Phase #1 Pre-Foreclosure:  

The first phase is before the lender takes the property back. This is the pre-foreclosure phase. In today's housing market a lot of Fremont homes in this stage of foreclosure are sold through a short sale process. I'll explain the pros and cons of buying a Fremont home in this phase of foreclosure in a minute but first let me tell you the other two phases if foreclosure.

Phase #2 Foreclosure:  
The second phase is when the lender finalizes the foreclosure and takes the property back. Before the lender puts the home up for sale some will try to sell it to the highest bidder on the court house steps. There are a lot of drawbacks to buying a foreclosure in this phase.

If you're buying a Fremont home to live in then this phase of foreclosure is NOT worth the amount of hassle and risk it presents for the amount of savings it offers. For that reason I'm not going to talk about this phase of foreclosure much in this post but I may explain some of the risks involved in a post in the future. Let's move on to phase #3...

Phase #3 Post-Foreclosure:  
The third phase is when the lender puts the Fremont home up for sale with an agent. In most cases this is the best phase of foreclosure to buy a home. That's simply because it has the least amount road blocks and risk. Let's break down the advantages and disadvantages of the 1 ^st and 2 ^nd phases now part one Pre-foreclosure…

Because there are so many foreclosures in today's Fremont housing market lenders are taking longer and longer to finalize the foreclosure paper work. That's why a lot of Fremont homeowners in distress are selling their home before they are foreclosed.

In most cases the Fremont homeowner doesn't have equity in the home and is forced to do what is called a "short sale. A short sale is when the lender accepts less for the home than they are owed. You can still get a great deal on a short sale or pre-foreclosure but there are defiantly some pros and cons that go with it.

The biggest advantage of buying a pre-foreclosure or short sale is the savings. In most cases you can buy one for 80 to 90% of Fremont market value and sometimes you will pay more or less. A lot of variables come into play so it's impossible for me to give you an accurate idea of the savings.

The biggest disadvantage of buying a pre-foreclosure or short sale is how long the process takes. If the homeowner doesn't have equity in their home then you will have to buy the home through a short sale.

Most lenders can take three to six months to accept an offer. It's hard to get updates on your offer and you may have to go months without knowing if your offer will be accepted or not. If your offer is not accepted and you want to make another offer on a short sale it could take three to six months all over again.

If you can't wait for three to six months to hear back from the lender then buying a foreclosure through the short sale process is NOT for you.

While buying a foreclosure presents opportunities for Fremont home buyers, they also present considerable challenges. If you have any questions about buying a foreclosure please don't hastate to contact me about them.

When you're ready to schedule a meeting with me to review the home buying opportunities in the area or go out and look at homes please contact me at (510) 290-7931 or by sending me an email at Clyde@ClydeBrownHomes.com.

Thank you for taking the time to read the information I have made available to you. This information is brought to you by your Fremont real estate expert Clyde Brown.  If you are considering buying or selling property, planning to relocate, looking for Fremont homes for sale, or looking for any other information about real estate in the Fremont real estate market, or the surrounding areas, please visit the most complete website dedicated to everything real estate related www.ClydeBrownHomes.com.

If you or someone you know are in need of a competent and experienced Bay Area Realtor, or have real estate or mortgage related questions, please feel free to contact me I will be more than glad to answer your questions. Call me at 800-839-0665 or email me at Clyde@ClydeBrownHomes.com. For all your East Bay cities needs including Fremont, Newark, Union City, Hayward, Oakland, Santa Clara, Milpitas, Dublin, Livermore, Pleasanton, and San Ramon. Clyde Brown Legacy Real Estate & Associates.