Has anyone paid for a foreclosure list?

[Booklover]

I keep seeing the ads on Trulia and other places to view foreclosures in our area, but am not sure if they are worth it or not. They offer a week's free trial, and then they charge.

Does anyone have any experience with these, or have other websites to view for free?

[McD]

I have no real dealings with it but foreclosures are public listings arent they? I mean aren;t they posted in the newspaper along with the bankruptcy notices? If so, you could just look in the paper.

[savvy_sniper]

I JUST saw something on TV about them this morning. The guy said don't waste your money. He said find a neighborhood you are interested in and drive and drive around and make note of the realtor names. You SHOULD be able to narrow it down to 3-4 realtors that sell a lot in the area. Then interview and hire one of them as your buyer's agent.

[sabrelvssammy]

don't waste your money on 'buying' foreclosure lists....

by law everytime a home goes to 'sheriff sale' (that is where all the foreclosures go before they go back to the lender) they must be advertised in the newspaper of the county they reside in 3 times and notices will be posted on the properties at the county courthouse)... then on the date of the 'sheriff sale' anyone is invited to attend and bid on the property...the bank (or other lender, could be another individual if the property was sold on a contract or such) will give the opening bid and then you must out-bid that number and the winning bid wins the home...we have bought homes by bidding just $1 more than the original bid (and have sometimes gotten into bidding wars too with other individuals)...in almost all cases the original bid from the bank is the only bid the bank places and they will not try to out-bid you...so if noone else is bidding you can get a pretty good deal...

however, just because a home goes to foreclosure it does not mean it will be a super-steal.... we have seen homes opening bids set at higher than they are actually worth....the bank sets a number they need and there seems to be no rhyme or reason behind it...usually we will see a home, check the records for amounts owed on it and although you may see small mtg amounts owed the opening bids are ridiculous...or the other way around...the mtg's are over the top but the bank wants to just unload it so they set a very low price to it and you walk away a winner....

keep in mind that all homes are sold 'as-is'...you have no recourse to anything that might be wrong with the property...and this could include structual problems, code violations, encroachments, and a multitude of other problems...(especially if you ever go to sell the home)...although most liens & secondary mtg's are wiped out at the sheriff sale you are still responsible for any back property taxes owed (and there usually are those too) and any gov't liens as they are not 'forgiven'....

if you don't want to mess with the 'sheriff sale' you can purchase 'foreclosures' after they are deeded back to the bank...that is when the realtors become involved and they are working as 'agents for the bank'... however we have found that once the home is the property of the bank (if we missed the sale, found the home after the sale, or the banks bid was out of line and they recovered the deed) that the homes are still 'as-is' and the bank has usually upped the price to reflect more in line with the surrounding 'property values'....

you can call area banks and ask them for their 'foreclosures'...or some of the larger banks will allow you to talk to their 'foreclosure dept' and they will give you addresses of properties in your area (not all will but we have had some luck with a few)...mostly the local banks are the easiest to deal with coz remember they want to get these off their books....you just have to be diligent and start checking around with all these banks to see who will cooperate.... if you see a home advertised in the paper (under public notices) and you don't want to mess with a sheriff sale, look to see who the lender is (it will state that too) and contact the lender and ask them for the name of the real estate company in your area that handles all their foreclosures...then contact the agency and tell them you are interested in 'such&such' and to please contact you when it is released to the agency.....

good luck in this...sometimes you can make out quite well...other times it is best to run away screaming as fast as possible....

[Booklover]

Thanks for all the information! It's very helpful.

[Greebo]

Any realtor worth their salt can get you a list of foreclosures if you are going bargain hunting.