Risk Factors During The Foreclosures Freeze

By Author: findforeclosure
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There's a lot of speculation about how investors can continue to make money in today's volatile foreclosures market. Much is made of the fact that financial institutions are being investigated because of questionable practices regarding their foreclosure paperwork. Some of America's leading mortgage originators and servicers—including Bank of America, GMAC Home Mortgage, and JPMorgan Chase—admit that mistakes have been made and that they've erroneously initiated foreclosure processes, often based on improperly reviewed or even falsified documents. That has led to several forms of moratoriums or foreclosure freezes taking effect in a number of U.S. states.

How does this affect investors who deal in foreclosed properties? What about buyers and sellers of such homes? Here are some important risk factors:

If you've already purchased a foreclosed property, you're safe. According to law professor Bob Lawless of the University of Illinois, The law strongly protects the finality of foreclosure sales. If you bought a home, commercial property, or land in good faith, it won't be taken away from you, even if ...
... the underlying documentation was defective. If there were errors, they are the responsibility of your title insurance company.
If you're negotiating with a property owner to buy property that is scheduled to be foreclosed upon, be sure to arrange for title insurance before you sign any purchase documents. If you have title insurance, your purchase is covered.
If you plan to buy at a foreclosure auction, the risks can be intimidating. It's a good idea to learn how to search a property's title yourself, and to do so just prior to an auction. That way you're likely to find most—if not all—last-minute liens on the property. At an auction, you can't get insurance, but it might be possible to able to buy it after you've purchased. The big risk at this point is that a title company might refuse to issue insurance.
If you're mid-process on buying a property that's in foreclosure, the purchase might be halted, or frozen, while the mortgage servicer investigates the documentation. It might also happen that the mortgage broker's title insurance company could choose not to cover the property. Do not assume that a title company will insure your purchase. Find out, and if it declines coverage, determine what you can do terminate the purchase process.

The upshot if you're a seller: You have a terrific opportunity right now. The foreclosure freeze means that there's a big decline in available inventory, due to the number of REOs being removed from the market while paperwork is reviewed.

The news for buyers: Your opportunity can be just as good. You can ride to the rescue by purchasing properties that title insurers are wary of. In nearly all cases, problems with documentation get resolved. You can buy a property at a terrific bargain and rent it while you wait for the paperwork to get straightened out. Then sell it at a considerable profit.

The lesson for everyone: There's always a way to profit if you understand the risks, and are ready to act with due diligence and patience.

Foreclosures.com is the best place to get all the information you need on statewide foreclosed homes for sale. Check our learning center! If you want to buy a foreclosure home, our extensive lists of foreclosures for sale are the most updated of all lists available online.