REO – Real Estate Owned – Properties

Q: What is a “bank-owned property”?
A: When a borrower with a mortgage from a bank or mortgage lender can’t meet the payments, the lender forecloses on the property and takes ownership of the property. Then the lender lists it with a listing (real estate) agent and sells it at market value as quickly as possible.

Q: Who can buy a Bank-owned property?
A: Anyone! If you have the cash or can qualify for a mortgage, you can buy a Bank-owned property.

Q: Can I buy a Bank-owned property as an investment?
A: Yes, Bank-owned properties I work with are available to all buyers, including investors.

Q: What is the condition of Bank-owned properties I can buy through your services?
A: All Bank-owned properties offered are sold “as-is”. The Lender, the listing agent, buying agent or my company do not make any warranty or representation, expressed or implied, regarding properties for sale on the web site. The buyer is expected to perform an inspection with a licensed contractor at the buyer’s expense.

Q: How do I buy a Bank-owned property?
A: Start by finding a licensed real estate agent. Your real estate agent must submit an electronic offer for you.

Q: What do I need to do before submitting an offer??
A: Before submitting an offer, the real estate agent should have a completed and signed real estate purchase and sales contract and the earnest money deposit from the buyer. We also recommend that the buyer and agent should perform a thorough investigation of the subject property, and investigate financing for the buyer’s potential purchase.

Q: Can you describe the offer process?
A: Bank-owned properties listed on the reoSource web site are being sold through a competitive offer process in which offers are submitted electronically to the bank for evaluation and review. The bank will submit a reply (counter-offers and/or accept/reject notifications) back to the listing agent who will communicate the response to the prospective buyer. Please note that banks frequently receive multiple offers on the same property, which may require additional time to prepare and send a response. >ReoSource does not guarantee the timely delivery of this notification; ultimately, it is the buyer’s and the agent’s responsibility to check the status of their offer with the listing agent.

Q: After I submit an offer, how is it evaluated??
A: The lender primarily evaluates offers based on the net funds received by the lender after deducting the selling agent’s commission. In general, the lender will accept the offer with the highest net amount. Notwithstanding, the lender reserves the right to accept, reject, or counter any submitted offers, even the highest offer.

Q: If my offer is accepted, then what happens?
A: The party submitting the accepted offer is required to send a completed and signed real estate purchase and sales contract and the earnest money deposit to the listing agent within the time frame that stated in the lender’s Terms and Conditions appearing on each property listed on the reoSource web site. The party submitting the accepted offer will receive information on how to complete the transaction and instructions to help the buyer through the paperwork process.

Q: Can I reduce or cancel my offer once it has been submitted?
A: No, the buyer and the agent cannot reduce or cancel the offer once it has been submitted. To ensure that the lender and listing agent are able to successfully complete the sales transactions, reoSource only accepts serious offers. The buyer and the agent need to review the offer carefully before submitting it.

Q: How can I get a loan to buy a Bank-owned property?
A: The lender doesn’t make loans directly for any properties listed on the reoSource web site. In order to ensure that your purchase will close, we encourage potential buyers to be pre-qualified for the amount of an offer for a property. We also recommend that potential buyers investigate financing before submitting an offer, since failure to obtain financing will result in the cancellation of the offer. The real estate agent should be able to get financing information for his/her buyer.

Contact Nestor N. Romero to get information on some REO properties in Fairfield and New Haven Counties, Connecticut.