Thinking about buying a second home in the USA, Homepath.com? Advice?

Sherardp

Guys,

Since this is a buyers market, I was thinking about buying a second home. My 1st home purchase was actually out here in Japan, so I'm clueless about how this goes in the USA. I was looking at Homepath.com, which I guess are foreclosures. My questions are what should I look for ? Anything I need to have a heads up on ? Any home buying classes out there, as I try to do my homework/research so I'm not jacked around. Is purchasing cash a good idea, if so what's the advantages ? Has anyone heard of this Homepath website which deals with FannieMae homes. I'm completely new to this so any help is appreciated. Here are few homes I'm looking at, which I would buy next month or April if I were to go through with it.

http://www.homepath.com/search.html?zip=&openHouse=&src_ref=&openhouse=&cno=&pi=150000&mlsid=&bhi=&pa=175000&bdi=5&st=GA&ci=ATLANTA&listingid=29585036


http://www.homepath.com/search.html?zip=&openHouse=&src_ref=&openhouse=&cno=&pi=150000&mlsid=&bhi=&pa=175000&bdi=5&st=GA&ci=ATLANTA&listingid=30944421

heiney9

Get a really good real estate attorney, especially if you are looking at buying a foreclosure or short-sale. I'm not talking about a general practice attorney that does real estate. Someone that specializes in real estate.

I work in the title industry and rules, etc vary by region so getting any specific advice for a general question isn't going to do you any good.

H9

Sherardp

Sounds good H9, so I would either have to go with someone in GA or TX. I was thinking about either of those areas if and when I eventually come back.

nooshinjohn

Not really convinced that homepath properties are any advantage over a more traditional type of sale. In my market, they tend to be priced at the same level as other homes on the market and are in far worse condition overall... Caveat Emptor.:cool:

heiney9

It's hard enough to buy a home (foreclosure or short-sale) in a city you are very familiar with. I can't imagine buying a foreclosure or SS from another continent in an area unfamiliar to me. I'd suggest also getting a real estate agent you trust. There are SO MANY pitfalls and so many people out there willing to take your money for doing nothing. To naviagate these types of waters on your own, you need to be pretty savy about how things work.

I am not saying there aren't helpful agencies out there that will do right by you, just for every good one, there are about 5 that'll take your money for doing nothing or you won't get close to your money's worth. All kinds of hoops to jump through involving a foreclosure and especially a short sale.

Good luck

H9

sda2mike

always good to have a real estate broker and mortgage broker among your friends

CCNJ

I think the most important research you need to do is about the areas that you are considering buying in. Location is key in real estate and you want to make sure you buy in a desirable area either for resale or renting. Once you are comfortable with the area, you should ask the agent for area com parables (all home that sold in the area within 1 year and other comparable in the area that are currently for sale. This will help you determine if it is a good buy or not. Lots of other stuff to consider but these two are key in the early stages of picking and choosing.

obieone

I spent a week in ATL a couple of years ago. That traffic was giving me flashbacks to Boston. Y'all can have it.

Serendipity

Sherard,

Make sure you find a good home inspector and find out about all problems with the house before you make a purchase. This could save you lots of $$$ in the long term.

cnh

You've got me there. But we're also looking to buy another property somewhere "warmer" for the future. It is a good time to buy, for sure! Brock seems to know more about what you're referring to. We'll just go through normal channels. Maybe SE U.S., maybe not?

What "area' of the U.S. are you looking at?

cnh

heiney9

Serendipity wrote: »

Sherard,

Make sure you find a good home inspector and find out about all problems with the house before you make a purchase. This could save you lots of $$$ in the long term.

Many times with a foreclosure or short sale you buy as is. Of course you, as a buyer, can have an inspection for your own piece of mind but it will be coming out of your pocket at $250-400 a pop it can get expensive fast if you are looking at a lot of properties.

The only reason I keep harping on Foreclosures and short sales is because the OP mentioned that as a possibility. If you are buying a conventional home via a regular sale, then it's business as usual. But foreclosures and SS are whole other animal.

H9

H9

cstmar01

Homepath is FNMA foreclosed properties. They have now started to "fix" them up a bit. I was interested in one, great location size everything. Pictures looked great until you got inside. Floors needed to be redone, problems with the electric and the test for the well came back bad. Granted it was a 200k house for 125k but still needed a bunch of work to get to a point one would need to resell.

