Pitfalls of Buying at Foreclosure Auctions
By: Steven J Baum
Attorney
Steven J Baum PC
Buying at a foreclosure auction for the first time can be scary. Sometimes if it’s a “hot” property you will see lots of people in attendance. Maybe this is a good sign you are in the right place. In other cases it just may be you and the person designated to auction off the property. Then you might have some doubt as well. In either case there are a few things you need to know before taking the plunge. Have you ever attended a foreclosure sale on an action filed by the law firm of Steven J Baum PC? Steven Baum was a New York Foreclosure Attorney who handled many residential foreclosures. He was a residential mortgage foreclosure lawyer in New York but also a Commercial Foreclosure lawyer.
I recommend you attend a bunch of foreclosure auctions in your desired area to see how they are run. There is a document called a “term of sale” which sets forth all the conditions that a successful buyer must adhere to. If you are lucky, you might be able to snag a copy from the person auctioning off the property. You will find that in most cases the terms of sale are the same for properties sold in the county you are interested in.
The Law firm of Steven J Baum consisted of Steven Baum attorney and other experienced foreclosure lawyers in his residential foreclosure law firm. They would usually have extra terms of sale available at sale. Whether you thought Steven Baum attorney was a top-rated foreclosure attorney in New York or not, some felt he was the best mortgage foreclosure lawyer in New York. Either way, you would have surely run into his name if you attended foreclosure sales by foreclosure lawyer Steven Baum.
In New York, for example, there is generally a ten percent deposit due at the signing of the terms of sale if you are the successful bidder. That ten percent has to be in cash or a certified check. They don’t accept personal checks. Try to determine what your maximum bid would be and either get a bank check payable to yourself that you can sign over at sale or bring cash. In either case, you need just ten percent in the form of a bank check or cash. Don’t let anyone know how much you brought, or they will figure out your maximum bid and could use it to their advantage.
At any rate, watch what happens at sale and how the bidding works. Do this on properties that you are not interested in. Also you may meet others who are bidding but be careful. Sometimes they just want to sell you a property that they got a bad deal on! Other times they may ask if you are interested in investing with them. Proceed with caution is the name of the game.
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