Since I've been posting the current foreclosure information on this blog, I've been getting a lot of inquiries lately.  That's a good thing because it means the blog is getting read.  However, it's also important to understand the reality of dealing with foreclosure properties so I'm re-posting anarticle I wrote last year for my other blog:

Dear Readers,
Regardless of the "hot" real estate market, there are lots of foreclosure homes on the Wenatchee housing market these days. I often get calls from people who want to buy foreclosure homes because they think they can buy them for pennies on the dollar, as they are led to believe... by, what I consider, somewhat false advertising.


The reality of dealing with foreclosure homes is not what most people have been led to believe. First of all, many of the foreclosed homes have been over-mortgaged. The only craze hotter than the home buying craze has been the lending craze. How many solicitations for re-financing your home have you received in the last year? Probably at least one per week.


If you really think about it, if a homeowner could sell their home for more than what they owe they'd do it... and keep the difference. This would certainly be better than getting kicked out of your home with nothing to show for it.


The truth is, most people owe more than what they would net (after paying off the mortgage and selling costs). So, what is happening is the banks are re-possessing the homes and trying to sell them for what is owed on the property. They are not trying to make a profit. They are just trying to recover their investment (plus legal fees to foreclose and sell).


O.K... so let's say you do find a foreclosure you are interested in and the price actually does seem to be a good deal. Should you jump on it? Maybe and maybe not. The next problem with foreclosures is that the banks make you accept the house in "as is" condition. That means they make no warranties or guarantees. They know nothing about the property and take no responsibility or liability for it. You've got to do alot of "due diligence" when buying any home but even more so with a foreclosure homes, because there is nobody to take responsibility if there are undisclosed problems.


The next problem is financing. Many foreclosure homes have maintenance and repair issues. I've actually seen foreclosure homes where the toilets and kitchen cabinets have been stripped. Bitter occupants take what they can and leave in the night. Anyway, the foreclosing banks don't want to spend the money to fix them up. They want to sell them "as is". This causes a problem when trying to get new financing. The "new" lender doesn't want to finance a home needing repairs... so you need to have a large down payment (or all cash) to make the deal work. Then you need more cash to actually make the repairs.


If you actually do have enough cash to buy a foreclosed home, you might consider looking for a "desperate" seller BEFORE foreclosure happens.  This is the Pre-Auction phase.  You could probably buy the home for less from the seller than from the lender. If it actually goes through foreclosure, the lender now has the added legal and other foreclosure costs on top of their already high mortgage balance.


Every situation is different, of course. If you see a property you are interested in, I'd be glad to analyze it and discuss some strategies on a case by case basis.


For customized service or for answers to your specific real estate questions, contact:
Carol Williams:  Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
Wenatchee Real Estate Specialist

www.TopPropertiesWenatchee.com

Below is a list of addresses for homes currently scheduled for auction in the Wenatchee, East Wenatchee and Malaga areas. If you find one of particular interest, let me know. I can suggest the best course of action for contacting the owner or lender.

In my opinion, pre-auction properties hold more potential than foreclosure properties. These are people who are having difficulty making their mortgage payments but have not yet gone into foreclosure yet. Not all these homes will actually be auctioned because the owners will find a way to pay their delinquent account before that happens. If it does go to auction, it is usually because there is not enough equity in the home for the owners to bother trying to salvage it. Where there is substantial equity, they often find a way to pay-off the delinquent payments before it actually goes to the auction. Because these homeowners are having difficulty making payments, you may be able to negotiate a good sale price and get a better value than on a home that is already in foreclosure.

Once a home has gone into foreclosure, the bank has incurred additional expenses and tacks those fees onto the base price of the home. Foreclosure properties tend to be in less desireable condition. People who are losing their home to foreclosure do not continue to maintain the property and often leave it in a state of disrepair.

