REO Forecllosure Title Searching

[Randy Stuart]

I am planning to purchase an investment home at the trustee's sale at the Tarrant County Court House in Fort Worth Texas. I have never purchased a home at a Trustees sale previously though I have been attending the auction for several months to learn the process. I hear that it can be dangerous if you do not do your homework and know the liens or liabilities on the home. I am curious what other investors/buyers do to research the homes they bid on. It seems like title searching is much to laborious and costly to do on all the home you are interested in. Since there are 100's of homes auctioned off and most of the homes that are listed for auction are removed prior to auction. It would be very costly to do that many title searches, and frustrating when the home is removed from the auction list after this investment is made. Therefore, how do other investors research homes in order to minimize liabilities and bid on REO foreclosures at the Trustee's sales? Are there good resources that you recommend to learn this process? Thanks in advance for your help, I do appreciate the wisdom of this community.

[Wayne Brooks]

@Randy Stuart Just to clarify terminology, which may confuse some responses....a Trustee ("courthouse steps") foreclosure auction is Not a REO. A REO is a property that the bank already took back at the Trustee sale, they own it, and are selling either through the MLS or an online auction service. REO's generally have clear title, Trustee sales are where you have to be careful.