Originally posted by @Ben W.:
You definitely need to know what position the liens are in and other items that could be impactful. Title searches and/or the proper due diligence are pennies compared to the amount you are thinking of investing here. Remember the saying Uncle Ebenezer used: treat it as a business and it will pay like a business; treat it as a hobby and it will pay like a hobby.
Also, this info on foreclosures does come up earlier than just a few weeks before the sale. If you find this form of investing interesting, take the time to get the info earlier (it is public, but you may have to subscribe to a court paper). Research the opportunities and reach out to investors and banks. I have purchased pptys pre foreclosure by simply bringing payments current. Another twist on that is the lease option. Another angle is the outright short sale, but that may take more time (and is not one of my favorites because I have to actually pay $ for the house rather than using a no or low money down technique.
Until you do the research, you really do not know the whole story.
Happy investing.
If a property is in pre foreclosure with an outstanding balance of ~$80,000 + fees and interest, can I knock on the owners door and offer them an amount, say $120,000 and go through a normal sale? Or is that only possible if their back payments are made? Is there any way to protect the back payments or are you only able to hope that they don't walk off with your money and back out of the sale?
