can you get a home in pre-foreclosure with no money down and flip it for cash or is it a gimmick?
137945
yes you can I do it everyday. No joking. I have already done 3 this year. quit my job 2 years ago and have never looked back. check out www.creonline.com for some info and inspiration
436242
I think most of the no money down, subject to, and lease option stuff is crap.  Perhaps after you have gained experience you can get deals no money down.  I lived in a college town also and saw the same thing happening in my town.  Rentals were everywhere.  I got started in real estate as a birddog.  I made $500 finding leads for an investor.  $10/ per lead he didn't have to close for me to be compensated.  There are only so many investment opportunities in one market though, so now after much debate I am becoming a realtor. Then I plan on being a commercial broker and THEN an investor. It is gonna take a while. I really think that you need the money/ experience/ connections/knowledge before getting into such a heavy endeavor with such thick legal implications and even scarier liabilities/consequences. If you don't know what you are doing you can get hauled off to jail for 3rd degree felonies with that no money down garbage.  Besides that most single family homes make next to no cashflow, especially with the way interest rates are going up. HARD WORK HARD WORK HARD WORK!
695916
Some of your question depends on whether you have some special circumstances, but you don't mention any in the question.  Here are some things to do:\n\n1.  Go to your lender and explain the situation, and try to come up with a payment plan you can live with.  The lender doesn't want to foreclose unless it has to, especially in a down housing market like we have now.  But if you have not been in touch with them, they have no idea whether you are trying your best to get current or whether you are just a deadbeat.  So, go and meet with the bank or lender.\n\n2.  Find a credit counselor.  NOT a commercial service that charges a fee:  Those are complete rip-offs.  You want a non-profit credit counseling service run by lenders.  They can help mediate for you and can often work out a payment schedule like I described above.\n\n3.  If you are too far behind, see if you can sell your house.  It is much better to sell and start over with a clean slate than it is to lose the house in a foreclosure.  Then your credit will be ruined.  But a sale is just a sale.  Depending on how long you have been in the house and how much equity you have, you might even walk away with some money in your pocket.  Talk to a real estate agent TODAY about how much your house might sell for.\n\n4.  If worst comes to worst, think about whether you have friends or relatives who could buy the house (either now or at foreclosure) and then resell it.  This can work two ways.  If you are in a temporarily down market but the house and the neighborhood are basically good, then they can buy the house and sell it to an outsider without the pressure of a foreclosure hanging over everyone's head.  Otherwise--and this is true right up through the foreclosure itself--they may be able to buy it and then re-sell it to you; they would essentially become your lender.  And it doesn't have to be one friend.  If you have 5 or 6 friends or family members who can buy it together, it will work the same way.\n\nYou are in a tough situation, but there is hope if you act fast.  Good luck!!
329174
Our bank even offers 100% loans on Investment Properties.\n\nThey are a little more difficult to qualify for, but they are there.\n\nAlso, the interest rates start going up after the 80% mark, so if you are looking for a "cash flow" property, the 100% loans may not work well for you.  It depends on what area you are in and how much you are buying the house for.\n\nIf you are looking to flip the property in a short time, then who cares about the rate.  Just get in, get out and take your profit.\n\nThanks,\nGreg
723286
The book, "Investing in Real Estate" by Andrew McLean is a good book with lots of information.\n\nCheck out and visit your local real estate investors group and also take a look at thecreativeinvestor.com\n\n------\n\nAs long as you have good credit, you can borrow the funds needed to invest.  You can get better terms if the property's owner occupied.  If you want to do a quick flip, you can apply for a hard money loan.\n\nIf your credit is subpar, then you may want to partner with an investor who has money.
905048
Yes, there are plenty of websites out there that will give you all the information you will need on pre-foreclosures, etc.  Many come with a small fee, but like all other products/services all the good ones do.\n\nWhat I would do is take advantage of the free 7-day trial.  That way you can see if you like it or not.  \nI have used Foreclosure.com in the past and was very satisfied.  \n\nWhat I like most is that they give you resources to guide you through a process that can be rather daunting at times.  \n\nHappy hunting!
98978
No money down is not the problem. It is the bad credit. I have financed a lot of people with no money down. Seller credit buyer for re-occuring and non-reoccuring closing cost. Add that amount to your initial offer of the property. I am in the state of CA, therefore you need deposit when you make the offer, and money for inspections, unless you have the seller pay for all inspections. You need to fix the credit so that you can get a good interest rate.
