Whether you are looking to purchase a home to live in or you are creating a real estate investment portfolio for retirement, it can be very profitable when it comes to buying foreclosure properties. To purchase foreclosure properties you need to follow a number of key steps and perform lots of upfront investigation. Here are 4 tips to help you to be successful with foreclosure investment.

1 . Become familiar with the Foreclosure Process and different kinds of Foreclosures

Foreclosures laws and procedures vary from state to state and even county wise. So you will have to be thoroughly acquainted with the laws, funding requirements, and foreclosures procedures before you consider buying a foreclosed house or commercial property. There are three types of foreclosures you can think about purchasing. There are pre-foreclosures, where you buy the house from the owner prior to the mortgage goes into foreclosures, there are auction house foreclosures where you bid and win a bank owned house foreclosure and ones that did not sell at publicly and are now for sale by a lender.

Each one of these types of foreclosures have their own laws, procedures and requirements along with opportunities for earning and associated risks. Purchasing a foreclosure at an public sale may often become the most profitable venture however can also be the most dangerous. There is no opportunity to examine the interior of the house prior to auction and you also must have cash accessible to pay at the public sale. REO properties are usually the safest, however, you may not find the greatest discounts. Negotiating with a homeowner in the pre-foreclosure process results in deals but there are many dangers and uncertainties with this particular kind of foreclosure too.

2 . Find a House Using an Online Foreclosures Listing Service

There are lots of ways to find foreclosures listings, such as via newspaper ads, looking through records in the County Clerk’s workplace, and through a realtor. Perhaps the fastest and convenient way to get hold of a foreclosure listings is by subscribing to an on the internet foreclosure listing support. These lists tend to be kept up-to-date and can save you a lot of investigation time.

3. Employ a Real Estate Agent

A real estate agent skilled in the foreclosure procedure can help guide in the process of buying a foreclosure. They might help you locate aspects of the area as well as help you close the offer.

4. Get in line With Your Financing

It is crucial to get funding before buying foreclosures. For Properties sold at public sale it is  difficult to get a lender that will give you mortgage for any property as they are not initially inspected