Posts Tagged ‘preforeclosures’

Short Sale Hazards When Dealing With Rental Properties

Friday, September 3rd, 2010

As a short sale investor, you will often deal with landlords who may be facing foreclosure on rental properties. These short sale deals can be very attractive to traditional short sale negotiators who may have been “locked out” of many deals because of homeowner participation - voluntary and mandatory - in federal short sale programs. However, there are some complications that can occur with rental properties that may not be an issue with first or even second homes that are owned and inhabited by the property owner.

One of the biggest concerns for landlord-sellers bargaining short sales is that even in states that do not assess an income tax on conventional short sales in which a homeowner transacts a short sale on the home that he or she lives in, the short sale of a rental property often will result in the issuance of a 10-99 that will be viewed by the state as income. There are ways to deal with this and one is to appeal it, but when dealing with landlords you must remember that these individuals are subject to a different set of tax laws if they are short selling rental properties.

Also, landlords may find themselves in a distressed situation thanks to insurance issues. Particularly if they have made a claim recently, the insurance company may have hiked their rates or even canceled their policies. Due to plummeting equity in many properties and a number of natural disasters in recent months, finding new insurance for rental properties has been for the most part difficult.

While this may not impact your end buyer, it can effect you or another investor who is purchasing the property to hold or season. Make sure that the property is insured and insurable by you even if you do not plan to hold onto it.

As the rules and regulations on short sales change nearly day-to-day, investors much keep abreast of the changes. Only in this manner can you truly help distressed property owners who need a short sale in order to salvage their savings and exit a property.

PS if you haven’t checked out my Free Short Sale Course you are really missing outwww.FreeShortSaleCourse.com

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Foreclosures versus Pre-foreclosure - Which one Can Make you Richer?

Friday, May 8th, 2009
by Dianne Jones

The term pre-foreclosure, just like it sounds, means that a property or home is about to go into foreclosure. You can get some great values here, before they are seen by the masses looking for foreclosure deals. Prices are generally directly negotiated with the owner, who is motivated to avoid foreclosure.

The number of pre-foreclosures is growing every day. If you’ve kept up with the media recently, you know that investing in pre-foreclosure homes is one of the best ways to make a substantial profit. There are virtually a limitless number of these discounted homes on the market, due to the sub-prime mortgage crisis and the current economic slowdown.

Compared to an auction, buying a pre-foreclosure property can often be a more attractive alternative. At an auction, you often have to have the necessary cash on hand in order to participate in the bidding, however, with pre-foreclosures, you don not require immediate cash and can work out different scenarios with the current home owner and your bank. This allows you the ability to purchase a foreclosed house that they may not of been able to do otherwise.

In the pre-foreclosure sale, you will personally meet and work directly with the home owner. Although the owner may be distressed about loosing their house, by the time you arrive they may see you as a saviour that can help salvage something before foreclosure.

One of the biggest advantages of purchasing a pre-foreclosure over an auction is that you can inspect the property before it goes into auction. At this point the property owner is still living in the home so obviously you want to call on them and take a look around the house to see what kind of condition it is in. If the owner feels you make be able to help them, they may disclose if there are any internal problems with the house (i.e. water damage, electrical issues, etc.). Also if the owner is co-operative and you have enough time it would be advised to get a property inspection done as well.

This allows you to determine how much effort, if any, will be required to repair the house and at what cost. This will eliminate much of the risk and will help you make a better decision about if the property would be a good investment or not.

Hopefully this article articulated some of the advantages that buying pre-foreclosures is a good alternative. All real estate professionals consider this method as one of your best value options when it comes to purchasing a home

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To research more about the best government auction & pre-foreclosures web sites check out government auction reviews or pre-foreclosures.

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