Regarding foreclosures

[A Piece of Paradise]

Is there money to made in SW Florida? maybe someday...
There couldn't possible be a market for flipping yet, unless you get a property at an unbelievable lowwwwww price. I can't speak for single family homes, but I can say that "entry" level condos/townhomes are bargain basement priced. There are sooooo many more coming on to the market daily, especially Bank owned... that to buy, remodel, re-sale would not net you much money.

Example: I purchased my 2 story townhome (bank owned) last November for $42,000... Since that purchase (comparing apples to apples) multiple other properties in my community have been sold either at the same price as mine or even a few thousand dollars cheaper. Others (in my HOA) have stayed listed for months on end and they are only priced about 10-15% more than my original purchase price. Why? I figure people getting in the Florida dream are inundated with so many places continuing to flood the market that are bargain priced. Why pay more?

I think eventually, when all these "foreclosures" eventually get through the system and there isn't a back log of properties, values will slowly start to increase. I think if you are investing you would be in for the long haul.

My experience buying a foreclosure...
It was almost darn near perfect. Maybe I was just lucky. Maybe I did a hell of alot of research (almost a year) I researched everything. Location... neighborhoods... crime reports (on Lee County Sheriff site) Chester Molester sites... Google earth... I used listingbook.com to find the properties and then used Lee Clerk to find out who owned them...how much was owed on the property... status of the foreclosure... when it would go to court... and watched when they became re-listed... Prices of comps in the area... word of mouth... you name it, I became intimate with South Ft. Myers. Of course my real estate agent was wonderful, but she only handled the offer and the closing. I found my own place. When all was said and done, I think my closing costs were only slightly over $350...and another $250 for the inspection. The bank that owned the property paid for everything! Even a $10,000 past HOA fee. No issues, no problems... in fact I even closed without leaving the state in which I reside. Just one other point. Cash is king. Mine was a cash transaction. No bank issues, which saved a lot of time and aggravation.

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by 40Flier

AND, I'll never shut up about this, don't expect the bank to do a single thing that doesn't benefit them and will push for every penny to support the golden parachutes and extravagant earnings for the execs. If you don't buy this your head has been in the sand for the last three years.

I totally agree and constantly rail against the corporations that actually run this country. They like to prey on the paranoid and uninformed that don't understand the issues.

Please go back and read my post. I am not defending anything. But once again, this has nothing to do with the original post.

[Iamrita]

Originally Posted by timothy425

hi,
looking to buy single family home. have 100-125000 cash. would like to here from people who bought foreclosures . was it a positive experience? are there bidding wars? can i get a nice home in a decent area? can a home inspecter tell if there is chinese drywall for sure? coming down this october.
thanks
Tim

Re: Your CDW question. Do your research. Don't leave it up to an "inspector" one way or another. Hopefully your own assessment (after learning the details of how to inspect for evidence of CDW) will provide you with the evidence you require. Then you can use an experienced inspector to confirm (or deny) your own findings. It is not rocket science. Watch a few videos so you know what you are looking for, inspect carefully, use your eyes, nose, senses, etc. A screwdriver and abilty to remove AC panels, switchplates. etc. are helpful. If you smell, observe, confirm the signs of CDW, no need to call an "inspector". Just drop it and move on...

[hiknapster]

Originally Posted by 40Flier

CDW: read the thread. It smells like fireworks. You probably won't find corrosion under sinks because it's mainly plastic. The coating on wiring isn't as pronounced as shown in many pictures. Access to the A coil in the air conditioner (in our case) required intrusion into the duct work that the inspector didn't want to do since it has to be repaired and we the clients don't own it. It was very evident the HVAC was original (six years) and CDW would have destroyed it long ago if present.

Do not only rely on smell. Once again, not all homeowners with confirmed cases of CDW noticed an odor. It is great that your agent took you into a condo that was sealed up and smelled of sulphur but don't assume that every CDW property is going to be like that.

[Taratova]

My experience took me two trips to Cape Coral. I stayed three weeks , left with two bids on two homes. I was outbid.. came back,second stay took a month to find a home. I had a good realtor who was patient with me. I looked at many homes and got a "never lived in" home with good neighbors to boot.

Many homes go quickly. In a day they can go under contract. I was given a client portal link and also had my realtor send me homes via e-mail to look at each day as I stayed in my hotel room early to make out a list of what I wanted to see that day. I saw many homes. Many were not for me and some went fast which I didn't even get to see.

The drywall issue. I hear if a home is three years old and has no signs of problems of smell or deterioration of metal it is usually said to be without bad drywall. This is what I read. Read on the net to know what the signs are. I am in no way an expert so get an inspection done. Even then , I hear that there could be a home with a few bad pieces mixed in with the good drywall. So who knows really.. They started using the bad drywall in 2001 to probably the present. An air conditioner gives problems 6 to fourteen months with bad drywall. Read this on the net.

If you find a house you like use this link to check it out.

Lee County Property Line

Put in address of the house you want more info.. house # on one line and examples==NE 7th st or NW 17 Ave You must put in NE or SE or SW or NW along with street in order for the links to come up. Put a check in appraisal details listed on this page.. When your home comes up ...Check out all the info under sales, tax links and etc to find out history , taxes appraisal etc. Good luck!!

Check out this link to see what exactly is coming on the market recently. Put in your stats on the left and look for homes.. all foreclosures on this link.

Cape Coral Foreclosures — Trulia.com