Western Wisconsin Foreclosure is now in Redemption period or preREO

[Tim Willms]

Hello all. I am a person who follows Sheriff sales in my area and am trying to break into investing with deals this way. I am currently working on two different foreclosures. I want to basically wholesale or quick flip them to build up some capital until I find the right buy and hold property. 

The first one I tried to purchase it sub-to and the owner just did not understand the way it works and he ended up letting it go to auction. At the auction no bidders showed up and the bank took the property back. I cannot get the lender to talk to me at all. I am assuming that I am going to have to wait for it to be listed with an REO agent? Or has someone had luck talking with a lender in this type of situation?

The second one I have found looks like the foreclosure case has been closed. However the auction date is on the calendar for a few weeks out. In the court document is states "Court finds default judgement - 3 month redemption period." Does this mean the homeowner still has "position" of the property and I can work with them to purchase and prevent a foreclosure on their credit report? Or is it now foreclosed on and they still have the ability to bring the mortgage back to good standings and they can keep the home with a foreclosure on their report?