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It will name the plaintiff in the foreclosure action and the defendant. It will include the property address and a description of the property, as well as the debt amount or "upset price." A buyer will in most cases have to buy a property being auctioned without prior inspection and in "as is" condition. Properties are sold very quickly, sometimes within minutes.
On top of all of this, you must have the cash available to bid at a sheriff’s sale. In Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, 10% of the winning bid must be paid at the time of the sale, prior to leaving the courthouse. The initial deposit must be made via certified check and the remainder is due within 30 days.
How Can I Sell My House If There Is a Lien on It?
Do this by determining the market value using comps, appraisals and brokers’ opinion of price. If there is a significant difference, you may have a winner. Perform a title search.The only way to be sure that this is a first mortgage holder foreclosing is through a full title search. The cost of the search is nothing compared to the potential loss from not investigating the condition of the title.

However, just because a sheriff’s sale satisfies the mortgage being foreclosed on does not mean that there are not other liens negatively affecting the property. As the buyer, you would step into the shoes of the previous owner and be required to fulfill those obligations. Therefore, the first step prior to bidding at a sheriff’s sale is to obtain a title search on the property. A title search will tell you what else may be out there affecting the property. For example, there may be liens for unpaid taxes, unpaid homeowner association dues, or even other mortgages on the property.
How to Buy a Home Before It Goes to the Sheriff Auction
Deduct the default or final judgment amount from your last subtotal. This is your gross profit potential, hypothetically the most you can make assuming all goes well. While purchasing property at sheriff’s sale can be financially rewarding, potential buyers must be aware of the risks and possible pitfalls that may come with a property. By doing your homework ahead of time, you can ensure that you are making a wise investment rather than purchasing a money pit. Attend the auction in person and bring cash or a cashier's check for the minimum amount of the deposit, which is 5 percent of the minimum bid in Alameda County.

Hire a title search company to check for liens on the property title. A lien may exist if the owner owes delinquent taxes, or if a creditor has obtained a judgment against the property owner for unpaid debt. You will be responsible for satisfying these liens if you purchase the property. Due to the short turnaround time, foreclosure homes don’t give you the benefit of a property walk-through or inspection before you commit.
Do I Need Title Insurance on a Bank-Owned Foreclosed Property?
Contact the owner by telephone or mail to inquire about purchasing the property. If the owner knows she cannot cure the default, she may be willing to discuss a sale with you. Logan has been writing professionally since he was first published in "Test & Measurement World" in 1989.
Find out how much money you will need for a deposit, and how much the starting bid will be for the home. You must have a cashier's check or a bank check for the amount of the deposit, and adequate funding for the amount of the final bidding price if you win the auction. A sheriff's sale is an auction following a court order to seize and liquidate property in order to satisfy the non-payment of a debt or other obligation of the owner. Inspect the property.If you can,pay an inspector to inspect the foreclosed propertyand assess any damages or repairs you must make before re-selling the property. Deduct those expenses from the profit you calculated earlier. If you cannot inspect a property, leave yourself a little extra room and some extra cash.
The sales are conducted in an auction format with open bidding. The properties at sale are being sold at the behest of a creditor attempting to recover money owed. While there are numerous opportunities, there also exist numerous risks.

Junior lienholders must buy out senior lien positions and be high bidder to gain possession of the foreclosed property with clear title. Failure to research a property correctly leads many to overbid. Too often properties are purchased for much more than their value. This accompanied by “auction fever,” the tendency to get caught up in the heat of the moment and overbid, results in large over-payments and even larger losses. If you are the successful bidder, you may have to evict tenants currently residing in your new property.
You can get a deal on a foreclosure at either type of auction. You'll want to find out if there are any liens against the property at either the state or federal level. This can include tax liens placed by the Internal Revenue Service or local taxes or even water charges. It can be a judgment lien placed by another of the homeowner's creditors. You might be responsible for paying any of these liens that were not wiped out during the foreclosure court proceedings. Buying foreclosed property at a sheriff’s sale is one way to get a great deal on an investment property.

There are several rules for this type of sale and understanding them can help you make an educated – and perhaps lucrative – purchase. While this will cost several hundred dollars, it will save you time, money and stress to know whether there are any liens on the house before you bid. In some states, this information may be available 6 to 8 months or more before the sale. This gives you ample time to research the property, the condition of the loan and the condition of the homeowner.
Some sheriff's sales require that you close on the property sooner than 30 days and others have a longer closing period. The amount you must put down can vary by location so check in advance. Some towns require 10 percent while others require 20 percent.

Evaluate whether the price set at the sheriff's sale is a good buy or not, taking into consideration any major repairs that may be needed. The previous owner died and no one claimed the unit prior to the sale. Determine your maximum bid amount.The lowest you can bid is the final judgment amount.
Acquire a checklist from an inspection company or see the home inspection book listed in the Resources section. If a property happen to be occupied by a tenant or previous owner, it is the responsibility of a buyer to remove the occupant. Save your home from mortgage and tax foreclosure Resources to avoid losing your home through foreclosure in Philadelphia. Pay attention.Listen carefully for your target property to be announced. The content found in this resource is for informational reference use only and is not considered legal advice. Laws at all levels of government change frequently and the information found here may be or become outdated.