How to Find Bank Owned/REO Properties

What are Bank Owned/REO properties?  While bank owned properties is pretty self-explanatory.  What does REO stand for?  REO stands for Real Estate Owned.  They both reference properties that are owned by a bank or another institution such as the Government.  

A property gets to this stage by going through the foreclosure process.  The entity that holds the loan will set a foreclosure auction with an opening bid.  This opening bid is generally the amount still owed on the house.  If no one bids on the house, the lender repossess the house through formal legal action.  At this point, the lender will attempt to sell the house through the open market as a bank owned/REO property.

Why do you want to find these properties?  In general, banks want to cut their losses and does not want to hold properties.  This means that you can often get these properties below market value.   

How can you find these properties?  If you visit MattiasClymer.com and hover your mouse over the search tab, you will see an option at the bottom for Bank Owned/REO properties.  You can also follow the link below.  From this page, you will be able to narrow your search to your specifications.  

Bank Owned Properties