Has anyone here bought a house from a Government Auction ?

I've seen advertisements that speak of buying a house quite cheaply from an auction. But, it sounds "too good to be true."



I've asked around and it hit me to seek some input from yahoo.Has anyone here bought a house from a Government Auction ?
I go to government auctions very often (and I also use governmentauctions.org to find auctions), but I don't buy real estate. I buy bulk lots of clothing, accessories, and just about everything else in large quantities.



From what I've seen though, because real estate is often also sold at some of these auctions, I think Julia is right.



I mean you can probably get some good real estate deals at a government auction, but the reason you'll get these deals revolves partially around the invonvenience associated with buying the property -- i.e, auction format, non-traditional financing, lack of access, etc -- and with the fact that only a limited number of potential buyers/bidders will be, for these reasons, willing and able to participate.



It's similar to my business in that there are not that many bidders that have interest in or can buy, afford or "move" say, an ocean container filled with men's shirts, and it is for this reason that I make out like a bandit at many of these auctions . . . and I mean really pennies on the dollar.



However, there are way more willing and able participants for auctions of real estate, and so I certainly don't think you'll get the unrealistic sounding deals on such a popular thing. But I could certainly see an auction participant buying real estate at some reasonable discount, based, of course, on the inconvenience and the "do it yourself" nature associated with buying it this way.



Good Luck.
If is your first experience, use a Realtor. Trust me, you are going to find 100's of so-called "government auction" companies or websites, all claiming to be from the government and 100% are just predators.



How to spot them? They will ask for an up-front membership.



Companies or professionals will never charge you for the info or memberships when you buy property.



Good luck.Has anyone here bought a house from a Government Auction ?
I have. I bought a home through a tax deed sale (I think I paid 85% or market value at the time) and I sourced GovernmentAuctions.org for the initial information. They have very good support, but once you find a house you like, you also really have to get into the thick of it yourself.



Bottom Line: your not going to buy a $500,000 house for $20,000 or even $100,000. But you will have plenty of opportunities to walk away with a great deal (5-30% savings). One thing you have to be aware of is that most government auctions (including US treasury auctions and local sheriff's sales and tax sales) will want 10%-20% right away (if you win the auction), and will expect the rest in 30 or so days. The problem with this is that it's hard to get a traditional mortgage under those circumstances (which include the reasons that LU13 delineates), and so you have to have a ready source of non-traditional (read, "higher rate") financing for the short term (that is, before you can refinance to a traditional mortgage).



Also, you'll want to do all the background research on the property, prior to bidding, and you'll want to set, and stick to, your maximum bid. Anyone can do it, but, honestly, it's not for the shy, who should stick to an ordinary broker sale . . . Maybe REO foreclosure properties, which are generally listed and sold through a broker like any other real estate, but can often be bought at a discount b/c the bank really wants to get rid of them.



Best of Luck!
do your homework - for example when you use a Realtor (to buy a foreclosure REO or short sale or bank owned) you don't pay for the Realtor - there costs are built in to the deal (no matter what) and are paid by the seller. Your agent looks out for your $ and your best interests. The point being that the Realtor is free to you and you can still get "cheap" homes using a Realtor. Now you go to an auction (for property) and on top of (over and above) the sale price is usually about an 8% auction fee (so add that to your great sale price) and title %26amp; closing costs and make sure there aren't any liens on the property (or you'll get stuck with those bills too) So you could pay alot more than you think. guess what I'm saying is I'd use a Realtor - not go try to buy an auction home on my own. Good Luck no matter what you decide and hope you find a great house!Has anyone here bought a house from a Government Auction ?
ya those advertisements are basically retarded. ususally its a national company, so if you here a house oin there for 20K, i highly doubt its in your area.



beleive me, it buying a house appears to be true, it IS.



but sometimes you can go to an auction and make out, my friend has done it 3 times now in this market.



the problem is, is that you cannot look at the house or get it inspected.



so you have no idea what the possible problems could be. RISK.