East Wenatchee:


1127 N. Devon Ave. 3 bed / 2 bath

1761 Manhattan Dr 4 bed / 3 bath

1801 - 3rd St. N.E. 2 bed / 1.5 baths

520 Lacy Place 2 bed / 1 bath

1604 Flora 2 bed / 2 bath

3126-E Sunset Hwy 2 bed, 1 bath

215 S. Kentucky 3 bed / 2 bath

576 Morning View 4 bed / 2 bath

1026 Gilbert Ct. 4 bed / 3 bath

20 N. Nile 3 bed / 2 bath

1617 N. Astor Ct. 3 bed / 2 bath

2513 N. Ashland Ave 4 bed / 3.5 bath

612 S. Larch 3 bed / 2 bath

Wenatchee: (Sorry no bed or bath info)

1314 Poplar Ave

1791 Judkins

1602 Walnut

165 Brookside

1710 Springwater

545 Chrisand

550 Methow

704 Okanogan

834 Walker

512 Red Apple Road

360 Crawford

404 S. Chelan

1329 Castlerock

1036 Madison

932 Monroe

1005 West Park

1309 McKittrick

820 Monroe

343 Malaga

820 Monroe

1261 Millerdale

1639 Ridgeview Loop

Malaga: (Sorry no bed or bath info)

3499 Marlette Place

For answers to your real estate questions, contact:

Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
www.TopPropertiesWenatchee.com

While our local Wenatchee area economy appears strong, Inman News reports the National foreclosure rate is up 24%.  That doesn't mean 24% of mortgages are foreclosed upon.  It means there are 24% more foreclosures.


For current information on the local real estate market in Wenatchee, East Wenatchee, Rock Island, Malaga, Cashmere, Waterville and other North Central Washington areas, contact:

Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
www.TopPropertiesWenatchee.com 

Hopefully time will permit me to be more diligent about posting current information on properties that are scheduled for Auction and also those Bank Owned foreclosure properties in the Wenatchee and East Wenatchee area.  Occasionally, I will take the time to research outlying areas such as Rock Island, Malaga, Waterville, and Cashmere.  But, in the meantime, if you're interested in a specific town or zip code (local, state, or nationwide) let me know and I can do a custom search for you. 


Here is the current count, as of 09/05/06, for local Auction and Bank Owned (repossessed) foreclosure properties:

East Wenatchee -

46 scheduled for auction

15 bank owned

Wenatchee -

44 scheduled for auction

15 bank owned

I have details for each of these listings, so for further info please contact:
Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
www.TopPropertiesWenatchee.com

Although I'm still officially on vacation, I did a quick foreclosure search today.  Here is a summary of current foreclosure inventory in the Wenatchee & North Central Washington area: 
  Wenatchee: 3 foreclosures, 3 pre-foreclosures
   East Wenatchee: 1 foreclosure, 1 pre-foreclosure
   Chelan:  1 foreclosure, 1 pre-foreclosure, 1 bankruptcy
   Leavenworth: 1 foreclosure, 1 pre-foreclosure

I don't send out daily updates, but if you want a list of foreclosures at any given time, please let me know and I'll do a current customized search for you.  I can do local, state, or nationwide searches. 

Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
http://TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
http://www.CarolsWenatchee.com
http://www.RealEstateSuccess.blogspot.com

On my other real estate blog, which focuses on the investment side of real estate, I posted some information about developing foreclosure trends for the coming year.  Although I feel our local Wenatchee real estate market is not really typical at this time, it's interesting to follow the overall foreclosure trend, which does affect real estate in general.  Here is the excerpt from that post:

Recent reports indicate the number of real estate foreclosures nationwide could increase by about 25% this year. This does not mean, of course, that 25% of loans will go into default. Less than 1% of loans nationwide have been going into foreclosure, so that is the number being used as the basis. So, this 1% could increase to about 1.25% of the total in the coming year.

Not to prey on misfortune, but it could be a year to watch for some good opportunities in foreclosures. In order to be most effective buying foreclosures, you will need to be able to buy without contingencies and offer a quick closing to the foreclosing entity (lender).

Due to our strong and diverse economy, I don't anticipate this much of an increase in the Wenatchee real estate market.  But, we will watch the trend and see what happens.  I'll try to post the foreclosure inventory occasionally.

