What is a foreclosure and how does it occur? When a homeowner (borrower) is unable to make his/her house payments for a certain period of time the foreclosure process kicks in. Being in this status means the borrower has now lost ownership of the property and the lending company is able to sell the property to the highest bidder at a Public auction.
With the economy the way it is, one of the devastating results has been a massive amount of foreclosures nationwide. Which if you are an investor, this can be a great thing to take advantage of.
If you live near the Seattle area, ForeclosurePlatform.com has available resources detailing every foreclosure in all of Western Washington. On a continuous basis, properties are updated with any changes that may occur from auction sale dates to opening bid amounts and even postponed properties and cancellations. If you are looking for Seattle short sales, it is the best website to keep you up to date.
Read why foreclosures are undervalued and why they create great investments to buyers. There are many reasons to purchase foreclosed properties and the greatest advantage is the price reduction! If you want to learn more about foreclosures click here.
When you are looking into purchasing an investment property make sure you have a clear head. Most people purchase a second home for personal use about 78%. The number is growing for the percentage of people that purchase a second home for an investment property. In 1999 only 20% people purchased properties for investments and now the percentage is 37%!
If you are focusing on appreciation value you want to make sure that you are in a prime location for example on the beach, not near the beach. The economy can be red-hot one minute and then cool way down the next; you want to be in the best position possible.
Always be ready to spend more money on investment properties. Be prepared to pay lenders about 1% higher on investment property vs. a regular mortgage and expect higher down payments up front.
Be educated and beware of time-shares! No matter what anybody says a time-share is not an investment property. Always approach a join ownership with caution, many people cannot afford a second home so they think that sharing the cost with a close friend or relative is a good idea. This is not always the case! Before you get into a situation like this think twice you might really regret it later!
I hope these tips help you make the right decision about purchasing an investment property!