How long it usually takes to respond to the offer to buy bank owned house?

Answer 1

EVERY SELLER IS DIFFERENT AND EVERY SITUATION IS DIFFERENT!

Just as you buy each property in a different way, for a different reason, and sell in a different way for a different reason, so to does the seller of a foreclosure. The only thing that remains a constant is that the foreclosing bank takes back possession of a property and then hires a real estate office to market it for them. Many times the bank will hire an Asset Management company to process all of their foreclosures; They in turn hire a real estate office to market them. The similarities stop here.

For simplicity the term “Seller” will include all asset management companies, local banks and government backers such as HUD, FNMA, VA and FRMC. Each seller, and there are thousands, have there own policies on how to market their foreclosures, how to negotiate, how to close on them, some even require the purchaser use the sellers attorney. Some sellers allow repairs, some don’t, some charge a daily fine (per diem) if you don’t or can’t close on time, some don’t charge, some will negotiate that fine. Some sellers won’t even look at offers until the property has been listed with a real estate office for a minimum of 14 days.

Even an extremely proficient real estate office can have a difficult time keeping up with all the information specific to each seller because of the sheer volume of regulations, policies, procedures and chains of command.

IF YOU WANT TO GET THE HOUSE YOU MUST FOLLOW the sellers requests and policies EVEN IF THEY DON’T MAKE ANY SENSE TO YOU. Just like any other business, policies and procedures are in place for a reason. You will see, and will sign, what may seem like a mountain of paperwork, be asked to come in and sign another 2 weeks later, and another 1 week later. DON’T GET FRUSTRATED. Anger and frustration at an invisible conglomerate won’t make you money. Following through in a timely manner, and staying focused on your profit will. The seller may respond to your offer in 2 days, it may be 2 weeks. Either way, if you are patient, it’s okay. In our world of immediate gratification we NOW. That works for fast food. You can drive down the road and demand a burger, and get it NOW. It actually seems to make sense. You are talking about a $1.50 piece of consumable beef that you can’t turn around the next day and sell for $5.00. Put your foreclosure in perspective, $60,000 worth of real estate that will increase in value, that you may be able to sell the next day for $75,000...legalities, liabilities, possible government regulations, a dozen or so people that may be working on that one property to get it sold and transferred properly…point is;

It’s okay if it takes 2 weeks for the seller to get back to you…THIS ISN’T A HAMBURGER!

Price setting, price reductions and negotiating are also very different according to the policies of each of the sellers AND ALSO THE PROPERTY! Some start at fair market, some below, some way below…Some negotiate better than others, some will reduce prices by 20k, others only in 3k increments. Some sellers list it and let it sit (those ones usually sit for a long time too!). Your realtor can’t tell you who negotiates better than others, or which seller is likely to take a lot less because EACH PROPERTY IS BEING SOLD UNDER DIFFERENT CIRCUMSTANCES. Take the thousands of different sellers and multiply that by the hundred thousand or so foreclosures nationwide…it’s an impossibility to figure out which one of those is going to sell at 50% of list price, although that sounds like a fun weekend with a calculator!

FACT: Being PATIENT, PATIENT, PATIENT will get you the property because many other buyers will get frustrated, angry and drop out of the game. Don’t force the seller to respond to your offer in 24 hours. Don’t walk away from your offer because the seller after 12 days still hasn’t responded…You will loose, and someone else will get that deal because they were willing to be patient and follow the rules.

Answer 2

Let's be a little more specific, a home that is being sold through a Realtor that is homeowner owned and is NOT a short sale, is most desirable. In most cases if the homeowner is living in the property, they have taken care of it. If it is a bank owned property, the only difference would be that no one has taken care of the property for some time and your mechanicals could need repair or replacing. These would not necessarily result in a slow closing. But homeower owned and lived in is your best bet.

Answer 3

Its ironic that I just posted a story this morning in answer to another question that on my first bank owned offer I waited a month and then they told me it was sold to someone else. The above two answers are 100% correct, I just wanted to reiterate that you really should call. That is the only way you will know.

Answer 4

WinZip is correct - it can take close to a month....

but here is one reason...foreclosures are up and they are really refusing to let go of property at a loss....the bigger banks see the big picture that the market will eventually turn around in a few years....and they are refusing to settle below the loan amount.

good luck

ps... ya know you can alwasy pick up the telephone and check on the status.... :)

Answer 5

There is no "formula" for this, but banks are notorious for moving ridiculously slow and not having much information available for those trying to purchase their REO properties.

Answer 6

bigger bank can go 3-4 weeks getting a contract together

Answer 7

Anywhere from one day to several months. They move at their own speed, and it varies widely from lender to lender.