Is purchasing a house at the time of foreclosure similar to buying a house that has already been foreclosed upon?

No. There are two different types of home foreclosures purchases. The first is when the lender actually forecloses on the property. If you’re interested in purchase you can show up in court and bid on the home foreclosure. The second type is when the lender or insurer actually owns the property and is selling it as its rightful owner.

Is the escrow the same as a typical real estate transaction?

No. When you’re buying home foreclosures at the time the lender takes the property back, you must show up in court, bid on the property, and if the bid is accepted, you are obliged to buy the house with a cashiers’ check, without inspections, and without any contingencies. When you’re buying from a lender or insurer after the house is already foreclosed on, there is still the opportunity to negotiate the price and terms, but because of the competitive market, the lender will normally end up calling most of the shots.

Do home foreclosures involve any additional legal concerns or fees?

No. With proper inspection, home foreclosures are unlikely to be accompanied by any additional legal concerns or fees. Bearing that in mind, remember that usually home foreclosures are sold “as is,” and due to the fact that the lender has never occupied the actual house, they are often not aware of the intricacies that may typically be required on a disclosure (for example leaking roofs or problems with electricity).

Does buying a foreclosed house involve any risk?

No. Purchasing a foreclosed home is unlikely to be risky if you do a thorough investigation. Be aware of the two facts: lenders will have limited information to work with for disclosures; secondly, people tend to get excited by the idea of a “sale,” and fail to notice the actual value of house foreclosures because of a “perceived value” issue. Consider the following hint: try to forget that it’s a foreclosure and think of it as a piece of real estate.

Is a foreclosure always an “as is” deal or can I negotiate with the bank for repairs or improvements?

As a buyer you can always try to negotiate, but conditions of the home foreclosures market are more likely to favor the lender, who will in most cases be able to sell the property “as is.”

An investigation has been carried out by a group of three economists in order to establish whether using a for sale by owner (FSBO) web site could really make homeowners more money in comparison to selling a house with a traditional real estate agent. The answer, at least in Madison, Wisconsin, is yes.
Long before the light of the Internet shone across the land, Realtors were the ones who had access to the lists of properties for sale in a given location. This information could be extremely difficult to gather on one’s own without flying to the desired city and driving the side streets, jotting down addresses. But along with the development of the Internet, it’s easy to list and share information, and even Realtors are opening up their listings to public access. In such a situation, does it still make sense to pay a 6% commission?
If you expect a low-stress selling experience, a Realtor is probably your choice. But if it’s all about the bottom line, it is being argued that selling a place yourself can be more profitable in a city with a well-used FSBO web site. Madison, WI has such a site (FSBOMadison.com) and provided to be an excellent test case for the already mentioned economist to compare FSBO results to Realtor results between 1998 and 2004.
To put it simply, their research indicates that the FSBO homes sold for an average price of $175,068 in Madison, while Realtor homes sold for $173,205 in the same period. When we remove commissions from that figure, the FSBO sellers came out a good deal ahead. However, using a Realtor’s multiple listing service (MLS) makes the time a house is on the market shorter and prevents you from having to witness strangers tramping through your home and pointing out the water stains on your woodwork.