Bargain Real Estate (continued - p2 of 2)

Buying Foreclosures and Repossessions

When buyers are in debt to lending institutions for the purchase of real estate and they fail to make their payments on time, lending institutions repossess and sell that real estate for the amount still owed by the previous buyer. Buyers of foreclosed real estate basically get a discount at the previous buyer's expense (and hopefully you're not the previous buyer). To find foreclosures, look up "real estate loans" or "banks" in a phone book for the area where you're looking to buy, call each lending institution and ask if they have any "real estate owned homes", "foreclosed homes" or "foreclosures". Be prepared to describe the kind of homes you are interested in, and if they have a mailing list ask them to put you on it so they can send you information on foreclosures they may end up with in the future. You'll be one of the first to know about available foreclosured homes and property before they are advertised in the local newspaper (the next place to look).

Purchasing Tax Delinquent Properties

Like foreclosures, prices on tax delinquent properties usually start at the amount still owed, but in this case for property taxes instead of loan payments. Some properties may go for as little as $100 or less, while others may cost much more, but whatever the price it is nearly always much less than the real market value. To find delinquent property online use search terms like "tax delinquent properties", "tax sales" or "tax liens" in any of the major search engines. I have found many delinquent properties this way, but had difficulty finding them for my state. Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, New Mexico, New York, Texas and Wyoming seem to be the states with the most tax delinquent properties. If real estate listings for your state cannot be found online, go to the government section of the phone book for the area where you want to buy and look for "county tax assessor", "county treasurer" or something similar. Then call each office and ask specific questions such as how, when and where tax delinquent properties are advertised and sold in that county, and if there are any delinquent properties available currently. If they have a mailing list, ask them to add you to it so they can send you delinquent property listings as they become available. Of course, you may not be able to find your dream home this way but again, it's an excellent way to work your way up from the fixer upper to what you really want.

Private and Government Auctions

You really can buy property from private and government auctions for pennies on the dollar. As with most affordable real estate purchasing options, information on private and government auctions can be found in the newspapers or online. Property sold is not limited to real estate however, as it may also include personal property such as cars, boats, planes, electronics, antiques or jewelry. Unfortunately like tax delinquent realty, property sold at government auctions has often been stolen from the citizens, whether due to tax delinquency, illegal means of purchase or by use of some other legal land theft tactic.