FNMA is looking to just get rid of them. Start low, and seeing you buy as is make sure that if the inspection comes back bad you can get out of the deal so its not going to screw you over

Polkersince85

If you want to move to the Atlanta area, you may want to look at the Alpharetta area. I'd be very careful looking at the Fulton County area. Housing prices are down right now, the next 6-8 months will tell which way they will go.

http://www.forbes.com/2009/07/07/relocate-relocation-cities-lifestyle-real-estate-affordable-moving_slide_2.html

cnh

Not to hijack sherardp's thread but the Atlanta area is one of our considerations. Have some relatives and one of my closest friends teaches at Emory U.

cnh

Sherardp

So when you guys say "normal" channels, what are we talking here? Realtors, Housing Agencies (Have those here in Japan), etc? I just want something nice, not in terrible shape and hopefully at a great price. Good advice so far in regards to foreclosures, thank you all.

evhudsons

Key West is best buy now! I need a polkie neighbor. Uhm, sunny and 79 today. It's been like that for weeks. It rains so rarely it's like a holiday when it does rain which is usually at night on our metal roofs.
In all seriousness though get the crappiest home in the best neighborhood, pay for a really good home inspector, and never act excited during a showing.

nooshinjohn

Sherardp wrote: »

So when you guys say "normal" channels, what are we talking here? Realtors, Housing Agencies (Have those here in Japan), etc? I just want something nice, not in terrible shape and hopefully at a great price. Good advice so far in regards to foreclosures, thank you all.

Given your situation, I would definately work through an agent rather than flying solo. Coldwell Banker helped me quite a bit when we moved from California to Indiana a few years ago. Being out of the country at the moment places you at a major dis-advantage, and a good agent can serve as your eyes on the ground. It costs you nothing to use them, as the seller has already agreed to pay their fees. If you are looking at bank/REO owned properties, then those entities will pay the fees.

There are some really great bargains out there right now, and with the glut of properties on the market and clearing the forclosure processes, don't feel the need to rush into anything. The right house will come to you with just a little help from someone that knows the market you are looking to buy in.

Good luck in your search.

inspiredsports

I can't fathom buying real estate unless I was personally on site (or had an extremely close, trusted friend or relative on site).

Every other entity in the chain is in it for their own personal gain and will not have your best interests in mind.

I feel what you perceive you will gain from a soft market, you will lose by being a continent away.

Squidmon

Theres also the HUD Homestore site,...http://www.hudhomestore.com/HudHome/Index.aspx. There should be a few more selections there compared to homepath. As an agent, while you can get a good deal off a shortsale, I advise to stay away from them unless you don't care if your offer is held up for up to 180 days by the bank (that usually doesn't happen if the bank already owns the property). Also, many times, you can grab HUD homes for a fraction of the listed price, especially in areas with high inventory. I just sold my home in Wisconsin and moved to Kentucky where I'm hoping to pickup 2-3 HUD homes for what I walked away with from selling mine

decal

mrendrison wrote: »

You need to teach him the value of money. You need to explain to him that things cost money. Sure money is meant to be spent however its important to teach kids early on about this or they will become materialistic.

^^^^ reported ^^^^

cnh

inspiredsports wrote: »

I can't fathom buying real estate unless I was personally on site (or had an extremely close, trusted friend or relative on site).

Every other entity in the chain is in it for their own personal gain and will not have your best interests in mind.

I feel what you perceive you will gain from a soft market, you will lose by being a continent away.

That's pretty true. When we moved to N.J. for a year we tried to buy property then. Before the Bubble burst. Having lived on the Pa./N.J. border growing up, I was already familiar with much of Jersey so that helped. But the "prices" at that time did not. Way over my head in the Madison, Caldwell area! We returned to Maine the next year, and having lived in Maine for several years before I knew the market and the area so no real estate agent was going to snowball me.

In fact, the first two houses I bid on were considered too low by the sellers who were M.D.s. They didn't even make counter offers. My response was, "after living in Manhattan for over a decade, you are going to tell 'me' about the "better" neighborhoods in central Maine? Now that IS "funny". The real estate market here is such that I will never be able to sell anything I buy for much more than I buy it for, boys! So you can have your prized "neighborhood" there are a lot more "neighborhoods" in the area. And I found one at almost half the price of the Doctor's house...same amount of land, same square footage and walking distance to the city park! So either knowing the area or taking "several" trips there and working slowly with a number of people is advisable. Not buying the Doctors' houses at an "inflated" price allowed me to buy my present house at a price which was so low that it was largely "unaffected" by the housing bubble. I lost no value whatsoever. I didn't gain any either as predicted! But I also owned my house within a decade! Healthy deposit 31%, and 10 years of over-payments and the title is sitting in my filing cabinet!

The places we are considering for home #2 are where relatives and friends live. Where we can visit and stay with them while looking. And where we've been before. We will certainly take our "time". I don't move quickly on anything like this. I like to wear everyone down to my price (not that I low ball--I don't, but I do consider what "reasonable" prices are).

In any case. If you're going to buy why not normal sources. The prices are so LOW even for standard real estate venues at this point unless you're trying to buy "dirt" cheap. There is NO way you can't find a nice home somewhere between 25-45 percent (or MORE) below its market value (and even lower in some places). People are "desperate" to sell, and houses have been on the market for years!

All that favors YOU. Especially if you can move in there and offer something like 40-50 percent down. You'd be surprised how "quickly" people will respond to your offer if you can put the big money down and finance the rest "immediately".

cnh