If you have specific questions about Wenatchee area real estate, or current foreclosure inventory, please contact me:
Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
http://TopPropertiesWenatchee.com

Yesterday I posted a 2005 summary of all  home sales in the Wenatchee Valley area.   This morning I began wondering about the current availability of foreclosure homes, so I  did a new search.  My search revealed only 3 foreclosure properties available in all of Chelan County.  There was one each in Leavenworth, Chelan, and Wenatchee.  When I searched Douglas County I found zero foreclosure properties currently available for sale.   

Overall, the foreclosure home listing inventory is down.  It will be interesting to watch this trend during the coming year.  I will post periodic updates for you.  If you'd like a customized foreclosure home search done for you, let me know.  I can prepare a list of any zip code, city, county or state in the United States. 

Carol

Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
www.TopPropertiesWenatchee.com

The following list is a result of my foreclosure real estate search in Chelan and Douglas County, Washington.  This report was generated at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, November 10, 2005.     The status of these listings changes constantly, so please contact me for current information:
       Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com  or call 509-670-7840


Wenatchee:
407 Oregon St., #112  ($49,900)
429 King St., #322  ($49,900)
407 Ridgeview Loop Dr.  ($104,900)
5005 Squilchuck Road  (Unknown list price)
801 Methow St.  ($72,000)
220 Pennsylvania St.  ($123,600)
1016 West Park St.  ($132,500)

EastWenatchee:
916 S.E. 4th St.  ($154,000)
1112 10th St., N.E.  (Unknown list price)

Rock Island:
1481 Idaho St.  ($115,500)

Cashmere:
409 Pioneer  ($Unknown list price)
110 River St.  ($63,900)

Malaga:
3344 Saturday Ave.   ($88,900)

Chelan:
131 Gibson St.  ($Unknown list price)

Leavenworth:
3628 Allen Lane   ($74,500)

As always, this information is deemed accurate and reliable but cannot be guaranteed.

Here is a list of the properties that come up on my most recent foreclosure home search within Chelan & Douglas counties, Washington State.  If you'd like additional information about any of these properties, please contact me via e-mail @  Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com :

Wenatchee:
407 Oregon St., #112  ($54,900)
801 Methow   ($72,000)
407 Ridgeview Loop Drive  ($109,900)
1016 West Park St.  ($132,500)

EastWenatchee:
2109 Canal Blvd.  ($35,900)

Rock Island:
1481 Idaho St.  ($115,500)

Cashmere:
409 Pioneer  ($Unknown list price)
110 River St.  ($66,900)

Malaga:
3344 Saturday Ave.   ($88,900)

Chelan:
131 Gibson St.  ($Unknown list price)

Leavenworth:
3628 Allen Lane   ($76,500)

As always, this information is deemed reliable but cannot be guaranteed.

Have a wonderful week-end,
Carol

Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com
www.TopPropertiesWenatchee.com (Full featured property searches)
www.RealEstateSuccess.blogspot.com  (Investment blog)

Here's a link to a short article , from "The Dollar Stretcher", about buying foreclosure properties.  This article applies to information on buying in the Wenatchee real estate market area, or any market across the country.   The process is the same in every market area. 

If you are looking for foreclosure properties in the Wenatchee, East Wenatchee, Cashmere areas please let me know and I can do a complete, current, detailed, local search for you.   Write me at:  Carol@TopPropertiesWenatchee.com .

I have a subscription to www.ForeclosureFreeSearch.com.   You'd think with the word "free" in the name, a subscription would not be necessary.  The reality is, they give you enough info to get you curious, with the free search... then you have to pay for the details.   Fortunately, for you, I have the subscription and can give you all the info for free.  So, here is some basic info.  If you'd like details on any of them, please let me know.

Wenatchee:
  1018 Berg St.:  $ 203,000
  415 Palouse St.:  $99,200
  1425 Cherry St.:  $179,900
  4720 #2 Canyon Rd:   $69,500
  1218 Cascade St.:   $115,000

East Wenatchee:
  1250 6th Pl. N.E.:   $129,900

Rock Island:
  1481 Idaho St.:  $115,000

Cashmere:
  110 River St.:  $66,900
  5125 Regan Road:   $134,900
  409 Pioneer:   $170,900

Leavenworth:
  620 Birch St.:   $279,999
  2536 Sumac:   $349,500

Prices indicate published asking price, but offers are always considered. 

Have a great day!
Carol