Alexis McGee does a fantastic job explaining everything you need to know about Buying A HUD Home. Alexis will explain how HUD sells their property, working with HUD agents, HUD buying process and the pros and cons of a HUD home. Make sure you read this article.
How to Buy a HUD Home
by Alexis McGee – July 2009
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) act as an insurance agency for banks, savings & loans and mortgage bankers who make real estate loans to buyers and investors. HUD/FHA does not make loans; they insure lenders against loss in the event of default.
HUD properties are sold to the public when HUD/FHA mortgages are foreclosed. HUD pays the original lender the amount of the loan due and other expenses and then resells their real estate-owned (REO) property.
How HUD Sells Their Property
When HUD gets a property back through foreclosure, it turns it over to its Property Disposition Department which first secures the property from vandalism or damage. Next, this department determines if the property will be sold directly or through an outside broker.
If an outside broker is used, she must complete the necessary repairs required by HUD, secure the property, advertise the property, accept sealed bids, control the escrow account and make sure the escrow closes. HUD will pay a 6% sales commission to agents involved in the sale, whether sold through a broker or sold by HUD directly.
Working with HUD Agents
You can find HUD properties while searching Foreclosures.com nationwide REO property listings. To buy a HUD property, you must contact a HUD broker or other agent authorized to sell HUD owned homes. You may contact HUD directly to receive a list of HUD authorized brokers in your area. HUD brokers will also receive new listings of HUD homes every week – but this will be well after they have already been published on ForeclosureS.com REO listings.
Alert: HUD will allow real estate agents to acquire HUD properties. An agent bidding on a HUD property can reduce her bid price by the amount of commission he may earn on the sale.
The HUD Buying Process
HUD restricts the sale of some properties to “owner occupant” only. Generally advertised under the heading “New Listings,” HUD wants the buyers of these properties to actually reside at that property for at least one year.
The HUD property report will list the case number, address, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, price, an unrepaired price and repair escrow amount if available. The due dates for bids are listed as well. There will also be a statement indicating whether or not these properties are eligible for FHA insured financing.
If you would like to submit an offer you will need to contact an authorized HUD agent. HUD claims to use current appraisals to establish each homes value according to age, condition, size, location, lot size, etc.
Always do your own thorough inspection, inside and out, and make sure you check comparable sales to determine today’s market value as taught to you in my Seven Steps to Mastering Foreclosures.
If you still want the property, you must submit a HUD bid package containing a complete set of contracts to a HUD field office with your deposit of 5%. The deposit must be in cash, cashiers check, money order or appropriate letter of credit.
The HUD bid package contains instructions, a sales contract, a “Forfeiture of Earnest Money Deposit” document and an addendum regarding lead-based paints. This document clearly states that if an inpidual buyer submits a contract to purchase a HUD home and does not perform, HUD will retain the 5% deposit on a non-refundable basis.
You may bid more or less than the asking amount for any HUD home. If you are not the successful bidder, your earnest money deposit will be refunded to you. If you are the successful bidder, the earnest money deposit is credited toward your down payment.
The buyer then has 30 days to close escrow once the bid has been accepted. HUD can authorize extensions of this deadline with prior written approval. Extensions are normally granted when a private lender has agreed to finance the property but needs more time to process the loan application.
Pros and Cons of a HUD Home
Some benefits to buying HUD homes are that a real estate broker will prepare and submit your offer and deposit for you without charging you. HUD pays up to 5% of the closing costs, saving you thousands. You can move in faster if you purchase a HUD home eligible for FHA-insured mortgage, because it has already been appraised. HUD homes may be eligible for repair loans built into the mortgage and buyers may qualify for 3% down payments.
The negative to buying HUD homes is in getting our big discounts on price. During our last downturn in the late 1990’s HUD’s own internal documents show that many of their REO’s had been sold for MORE THAN APPRAISED VALUE! And about half of those had prices exceeding their value by more than 10%. (Learn how HUD encouraged these high prices in “Government Foreclosures: Are There Deals in There?”)
In Summary
With the growing number of government guaranteed loans going bad, our government is now the dominant owner of U.S. property. And while stepped-up efforts by Obama and the Fed lessen the pain of foreclosures, it’s likely that our government will end up holding the bag on even more foreclosed homes.
We all know that our government does not want to own real estate. That means there are tremendous opportunities for you to find great deals on government foreclosed homes. And with many of these bad loans securing new homes bought in the last few years, a large majority of these government-owned foreclosures are new and will require little or no rehab!
The biggest hurdle for investors looking to purchase government-owned real estate is that the pros scoop all the best properties up long before the rest of the investor community gets to pick through the leftovers. That is why it is so important that you do not wait for your foreclosed houses to hit the MLS. Being a part of a multiple-offer bidding frenzy is simply not worth your time.
You must work your Investment Properties REO’s listings as taught to you in your Seven Steps to Mastering Foreclosures home study course to see houses as they are foreclosed. Oftentimes you know about them before they even hit the banks REO department!
Happy Investing! Alexis J
Alexis is one of the top trainers in the country, click on the link below to get this link and really Foreclosure Investing
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Tags: Alexis McGee, foreclosure investing, foreclosureS.com, investment properties
June 8th, 2010 at 10:14 am
Were you paying PMI on a mortgage originally and now HUD owes you a refund ranging from hundred to thousands of dollars? Get information on how to claim this HUD Refund