What are the goods and bads of buying a foreclosed, bank owned, or short-sale house?

Question

My wife and I are looking to buy our first home, and one of the houses we're most interested in happens to be a foreclosure. Before we get into anything too deep, I'd like to learn more about what this means, as a buyer, from someone with more experience. Any help would be very much appreciated! Thanks!

Answer 1

.   Bank repo's should be purchased with cash.  Loans cause all sorts of problems since the seller (bank) won't fix anything and your lender (bank) won't loan without the repairs being done.

Foreclosure auctions are fun.  You bid on the courthouse steps. You must pay cash. No loans.  No 30 day closings.  You bought it.

Short sales are a nightmare and i will never do one again.  The bank is losing $100,000 but they won't lose that much unless the seller agrees to pay 1/3 of that.  Of course, the sellers always refuse.  WHich leaves you on day 100 still wondering if you bought a home or not.

Buy a nice house.