Real Estate Foreclosures in Alameda County, California

Timing is a major key to being successful in Real Estate. If one is able to buy property when it is being sold below market it can not only save you thousands of dollars but also make you thousands of dollars. Whether you are a short term investor or long term investor in Real Estate, buying foreclosures is a good way to make a good chunk of change. Foreclosure is when a creditor repossesses the collateral or property that the loan is against because the borrower has defaulted in their payments.

If the borrower does not cure the default the property will eventually be auctioned and sold at a Trustee's Sale. In California for Alameda County the foreclosure sales are conducted at the bottom of the Courthouse steps which is located at 1225 Fallon Street in Oakland. The notice of the sale dates are published in the newspaper where the property is located. You can find the notices in the legal notices section of the newspaper.

If you are new to the foreclosure business and you already haven't done so it would be a good idea to attend the auction and get the feel of how the auction works. Also you should attend a class on foreclosures to learn the process and understand the risks that are associated with the process. Sometimes local Title Companies will host these seminars with a guest speaker. At the auction you will need to have a cashier's check from a bank if you are going to bid on any property.

The advantages of buying these properties is that you can buy them at a lower price. For example lets say there is a property with a fair market value of $500,000. Let's say the owner owes $350,000 on the 1^st mortgage and the 1^st mortgage lender is foreclosing on the property. Let's say it sells for $375,000 at the auction. That means there is 25% equity in the property. If you had purchased that property you could keep it or sell it. There could be costs involved with selling and sometimes you may have to evict the occupants and fix up the property but if done right one could get a 10% or higher return on their investment.