Making an offer on REO property or a foreclosure in Douglasville?


	Making an offer on a bank-owned property is not something to be taken casually.

What is an REO?

"REO" or Real Estate Owned are properties which have been foreclosed upon that the bank or mortgage company now possesses. This is not the same as real estate up for foreclosure auction. Debbie Forrester, Associate Broker, RE/MAX Unlimited, GA & Beachside Resorts, Panama City Beach, FL has experience to share with foreclosures and bank owned properties in Douglasville, Georgia

Debbie Forrester, Associate Broker, RE/MAX Unlimited, GA & Beachside Resorts, Panama City Beach, FL has experience to share with foreclosures and bank owned properties in Douglasville, Georgia

When buying a property during a foreclosure sale, you must pay at least the loan balance plus any interest and other fees added during the foreclosure process. The buyer must also be willing to pay with cash in hand. To top everything off, you'll get the property completely as is. That possibly could involve standing liens and even current occupants that may require removal.

A bank-owned property, on the contrary, is a much neater and attractive proposition. The REO property didn't find a buyer during foreclosure auction. Now the bank owns it. The bank will take care of the elimination of tax liens, evict occupants if needed and generally arrange for the issuance of a title insurance policy to the buyer at closing.

Take notice that REOs may be exempt from typical disclosure requirements. For example, in Texas, it is optional for foreclosures to have a Property Disclosure Statement, a document that ordinarily requires sellers to reveal any defects of which they are aware. By hiring Debbie Forrester, Associate Broker, RE/MAX Unlimited, GA & Beachside Resorts, Panama City Beach, FL, you can rest assured knowing all parties are fulfilling Georgia state disclosure requirements.

Is REO property in Douglasville a bargain?

It is frequently believed that any REO must be a good deal and an opportunity for easy money. This isn't necessarily true. You have to be prudent about buying a repossession if your intent is make a profit. While it's true that the bank is typically anxious to sell it fast, they are also looking to minimize any losses.

Debbie Forrester, Associate Broker, RE/MAX Unlimited, GA & Beachside Resorts, Panama City Beach, FL has experience to share with foreclosures and bank owned properties in Douglasville, Georgia

When pondering what to pay for REO property, you need to look closely at comparable sales in the neighborhood and be sure to take into account the time and cost of any repairs or remodeling needed to prepare the house for resale. It is possible to find REOs with money-making potential, and many people do very well buying foreclosures. However there are also many REOs that are not good buys and may not be money makers.

All set to make an offer?

Most banks have a department dedicated to REO that you'll work with while buying REO property from them. Usually the REO department will use a listing agent to get their REO properties listed on the local MLS.

Prior to making your offer, you'll want to contact either the listing agent or REO department at the bank and find out as much as you can about what they know about the condition of the property and what their process is for accepting offers. Since banks most commonly sell REO properties "as is", it may be in your best interest to include an inspection contingency in your offer that gives you time to check for unseen damage and withdraw the offer if you find it. As with making any offer on real estate, providing documentation showing your ability to secure financing may make your offer more attractive, such as a pre-approval letter from a lender.

After you've presented your offer, it's customary for the bank to respond with a counter offer. At this point it will be your choice whether to accept their counter, or offer a counter to the counter offer. Your transaction could be settled in a single day, but that's rare. Since offers and counter offers usually give the other party a day or longer to respond (and employees at a bank don't work nights or weekends) you could be looking at a week or longer.