All Forum Posts by: Jason King

As a quick updated, I checked the Citi property search function on their website.  I did a broad search for Citi REOs in my area and received 0 results.

Hi All, 

Newbie investor with a question about an REO in my area that I am hoping someone can assist with. To give some background, I have been searching my area for abandoned/REO properties that have not made their way onto the MLS yet, hoping to score a good deal. In my search, I actually found a home down the street from my primary residence that was foreclosed on last spring. All of the main real estate sites I check (Realtor.com, Zillow, etc.) list the most recent sales transaction as 1999, but performing a more robust search I was able to find a foreclosure deed from last year, with Citi Mortgage listed as the new owner.

Now, as I originally stated, I am a newbie and have no experience dealing directly with a bank, but is there a way to contact the bank to try to buy this house before it hits the MLS? The transfer price on the deed is WELL ABOVE market value, which is most likely why this property didn't sell at auction - is this an indicator that it is going to be tough negotiating a reasonable price?

Also as an added bonus, there is a sticker on the exterior of the property stating that my local town building inspector's office has deemed the property as "unfit for human habitation..."...not sure if this is common practice or a red flag but will have to dig into this one a little further.

Any help you guys can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

@David Sicherman @Steve Babiak & @Rick H.:

Thank you all for your valuable feedback.  This is definitely something that I have determined I need to learn more about.

Thanks @David Mitchell & @Terry Evans for the help!  I think I am going to let the professionals handle this.  Any recommendations for a company?  Are these usually local or nationwide?

@Account Closed  not sure if you know this, but is there a recorder's office for each town?  I am having a hard time even locating the people responsible for my town.  Maybe I am better off just utilizing a title search company.

Hi All, 

I have been doing some research on pre-foreclosure and auction properties in RI.  However, I am still not sure how I properly perform a title search for liens and the like.  Does anyone have any experience with this?  I've tried searching for the information on the web, but the town's website is awful.  Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks, 

Jason

@Robert Adams thanks for the offer. You will likely be hearing from me and/or my partner once we nail down our search criteria.

Everyone,

Thanks for the continued feedback. I think that it is safe to say that if there is money to be made, then nothing can scare away the seasoned investor.

How would you address my secondary question - which jobs carry the highest risk of hidden costs. As a newbie, one of my biggest fears is underestimating repair costs. I can obviously get quotes from contractors and do my due diligence in terms of estimating the repairs, but not familiar enough with home renovations to know what could turn a $500 job into a $5,000 job. I know this question is probably hard to answer, so if you can give some examples of where previous projects have gone considerably over budget and what caused the problem that may give me a better answer.

As always, thanks for the advice everyone, very valuable to a newbie!

@Deano Vulcano & @Scott E. , thanks for the feedback, I appreciate it. I had a feeling these were the types of answers I was going to find. I know that it all comes down to the numbers, and if the numbers work then its a good deal. I guess my question, if asked another way, would be what types of jobs/repairs carry the most risk of unexpected costs. I would assume that the more costly expenses, as the ones Scott mentioned, would carry the highest risk, but not sure if this is true.

Also, something that I was considering was projects that would make a potential buyer uneasy about making a purchase. I.e., the buyer finds out there was a mold issue, and though you have taken care of the problem, they are still gunshy and may move on to another property. Does anyone have any experience with this? How did you overcome? Thanks again for the help!

@Matt R. Sorry if this is a silly question, but what exactly do you mean by this? Are you simply saying that you always buy below market value?