Purchasing REO property or a foreclosure in Boca Raton? Just as with any property purchase, your smartest move is to hire a professional real estate agent. For more information, just contact me through my site or e-mail me. I'm glad to answer questions you have about real estate foreclosures. What's an REO? "REO" is short for Real Estate Owned. These are properties which have completed the foreclosure process and are currently owned by the bank or mortgage company. This is unlike a property up for foreclosure auction. When buying a property during a foreclosure sale, you must pay at least the loan balance plus any interest and other fees accumulated during the foreclosure process. The buyer must also be prepared to pay with cash in hand. Finally, you'll get the property entirely as is. That possibly will consist of prevailing liens and even current tenants that need to be expelled. A bank-owned property, on the other hand, is a much cleaner and attractive transaction. The REO property didn't find a buyer during foreclosure auction. The lender now owns it. The lender will deal with the elimination of tax liens, evict occupants if needed and generally plan for the issuance of a title insurance policy to the buyer at closing. Note that REOs may be exempt from standard disclosure requirements. For instance, in California, banks do not have to give a Transfer Disclosure Statement, a document that typically requires sellers to tell you about any defects of which they are aware. By hiring JMAR Property, LLC, you can rest assured knowing all parties are fulfilling Florida state disclosure requirements. Am I assured a bargain when investing in a bank owned property in Boca Raton? It's commonly believed that any REO must be a good buy and a chance for easy money. This isn't always the case. You have to be very careful about buying a REO if your intent is make money. While it's true that the bank is usually eager to sell it promptly, they are also looking to get as much as they can for it. Look carefully at the listing and sales prices of competing properties in the neighborhood when considering the purchase of an REO. And factor in any repairs or remodeling necessary to prepare the house for resale or moving in. There are bargains with potential to make money, and many people do very well buying foreclosures. But there are also many REOs that are not good buys and may lose money. Ready to make an offer? Most lenders have staff dedicated to REO that you'll work with when buying REO property from them. To get their properties advertised on the local MLS, the lender will usually contract with a listing agent. 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 their knowledge about the condition of the property and what their process is for receiving offers. Since banks usually 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 unknown damage and retract the offer if you find it. As with making any offer on real estate, you'll make your offer more attractive if you can include documentation of your ability to pay, such as a pre-approval letter from a lender. Once you've presented your offer, you can expect the bank to respond with a counter offer. At this point it will be your decision whether to accept their counter, or submit another counter offer. Understand, you'll be working with a process that most likely involves multiple people at the bank, and they don't work evenings or weekends. It's quite common for there to be days or even weeks of negotiating back and forth. JMAR Property, LLC is are used to working around the schedules of this type of seller and will do everything possible to ensure there are no unnecessary delays.

MAYNARD / RICH PROPERTIES CORP. - Richard Schwartz, Principal, Licensed Real Estate Broker / Investment Services  - Rosalie Santelli, Realtor Associate - Mary Ann Russo, Realtor Associate - Phone (954) 946-4171 Fax (954) 785-9612 - 450 N. Park Road # 500 - Hollywood, FL 33021