Buyers seeking a foreclosed property should realize that not every foreclosure is a good deal.
Urge would-be buyers of foreclosures to have the property thoroughly inspected, says Dan Steward, president of the Tampa-based inspection firm, Pillar to Post. Lenders are not held to the same disclosure requirements as sellers.
Steward says damage isn’t always obvious. While it doesn’t take an expert to see that a toilet has been ripped out, it does require someone with knowledge to know that ripping it out damaged a pipe 20 feet down the line.
The best way for the buyer to get the property is to follow the bank’s instructions closely, says Ryan Melvin, co-owner of More Realty Group in Las Vegas, which specializes in foreclosures.
Another quirk that sometimes surprises buyers of real-estate-owned properties, or REOs, is the scrutiny that banks place on the buyers' credit, even though they are using a different lender.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Amy Hoak (09/27/2009)
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