This article in today's Los Angeles times titled "How I bought a foreclosed home"
( http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-cover9-2008nov09,0,2623620.story )
seems to me to be a a fairly realistic description of a typical buyer's experience in today's market in Southern California.
Well, let's hope the part about the broker who had recently come off of suspension by the Real Estate Department was ~not~ typical....
But sentences like these sure rang true:
"There's usually good reason many foreclosed houses languish with no buyers. They may be badly damaged or situated in places that seemed attractive only in the frenzy of a real estate bubble. ¶ The foreclosure inventory is loaded with properties far from job centers, stripped or even vandalized by previous owners or in abandoned developments with no parks, schools or even neighbors nearby. ¶ As a result, finding a decent house amid the wreckage of the real estate crash can be a long, tedious process...."
Comments, anyone?
I always tell sellers the one advantage they have over foreclosed homes is property condition. For some buyers, that will be more important than price. What you describe is definately the case, and usually a huge disappointment to buyers who are looking for the deal of the century. Can anyone say "you get what you pay for" ?
It has been my experience people say they want a foreclosed property, but don't realize what they are asking. Most consumers have no idea until they start looking at REOs what deplorable condition they are in! I try to warn them, saying once a homeowner gets into trouble they stop taking care of their homes. Many actually take their anger out on the property, leaving it a rubbled mess.
I represented many REOs in the past and can tell you from first hand experience, most are not pretty.
kk
Cheryl
That paragraph is very true...we have condos for sale and the buyers from up North think they can buy a sunny piece of Florida for 25K...in realty there is mold all over, cracked foundation and pipes breaking throughout the whole highrise...buyer beware if the price looks too good to be true.