Important Tips on Buying Your First Foreclosed Property in Greeley Colorado by Real Estate & Investing Expert Marc Oster

Buying foreclosed properties is getting more popular and more profitable every day. There are dozens of foreclosed properties hitting the Greeley Colorado Real Estate market every day.

These properties can be both gold mines and land mines. In this article, we'll go over several simple tips to help ensure that your first foreclosure purchase is a successful one.

Opt for a Low-Repair Property for Your First Deal
We've all heard about people who make thousands of dollars buying fixer foreclosures and fixing them. The reality is, however, that doing such a deal requires a high degree of expertise.
Do you know how to fix a broken roof? Can you estimate how much it would cost to replace an entire shed? Can you estimate how much the repairs will cost and compare it to your selling price in the end?

Although you can make some money doing fixers in Greeley Colorado, you can also make some money just by buying foreclosed properties, doing minor cosmetic repairs and selling them again. For your first foreclosure deal, look for houses that don't require much work so you can get some experience under your belt.   This is where you should consult a Realtor.  A qualified Realtor will be able to tell you if you are getting a good deal on your purchase, but what you might be able to sell it for in the future with all the expenses associated with it.  If you've watched those house flipping shows on TV they like to show the profit, but I've rarely seen one that reports what the costs besides the repairs are.  Some of the expenses are title insurance, property insurance, carrying the loan, Taxes, real estate commissions should you use a Realtor to sell. 

Research the Markets Surrounding Greeley Colorado Real Estate Market
There are generally three reasons you'd buy a foreclosure in Greeley Colorado To rent out, to sell or to live in. If you're buying to repair and rent out or sell, then market research is absolutely essential.

If you're buying to rent, it's important to know what other properties in the Greeley Colorado real estate area are renting for. It's also important to know what the vacancy rates are.  You also might want to consider hiring a property manager if you don't want to really manage the property yourself.  But don't forget to budget this cost.  A property manager usually is experienced in dealing with renters and knows the procedures to do a good job with it. 

Based on these numbers, you can accurately predict what your cashflow will be like.
If you're buying to sell, it's important to know what you can expect to sell your property for once your repairs are completed.

You should know these numbers before you make your purchase. Remember that with any real estate investment in Greeley Colorado the profit is made on the buy end, not the sell end. You must know how much your property is worth or how much you can rent it out for before you can make a profitable investment.

You also need to have an idea of what kind of property you want.  Do you want a single family home, an attached dwelling, or a patio home to name a few. 

Another thing you need to do is to prepare for your purchase.  In Greeley Colorado if a property comes on the market, is well priced, and is in fairly good shape you will need to move fast to put an offer in on it.  You can't just sit around and wait for a week thinking about it.  Most of the time you will have competing offers.  You will either have to be pre approved for a loan or have cash on hand to be able to compete with other buyers. 

One last thing.  You've probably heard somewhere that you can get foreclosures for half price and to always offer very low on these properties.  This is NOT true.  Most foreclosure properties are priced at the market and also to sell within 90 days.   The only time I would recommend really offering low is when the property has been on the market for awhile and there are no competing offers.  If there are competing offers you know that the property is priced right and will move fast with or without you. 

These tips will help you avoid some of the biggest pitfalls beginning investors tend to fall into with their first investments. Foreclosures can be a very lucrative business, but it also has its dangers.

 

If you would like a free list of new foreclosures that have just come onto the Greeley Real Estate Market or any other Weld County area just send a request using the form at the end of this article. 

There is a lot of free information available to you about buying, selling or investing in Greeley Colorado real estate. For complete information about the Greeley Colorado real estate market including current homes for sale, property values and more please visit the most complete website online dedicated to everything Greeley Colorado real estate at http://www.greeley-weldcountyhomesforsale.com/ Please feel free to contact me with any of your real estate or mortgage related questions and I will be more than glad to answer your questions. Call me on my cell at 970-302-1233 or email me using the form at the end of this article.

 

 

Marc Oster

Y and M Real Estate LLC