sale
A short sale occurs when the homeowner sells a home for less than what they owe on the mortgage because the value has declined. Foreclosure has not been completed with a home up for short sale. The homeowner still owns the home so you work through their REALTOR®.
When you buy a home in a short sale, the lender needs to approve your offer. You might spend a lot of time waiting for approval.
What Do You Need To Know About Foreclosures
There is much to know about foreclosures, but what homeowners, buyers and real estate professionals should know up front is that it is a process. And, the foreclosure process can be lengthy.
Foreclosure is also not an immediate consequence of missing a payment. For example, mortgage lenders will not start the process of foreclosure over a late payment. Generally, lenders give homeowners a grace period of 1015 days for late payments.
However, if the homeowner is not merely late on payments but has missed payments, the lender may start the foreclosure process. The foreclosure process will only be initiated by the mortgage lender after the homeowner has been delinquent paying the mortgage for more than 120 days.
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Additionally, many people do not know that there are three different types of foreclosures.
Another thing that is important to know is that foreclosure laws are different from state to state. Depending on the state, the phases of the foreclosure process may have different lengths, and homeowners may have different options.
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Nonjudicial Foreclosures Generally Don’t Involve Any Court Action
All states allow judicial foreclosures, but about half also permit nonjudicial or “power of sale” foreclosures. In a nonjudicial foreclosure, an attorney or trustee completes certain out-of-court steps.
Typically, a nonjudicial foreclosure involves one or more of the following steps, depending on state law:
- mailing the borrower a notice of default that tells how much time the borrower has to reinstate
- recording the notice of default in the local land records office, and
- mailing the borrower a notice of sale that states when the property will be sold. Like in a judicial foreclosure, the property is usually sold at a public auction.
Depending on state laws, a borrower might get a combined notice of default and sale, just a notice of sale, or notice by publication in a newspaper and posting on the property or in a public place.
Stage : Public Notice
After three to six months of missed payments, the lender records a public notice with the County Recorders Office, indicating the borrower has defaulted on the mortgage. In some states, this is called a Notice of Default in others, its a lis pendens Latin for suit pending.
Depending on state law, the lender might be required to post the notice on the front door of the property. This official notice is intended to make borrowers aware they are in danger of losing all rights to the property and may be evicted from the premises. In other words, theyre in danger of foreclosure.
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Ways To Buy A Foreclosure Home:
In short, there are 3 ways to buy a foreclosure, or financially distressed property:
- Pre-foreclosure Property Difficulty:MediumThis is a home that is about to go into foreclosure but prior to the lender or trustee taking possession of the property. This also encompasses Short Sales which are homes that are sold below the debt owed on the property by agreement with the lender and the loanee. Currently there are very few if any short sale listings available.
- Foreclosure Auction at Courthouse / Trustee Sale Difficulty: Hard / RiskyThis type of foreclosure is a cash-only deal that takes place on the County Courthouse. The trustee will sell the trust deed to the highest bidder providing the bid is higher than the amount owed on the home. There is significantly more risk with purchasing a foreclosure this way as you will not be able to see inside the home or inspect the property prior to the sale.
- REO / Bank Owned Difficulty: Easiest WayThis type of foreclosed home happens after the bank has taken possession of the property. These homes are quite often listed on the MLS and banks are usually motivated to accept any reasonable offer. With this type of foreclosure you will be able to inspect the property prior to the final purchase.
What Is The Foreclosure Process Like
If you default on your loan by falling behind in payments or breaching the agreement in some other way, the servicer will probably refer the loan to an attorney or trustee for foreclosure. Foreclosure works differently in each state, but the two basic types are “judicial foreclosures” and “nonjudicial foreclosures.”
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Foreclosure Definition: What Is It
When you take out a mortgage, youre agreeing to put your house up as collateral for the loan. If you fail to make timely payments, the creditor can take back your house and sell it to recoup some of their money. Foreclosure rules set out exactly how a creditor can do this, but also provide some rights and protections for the homeowner. However, at the end of the foreclosure process, your home is repossessed and you must move out.
Phase : Notice Of Trustees Sale
Depending on the state, the process for initiating foreclosure is different. In some states, nonjudicial foreclosures can be done that only requires filing paperwork with the necessary court to start the process. With this, the foreclosure e process can move rather quickly. Other states have judicial foreclosures, which require court approval for each stepmeaning the process takes a bit longer.
Once forms are filed with the court or necessary approval is met, the lender’s attorney or foreclosure trustee will schedule a sale of the property. A notice of trustee’s sale is then recorded in the county where the property is locatedstating the specific time and location for the sale, as well as the minimum opening bid for the property.
The lender must also generally advertise the property in the weeks before the auction indicating that the property will be available at public auction.
The time from the notice of demand to the auction date varies by state, but can be as quick as 2-3 months. Up until the date of the auction the borrower can still make payment arrangements or pay the amount due, including attorney fees incurred by the lender to start the process.
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Do I Have To Move Out Of My House When Its In Foreclosure
Generally, you do not have to move out until the foreclosure process is complete, which can take a few months or up to a year or longer. However, once your house is sold, you have to leave the property. You might have some time after the sale date to live in the home, but that timeframe varies by state. It could be a few days or a few weeks.
If you remain on the premises beyond your legal rights, the homeowner or lender will start a formal eviction process.
Foreclosure And The Coronavirus Pandemic
During this pandemic, which has created extraordinary hardship for millions of people, there are relief options available to homeowners. If you have a government-backed mortgage , youâre protected under The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act. This allows homeowners to get into a forbearance program if theyâre unable to make their mortgage payments because of COVID-19. Currently, there is no expiration date for this benefit.
âForbearance is not automatic, you have to request itâdonât just stop paying your mortgage,â says Cristian Salazar, deputy director for communications at the Center for NYC Neighborhoods, a nonprofit that promotes affordable homeownership in New York. âContact your servicer and explain that you have been affected by COVID-19. Itâs critical that you make every effort to pay your mortgage until you have the opportunity to speak with your servicer.â
Stopping payment on your mortgage before speaking to your servicer could put you at risk of being ineligible for future relief, Salazar says.
Here, weâll go over the basic foreclosure process and what you can do to avoid foreclosure. Keep in mind, foreclosure procedures and laws vary by state.
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The Process Of Foreclosure
When you do fall behind on making your mortgage payment, youll receive letters from the lender called a notice of default.
The term default, in this context, means that you have not been meeting your financial obligations.
When you receive this letter, it is the official first step in the process of foreclosure, and will be sent within sixty days of you failing to meet the payment deadline. Some lenders will sent it within thirty days.
When you receive this letter, what you need to do is contact the loss mitigation department of your lender and explain the situation to them. You can then hopefully work to find a solution using either of the options that were discussed above. You may even be able to negotiate new loan terms.
But if you continue to fail to follow through on the loan, the lender will then file paperwork to foreclose your house.
In this scenario, its important to note the differences between judicial and non-judicial states.
A judicial state is where courts are involved very heavily in the foreclosure process. Examples include Illinois and New Mexico.
A non-judicial state is where the bank can move forward on the foreclosure without receiving approval from the court. This is because the deed of trust will include a Power of Sale Clause that allows the lender to sell the property without having to go to court. Examples of non-judicial states include Tennessee and Michigan.