Welcome to the Foreclosure Page  – You Want To Buy A Foreclosure.

This is a general picture of what it looks like at a real estate auction.  These auctions are held normally at noon in Connecticut and you will need 10% of the Court Appraisal in a Bank Check form made out to yourself or your LLC as a Deposit check to qualify to bid at 1 of these auctions.  There is so much more information about this – actually too much to list here. 

Ok so there are 4 Stages in a Foreclosure and it is important to know these 4 stages and then have us help you navigate through your options at the stage any particular property is in when you see it online, in your email or when you are ready to put an offer in!  Many times, you will see the words “Short Sale” and “REO” in the listing of a foreclosed property!  We see the foreclosure process broken down in 4 stages:

1. The Default Stage – the beginning phase where the property owner is now late in their mortgage payments and probably has received a Default Notice from their bank.
2. The Short Sale Stage – the middle phase where the bank may have agreed to accept less than what the homeowner owes to the bank. 
3. The Foreclosure Stage – the near end phase which is broken down in Connecticut by Strict Foreclosure where the bank takes the deed back and asks you to leave or an Auction By Sale – where the property will be auctioned right on the premises at a later specific date.
4. The “REO” or Real Estate Owned Stage – this is the end stage or time period after the foreclosure judgment was entered by the Court, where the property did not sell at auction and/or the bank took the deed back from the prior owner of the property. The bank now owns the property.

Whether you’re looking for a great deal on your dream home or seeking an investment property in Connecticut, a foreclosure may be just what you need. Our company has bought properties through auctions and properties on the market. Years ago, I dealt with many of the auction sites online that offer properties all over the country. I also can find you a foreclosure off the MLS too! So please allow us to help you, as a first time investor or a seasoned one, find that investment property that’s just right for you! Many real estate agents do not understand the foreclosure process and conversely, many legal professionals do not understand the real estate side of things. Although we make it clear that we do not have attorneys on our staff and we do not provide legal advice, I have over 20 years of civil litigation experience as a paralegal – some of which was in foreclosure litigation, have been in real estate as an agent and then a broker since 2007, have been flipping properties since early 2015 and spent 10 years researching this area of real estate. I feel confident that my experience and investing options Sanford REI provides, will provide you a winning combination to be successful! If you want to invest in foreclosures, Sanford REI offers 4 fantastic options for you to choose from! Please click on the “Investor” tab at the top of this page for more information!
You can also navigate through Zillow.com or Realtor.com to find foreclosures but please keep in mind that many times, their information is not totally accurate and that includes Zillow’s “Zestimate”. There are some public sites you can use to research foreclosures. A few of these sites may charge you a fee to use but most should be free. We do not endorse any of them. We only provide them as another set of resources for you to use. Ultimately, you may find yourself lost in so much information and will still need our guidance to navigate through the foreclosure process.

So you want to buy a foreclosure? The bottom line is this: 

1.  If you want to buy a foreclosure property that is on the market (MLS) to keep yourself, you may save 10-30% off what it may be worth at the time you buy it, get your new home at a decent discount and you can fix it up as you go.  You are looking at 6 -7 weeks to close unless you have cash but the best thing is the prior owner must remove all liens, pay all taxes and provide “Clear Title” to you at Closing.  Cash closings can normally be done within 3 weeks.
2. If you want to buy a foreclosure on the market to “flip”, you may get the property at 10-50% off what it may be worth that day but you may realize single or low double digit profits after you rehab it.  The difference why you may get a bigger discount here as opposed to #1 above is you are probably buying a more run down property and it needs more work.  You are still looking at 6 -7 weeks to close unless you have cash but the best thing is the prior owner must remove all liens, pay all taxes and provide “Clear Title” to you at Closing. Cash closings can normally be done within 3 weeks.
3. If you buy a foreclosure at a Connecticut auction, you may save 40-50% off what it is worth that day you bought it and you stand to make double digit profits after everything you invested in it, carry costs, closing costs and finance fees.  You stand to make a decent profit going this route but it’s much higher risk, you normally cannot get inside to evaluate condition, you can only buy these properties with cash and you will need to wait about 5 or so weeks to close.  Moreover, you will also have to pay any outstanding taxes, sewer use fees, water liens etc. that were left by the prior owner and these costs would be paid at your closing. So higher risk but higher possible profits. IT IS VITAL YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING BEFORE JUMPING INTO THIS!  WE DO NOT RECOMMEND YOU GOING IT ALONE!

THESE ARE AVERAGE FIGURES WE ARE USING ABOVE.  The above is provided to give you the simple breakdown to buying foreclosures.  I have spent about 23 years in civil litigation, over 12 years in real estate, the past 4 years flipping, and countless hours, since about 2000, preparing myself with tapes, DVDs, seminars, online investing classes, reading books and more just to get a handle into buying foreclosures and flipping them.  I have been flipping properties since early 2015 and have bought foreclosures through auctions and on the market.  There are pros and cons to both buying foreclosures on the market and at auction but my experience to date has shown me that although you get a lot of things taken care of buying a foreclosure on the market and you can close sooner and usually be able to get inside to see the home, you usually won’t realize the same profit ceiling as you would with an auction property.  If you want to buy a foreclosure to hold it or flip it, then please call us and click on the “Investor” tab at the top of the page to learn more about investing in foreclosures and the 4 great options we can offer you! We look forward to working with you!

Thank you!

John Sanford, Managing Member and Real Estate Broker at Sanford REI.