Interested in REO property or a foreclosure in Jersey City?
Foreclosed upon and bank owned property purchases require the assistance of an experience professional.
For more information, simply contact me through my site or e-mail me. I'm happy to answer questions you have regarding real estate foreclosures.
What's an REO?
"REO" is short for Real Estate Owned. These are homes which have been foreclosed upon that the bank or mortgage company presently possesses. 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 able to pay with cash in hand. To top everything off, you'll accept the property completely as is. That possibly could include prevailing liens and even current residents that may require removal.
A bank-owned property, conversely, is a much cleaner and attractive deal. The REO property did not find a buyer during foreclosure auction. The bank now owns it. The lender will handle 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.
Take notice that REOs may be exempt from standard disclosure requirements.
For example, in California, banks are not required to give a Transfer Disclosure Statement,
a document that normally requires sellers to make known any defects they are knowledgeable of.
By hiring Weichert Realtors®, you can rest assured knowing all parties are fulfilling New Jersey state disclosure requirements.
Is REO property in Jersey City a bargain?
It is commonly assumed that any foreclosure must be a good buy and an opportunity for easy money. This isn't necessarily the case. You have to be prudent about buying a repossession if your intent is make a profit. Even though the bank is typically anxious to offload it soon, they are also motivated to minimize any losses.
When contemplating the value of 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.
There are bargains with potential to make money, and many people do very well buying and selling foreclosures. But there are also many REOs that are not good buys and may lose money.
All set to make an offer?
Most banks have staff dedicated to REO that you'll work with when buying REO property from them. Typically 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 learn as much as you can about their knowledge concerning the condition of the property and what their process is for getting offers. Since banks almost always sell REO properties "as is", you'll want to be sure and 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, providing documentation showing your ability to secure financing may make your offer more attractive, such as a pre-approval letter from a lender.
Once you've submitted your offer, you can expect the bank to counter offer. From there it will be your decision whether to accept their counter, or make another counter offer.
Your transaction might be final in one day, but that's usually not the case. 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. Weichert Realtors® is accustomed to these situations and will work to ensure there are no undue delays.
When contemplating the value of 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.
There are bargains with potential to make money, and many people do very well buying and selling foreclosures. But there are also many REOs that are not good buys and may lose money.