932582
That's hard to say.  You haven't indicated if they are fixers or just distressed sellers.\n\nIf this is a rehab, I would probably pass.  People at that level have an expectation of what they will get when they spend that much money.  There isn't alot of room in there for error and when you are doing a rehab, you just never know what you are going to uncover.\n\nYou also have to keep in mind the holding and marketing/closing costs (typically 15%), so you can see the risk reward isn't really there.  Are you having to get a new mortgage for this?  That is going to cut into that equity a bit if you are 100% NOO financing.\n\nAs a real estate investor on homes like that, I always look at the "great deals" comment and know that if it were truly a great deal, it wouldn't be on the market for as long as it probably has been.\n\nHomes at that price level have alot of swing price wise, so at the end of the day you may be paying retail.  But since there is some play in the price, come at it $150K under that.  That is approximately 70% of retail and then you have a deal that you have many options in how to make money from the transaction from.\n\nKnow your criteria when you are doing real estate investing:  know what is a deal and what isn't.  Study your neighborhoods and pricing.  \n\nBottom line, you can make that much on lesser priced houses without as great a risk.
155953
In some markets you can find foreclosures in regular real estate listings. I bought a power of sale in rural Ontario from a regular broker in 2003. No one else wanted it! Was a great house, turned a 33% profit in just over 2 years. If you don't mind living in the boonies, you can find stunning deals.
754779
You have to do a thorough market analysis, title check and inspection if possible and of course have cash. Many foreclosed homes are in such disrepair that they will not qualify for bank financing and also after the auction you must have the balance paid in 30 days. Another setback is that you will be bidding against others which will drive the price up. You definitely need to check into these things before you decide to purchase.
66683
It depends on what you mean by a little bit. I would save up  five hundred and go to the county clerks office and get a copy of the property tax list what houses that had tax leins on them or were forclosed. Then go when the auction is scheduled and bid on a house that you want (you can get one for as little as 100 dollars if no one bids higher) fix the house up and 'flip' it. you could sell it outright, rent it out. If you are willing to get in there and get a good deal, it really isn't too good to be true. Give it a try. First step is to go to the county tax clerk office and take a look at the houses and auction dates/times. Good luck.
151599
Most investors don't have a problem spending, at most, $30 to $50 a month (until cancelled) to get a list of properties where every single one of those properties can be purchased for tens of thousands of dollars less than other houses on the market. By the way, what do you consider 'useless'? If you are unable to purchase the property that you want, it's not the fault of the person who sold you the list. But, if they flat out scam you by providing you with a bogus list, you can always take it up with your credit card company or law enforcement. I suggest that if that amount of money is a problem for you, avoid auctions. Good luck!\n\nSomeone mentioned sites that list foreclosed properties. We are one of them, although we typically charge for those lists because we verify everything ourselves.
824322
Well, if you don't want to go the auction route you have a couple different options.\n\n1) Preforeclosures.  Get an online listings source and find pre-foreclosures (I use foreclosure.com).  Now you can identify the property you like (get funding!) and make a proper offer.   You will also help the home owner slide without a foreclosure on their record.  \n\n2) Foreclosed.  Meaning ones that don't get sold at auction become REOs.  Or bank-owned properties.  Then you can go straight to the lender and wheel and deal.  You should probably have a buyers agent though, to look out for your interests.  They may even get you a deal if you finance through them.\n\nOk. good luck.
1012787
You can probably do it, but you'll have to shop around.  Most banks don't offer mortgages on unimproved land, but there's got to be a few that do - but the interest rates may not be so good!
1114731
You can.  I know people who have done it.  In some very rare times you can even recieve a check when you buy a home.  It is possible but not always easy.  Each market is different and each seller is too.
569358
If it seems to good to be true then where's the catch?  I have owned apartment buildings before, and if you are around long enough you get to know people in the banking business.  At one point I got to know the vice-president in charge of real estate at Hudson City Savings Bank in New Jersey. I had already been a party to one transaction with the bank, a 29-unit half-abandoned building in Jersey City.  One day he offered me a property, and suggested I go take a look at it.  Turns out it was a massive brick apartment building, totally abandoned, sitting on on entire city block just off Bergenline Avenue in Jersey City.  As I recall it had something like 42 apartments.  He offered to sell me the building for just one dollar.\n\nI turned him down.  That is as close to 'no money down'as you can get, heck, this was no money at all, yet even at that price it was a terrible deal.  Sure, you can get these things for no money, I've been there, but you better have access to massive amounts of capital for renovation and upgrades, and I'm talking anywhere from tens of thousands to millions.  If you don't have the means to carry it and improve it, you better think twice before you get into something that can literally slay you.\n\nA lot of the real estate moguls who sold seminars on no money down deals in the late 70s and 80s ended up bankrupt, which ought to tell you something.
315368
There are probably several legitimate websites that offer this. You just have to pay for it. There is also a number in the Thrifty Nickle-whatever it is called where you live-free paper, that has the number you can call to get a list of foreclosures in your area.