How to interpret pre foreclosure lists

What are pre foreclosure lists? If you are interested in investing in the real estate market and want to get a great deal on a home, you should consider foreclosed homes. This means you need to learn how to interpret pre foreclosure listings.

Pre foreclosure lists are also referred to as short sales and you can find this information on a variety of websites and from other sources as well. Not everyone who has a home in the process of foreclosure is going to want to sell their home. They are probably hoping to work out an arrangement with the lender that will allow them to keep their home or find some other way to save their home.

How pre foreclosure lists work

A pre foreclosure list is also called a short sale since the home is being sold for less than is owed on the mortgage. For example, if the homeowner paid $150,000 for the home and has a balance of $130,000 due on the mortgage, he may be willing to sell the home for $110,000 or even less in order to avoid ruining their credit with a foreclosure.

This is a great opportunity for buyers to get a home at way under market value if they understand how to find and read pre foreclosure lists.

The amount of information you can find in pre foreclosure listings depends on the type of listing, as well as where you get your information. If you go to websites that do not charge for viewing pre foreclosure lists, you will get less information than if you use a fee-based website, which gives more details.

What should a pre foreclosure list include?

Some of the information you should look for in a pre foreclosure listing is:

• The current market value and how much equity the homeowner has in the home.

• Examples of comparable homes in the area and what they have sold for including traditional sales and foreclosure sales.

• A report on the condition of the property.

• An explanation of the property taxes for the home.

• Photographs of the property and an aerial view of the neighborhood.

• Information on how to get in touch with the property owner.

Investing in pre foreclosure properties

Investors are actively seeking out foreclosures and pre foreclosure houses in this challenging real estate market so you need to be sure you are getting current information so you don't waste your time on pre foreclosure properties that are already under contract with someone else.

If you are willing to use a paid web site to find pre foreclosure lists, look for one that gives you a free trial period so you can make sure they have current and accurate information and that the site is user friendly. The technique for finding foreclosure listings and pre foreclosure lists online is similar.

You can find web sites that will send you information on a daily basis via e-mail or text message about new pre foreclosure lists.

Related popular pages that may interest and help you

| Foreclosure process home | Foreclosed homes listings | Foreclosure listings |

| HUD listings | Bank foreclosure list | Foreclosure resources | Bank owned foreclosures |

| Bank foreclosed homes | How to buy foreclosures | Buying foreclosed homes |