How to find the name of the bank that foreclosed?

Question

How can I find the bank who foreclosed on a property and secondly should I approach the bank for the property or wait till it reaches the court house steps?

Hassan Tirmizi · Answer

Thank you all for your feedback esp Doug with that great link

Doug Smith · Answer

Hassan, is your property in Hillsborough or Pasco County? Florida Counties are pretty good at quickly posting Lis Pendens information on line.

For Pasco: http://www.pascoclerk.com/public-sup-svcs-record-search.asp

For Hillsborough: http://pubrec3.hillsclerk.com/oncore/Search.aspx

You'll probably have to start with the property appraiser's site to get the name of the current owner (unless you already know it). Once you have it, go to the Clerk's link above and search by name. Look particularly for "Lis Pendens" filings. That is where they start the foreclosure process. Many assignments don't get filed right away, so that is the most reliable way. Call me and I can help you find it. It shouldn't take but a few minutes and I am happy to help.

Dion DePaoli · Answer

In most cases, if a loan is registered with MERs, when the loan falls into default it is taken down from MERs.  This has been a practice since all the MERs problems of the recent past.  When the loans is removed from MERs there will be an Assignment of Mortgage or Lien in the property records tracing to an investor who owned the loan from MERs.  
	
	Is that the current investor who owns the loan?  Once can not be sure and it depends on some other things.  
	
	Another couple of concepts.  Understand the Plaintiff of the Foreclosure may not be the current owner either.  If the loan is traded there might have been Plaintiff substitutions in the Foreclosure proceeding (or none).  Usually if the asset goes to auction, the current Investor will ensure they are properly in title for ownership so the Sheriff Deed can have the correct name on it.  That may not take place until the week of the auction or similar.  It is true, sometimes the named party might include the Servicer as well.
	
	Usually when a loan is in default status, the investor through their servicing company will have an agent already assigned to the house.  The agent acts like the investors eyes, ears and legs.  This too can vary based on occupancy.  If the property is vacant, you can look for some type of agent securing the property.  Or some type of agent dealing with other property preservation ideas like mowing lawns or taking steps to avoid municipal liens, etc.  The downside here, is you likely have to run a stake out on the property to catch them at the property which may or may not be feasible.   
	
	I suppose you can alway put a flyer on the door or business card, etc.  That might get you a call.  If I found one of those or heard one of my agents say they found one, I would call.  All leads are welcome.  Do make sure the document is professional or it might end up in the trash.  
	
	I will point out, there is a growing practice that recently foreclosed homes must be or should be listed for a minimal amount of time prior to accepting an offer.  Which also means they must be put into MLS so the public can view and make offers in an open market.  Not all investors or servicers will work this way but there are some trends, nonetheless.  This practice gives limited partners or limited owners (like in securities) piece of mind that the best fair market price was received.

Tom Goans · Answer

Personally, seldom do I consider foreclosures a worthy investment opportunity.

The lender’s goal is to recover as much of the loan balance as possible. Many times, the cash flow potential, and then the holding costs, time, work, and repair costs to get the cash flowing are not worth the lender’s asking price. Most times, not even close.

Another major obstacle is deferred maintenance. And there will be plenty.

Another is so many times the former owner will remove necessities, such as wiring, flooring, sinks, light bulbs, plumbing, doors, windows, and the list can be long. I have walked in repos and seen the blue ski above and the dirt below because the plywood had been removed.

Spending time to research the loan holder would really add to the lost time and money in my viewpoint.

I have found a better use of my time is to develop a good relationship with the top executives at key banks. I deal directly with the source. However, primarily, these types of in-house loans are generally larger and on what is sometimes considered “non-conforming” properties or large parcels of land, such as farms and ranches.

Jon Holdman · Answer

Its nearly impossible to find who owns the mortgage, in many cases.  The banks devised MERS - Mortgage Electronic Registration System.  Instead of recording the specific bank that owned the mortgage, it was recorded as MERS.  MERS allows banks to do all their slicing, dicing, and trading of mortgages.

As @Tom Goans points out, many mortgages are sold.  These sales are not always recorded.

Many mortgages are owned by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.  Both have web sites to check if they own a mortgage.  Unfortunately I've not book marked those sites.

There are often two parties involve in a mortgage.  The "investor", which is the entity that actually owns the mortgage.  Then there is a servicer.  That's the entity that collects the payments and distributes money to the investor.  When a foreclosure starts, the servicer is often the one that actually does all the leg work.

If the notice of default has been filed, there will be some name on that.  That may well be the servicer, but its a starting point.  So, searching public records is your best bet.  You might find a mortgage or deed of trust and the grantee on that might actually be the one that owns the mortgage.  Or you might find the notice default (or lis pendens or whatever your state calls it) and that might provide a clue.

But why do you want to know?  This information isn't really all that useful.

Tom Goans · Answer

Visit the county clerk and recorder website or office. In some counties, there is a separate foreclosure website that provides the details of the owners, the loan originator, the current holder of the loan, and the sale date. One that I watch will also flag if the borrower files for bankruptcy.

Many loans are sold at some point after the closing.. Look for a paper trail.

Keep in mind of the redemption period. A conversation with your favorite title company may provide you with some great information about this subject and what a title company will insure.

Matt Devincenzo · Answer

For Orange county you can search on the Comptroller's site to find recorded mortgages. I'm not sure how good Pasco county's sites are since I've never purchased in Pasco county, but you can try this.

I don't remember if you can search by address or just grantor/grantee on the Comptroller site. If just by grantor/grantee use the Pasco county tax assessor's site to find the owner name, then search the comptroller site for that name and you will be able to find the recorded mortgage docs that will show the lender's name.

Hassan Tirmizi · Answer

But how can I tell which bank owns the mortgage

Jon Holdman · Answer

The bank hasn't foreclosed until after the auction.  Before that, the owner still owns it, not the bank.  If you want to buy it before the auction, approach the current owner.  After the auction, the bank will eventually list it on the MLS.  If its a small, local bank, you might be able to approach them directly.  Big bank, Fannie, Freddie and the like you'll just have to wait until it appears on the MLS.