WHERE CAN I FIND REO PROPERTIES?

There are a large number of resources for finding REO properties and in the current economy more are coming onto the market daily. Here are a few resources for finding REO properties.

– Local Brokers that specialize in REO. Many local real estate professionals have relationships with banks and lending institutions and are the first to know when a property is about to come onto the market as an REO. Banks count on these local professionals to provide them with current market conditions in the area and local knowledge for getting the property listed and sold quickly.

– There are a number of independent Internet sites that group REO listings by location/region and many other criteria. Because there are a large number of properties coming onto the market as REO, these lists can be quite large. Most offer pictures and details about the properties. However, many are not able to group properties by neighborhood so be prepared to develop your own systems for grouping these listings. Also, be sure to consider how current is the information on the site it and if the information is updated frequently.

– Contacting banks directly is another option. Keep in mind that each bank handles REO properties differently. For example some lenders have searchable databases on their Internet site which list REO properties but many smaller lenders have someone on their staff tracking properties. Larger, national lenders have departments called loss mitigation which handle their REO properties. Because of the large number of REO properties on the market today the process can be overwhelming. This is where it is wise to work with someone who specializes in REO properties. Since they are dealing with these properties on a daily bases they are familiar with what is available, when new listing usually come out, and how to find the details quickly.