Foreclosures in Atlanta - A Brief about Auctions
Monday, October 6th, 2008Foreclosures in Atlanta continue to accumulate and this has affected the prices of homes to a considerable extent. With home prices down, and relief on the way in the form of federal funding, many people are now looking to start buying homes. These home buyers include investors and people wanting to buy a home to move into.
Since foreclosure homes generally come at discounted prices, they have become the preferred choice of many home buyers. You can buy a home during pre foreclosure (directly from the home owner), through the lender after foreclosure, or at the foreclosure auction sale.
After the home is foreclosed upon, and before it is transferred to the lender, an attempt to sell it is made at an auction that has been notified publicly. There are no pre requisites; as far as you have the money, you’re welcome. If not handled correctly, foreclosure auctions can be tricky. However, with some practice and research, one can start looking for bargains at auctions.
Before you get on with your efforts to buy at an auction, you should know these basic things.
Before you decide to bid on a home, go through the County’s public records to check for any unpaid taxes or secondary loans attached to the house. If they exist, they generally become the new home owner’s responsibility. You can engage the services of an attorney who deals in real estate to do this for you.
Inspecting the home is important, however, if the house is still occupied, there are chances that the occupants wouldn’t be very cooperative in having the house inspected. This, though, should not deter you from asking. If you cannot get to inspect the house from the inside, and since it is a foreclosure home, you would need to keep yourself prepared for incurring substantial expenses in giving the house a facelift. If you do get to inspect the house, deciding on a bid amount gets easier as you know the extent of repairs the house would need.
At the foreclosure auction, the home is usually given to the person who places the highest bid. A deposit needs to be paid as a cashier’s check or as cash immediately after the auction, and the remainder of the money needs to be paid within a stipulated period of time.
Foreclosure auction notices are generally put up at county courthouses. You can also go through local news letters and newspapers for auction details. Banks are also known to give out foreclosure auction details to home buyers.
It is always suggested that you know in advance, how far you are willing to go. Bidding in the heat of the moment can land you into trouble. A foreclosure auction calls for a cool head.
