Bank Owned / Real Estate Owned Properties
Another type of distressed property on the market today are REOs or Real Estate Owned homes, condos, apartments, and even commercial buildings. This is a term that simply means there has been a foreclosure and the bank now owns the property. To keep things simple, we will use a house as an example.
What you need to know is that the banks do not want to own houses. In the current market, they are getting such a huge number of houses coming to them that they are still working out a system for dealing with these foreclosures. In some cases, it can take the bank six months to get a house on the market for sale once the owner has lost the home to foreclosure.
[Read more about Foreclosures & Real Estate Owned Properties or see below for listings of foreclosures in the Orange County area]
Orange County Foreclosures, $400,000 - $500,000
41 Search Results Found. Showing Results 1 - 15.
MLS# S679218
MLS# S685857
MLS# P806539
MLS# S683261
MLS# S657535
MLS# S681354
MLS# S683723
MLS# S685798
MLS# S684487
MLS# S682790
MLS# S680959
MLS# S686990
MLS# S683561
MLS# S684624
MLS# U11005111
Tips for Buyers on REO Properties
- You should get a prompt response to your offer – unlike the lengthy responses on a Short Sale
- You can ask the bank to pay for some items, and make sure you review these with your agent and your lender
- The bank will probably want to close in 30 days – be ready for the work you will need to do on your end
- Have your financing in order – make sure your agent and your lender are ready for a fast response and can help you close quickly
- The home probably has “deferred maintenance” – no one has paid attention to keeping it up, and some one may have even damaged it on purpose
- The bank will make you aware that they know nothing about the home – and you will sign that you are buying it “as is”
- Always conduct all the inspections you need to make sure you know as much about the house as you possibly can. I recommend a thorough general home inspection, a mold inspection, and a roof inspection to name a few.
- Always re-key a home before you move in, especially a distressed home.
REO Success Stories
- My client noticed a new agent’s sign in the window of a Short Sale we had been keeping an eye on. I called and discovered it was now an REO, and asking 10% less that what the Short Sale was listed for. It was not even in the MLS yet! We submitted an offer below the asking price and it was accepted in one day, closed in 30 days, and set a new low price for the neighborhood.
Scary REO Stories
- My client's offer was accepted, and the mold inspector found five areas of toxic mold inside the home. The estimate to get rid of the mold and then rebuild the walls in each area was about $20,000.00. The bank took over 2 weeks to decide if they would pay for the work, during that time the buyer's loan program changed and they could no longer afford the monthly payments. Buyer ends up homeless.
- Buyers put in an offer and end up in 12th position out of 16 offers received. All of which were over the asking price. Buyer ends up homeless.
For more information about foreclosures or Orange County real estate, contact Leslie Eskildsen, Realtor, Coldwell Banker Previews Int'l. Phone: (949) 678-3373 Fax: (949) 709-1994
