hello from nottingham,England

[Richard Fleckney]

Evening ladies and gents,
Have recently visited the US looking to (learn how to ) buy property.Foreclosures seem to be the best thing since sliced bread!
Is it true that only US citizens can buy HUD property because a social security number is needed? Surely there must be a way around this.
I can't be the only foreigner wanting to take advantage of these fantastic bargains,can I ?
Anyway,a fantastic forum you have ,with some brilliant contributers

Thanks ! ! !!!!!

[Rich Weese]

Welcome- Are you receiving the Icelandic ash where you are? It has caused tons of flight cancellations. I have sold property to foreighners and carried the financing. Rich

[Matt Mathews]

You need to talk to a Broker who deals in HUD Foreclosures. They have their own set of buyer rules. Personally, I've never heard that US SSAN is required to purchase real estate in the US. 80% of 2nd home buyers right now are outside the US. Hud.Gov will get you answers!!

[Richard Fleckney]

Thanks Guys,
been reading up n HUD (a little ?)Am I right in thinking that if a cash buyer (which I am) you are o.k. to buy foreclosures ?
Yep,all flights grounded,all day !!
After the Icelandic bank crash,we said send cash not ash !!

[Josh Keys]

Richard
You certainly arent the only foreigner on BP looking to purchase US property! Im based in Australia. theres a few of us and a few other Europeans that have made it work.

I also started out looking to purchase foreclosures but eventually purchased Multi family homes. It seemed tough (for me anyway) to get the good foreclosure bargins without being based in the US. The bargins seem to go too quickly for us foreigners to get things moving. Some have managed it though. I also found that the cash flow is significantly better on MFHs. This makes sense for us foreigners as we need to pay extra for property management, insurance etc...

I know of people in Kansas City, Atlanta, Phoenix and Detroit that assist foreigners in purchasing US property. Let me know if you want their details.

You dont need to be a resident or have a social security number to purchase in the US, but suggest getting an ITIN prior to doing your first US tax return if you do buy. You may also wish to look into getting an LLC setup for asset protection.

Paying cash is probably the only way you can buy there as US banks arent really interested in lending to foreigners. Just be careful of the forex exposure cos its a killer if using your home currency. fyi I purchased my place using seller financing. Ive posted some finance links earlier.

Check out the foreigners buying in the US forum on here. Alot of your questions may have already been covered.

Cheers
Josh