Anyone ever buy a forclosed/vacant home?

hostage

Lieutenant
Joined
May 4, 2010
Messages
1,291
First off I love my house, it is a 1600ft^2 colonial w/ basement. I didn't have any interest in moving any time soon, though I saw a house for sale in a better area. Currently my house is in a place that gets very cheap utilities, which is what I like about it. This other house is a rare house as it sits on the border of two towns. It has the cheap electric and at the same time is in the best school district in the area. The two high schools are both rated in the top 100 in the country. The house sold for $345k in 2007, the seller had issues and tried to sell it in 2011. It looks like it might have been vacant for a couple of years and the price dropped to about $250,000 recently. My realtor said that a house that has been vacant can have problems from neglect. If there was a leak, it can be a lot worst, than if someone actually lived there, etc. Owning a home and doing a lot of DIY has taught me a lot about what to look for, etc. Though if I do like it I would get inspectors including mold to check it out.

The location is one of the biggest selling points for me. I am perfectly okay living in my house, though if the price, condition, and location are good, it would be hard not to move. The house has more than double my current property, is closer to work, double the square footage, and has some more unique styling than our house. I think the footage includes the basement, which our current house doesn't. Also it is about ~$70k more than my current house and I have about $50k in equity in my current house. I don't mind living in a small house, as it is less to clean and less places to lose your car keys.

I am working with my realtor to take a look at it and I guess that will be the biggest factor if I move forward or not.
 

Captain Ollie West

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
May 1, 2014
Messages
156
We purchased a Fannie Mae property a couple of years ago as a second home. You would think the Feds would want to unload all of the forclosures they are currently holding. Purchasing a home from the government is a whole new experience. Throw out all you know about buying homes the normal way. We made an offer in June and finally closed in October after many issues. This was a second home, so the wait was not a big deal. My advice for anyone purchasing a forclosure is to be very patient and don't get too attached to the properties you have made offers on. These deals can be long and drawn out and often don't work out.

There are multiple types of forclures. There are government owned, bank owned and short sales. They all have their unique issues. Work with a real estate agent and lender experienced with them.

As far as hidden issues, hire a reputable inspecter if you are unable to do it yourself or lack the nesesary skills.

Good luck!
 

Scott Danforth

Grumpy Vintage Moderator still playing with boats
Staff member
Joined
Jul 23, 2011
Messages
47,297
My wife is a real estate agent. She sells REO's all the time. paperwork is a biotch.

you need to have the place inspected. even new construction REO's that have been sitting vacant since 2007 are still available. These homes still havent had the punch list done. REO's where the prior owner was foreclosed can be in a worse case of dis-repair than one that sat. The house across the street from me was a foreclosure where the prior owner took the kitchen cabinets, all fixtures, lights, and appliances when they moved out. cost the new owners about $60k to make it liveable.

Good luck in your new purchase
 

thumpar

Admiral
Joined
Jun 21, 2007
Messages
6,138
The house we bought was vacant for about 18 months but was not a foreclosure. The only problems were normal home owner type stuff. My sister bought a HomePath home and didn't have any issues but she is in the banking industry so maybe that helped get the paperwork through.
 

Twidget

Commander
Joined
Jun 16, 2004
Messages
2,192
Captain Ollie is absolutely right about not getting attached. I bid on a VA repo years ago and 'won' the bid. Was I ever excited! I got an inspector lined up and was beginning the financial process. Suddenly, out of left field, it was yanked out from under me.

It was determined that someone on the previous cycle had bid higher than I had, so they got the house. Their cycle was supposedly closed when my new one began. It was probably a someone knew someone deal, but still soured me on the whole process.
 
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