What to do first:  Visit the Auction.com website and find out if you can submit a pre-auction bid or if you can bid online.  They only allow certain homes to sold in a pre-auction form or to be bid for online.  I an not sure how that is determined.  In both of my situations we either missed the pre-auction bid date or online bidding was not available.

Preparing for the Auction:  Lets just assume that you were unable to bid in the pre-auction.  If that is the case, you will need to do a couple of very important things before showing up to the actual Auction.com auction.  First, you need to understand that a home bought at auction is bought AS-IS with NO inspection period.  If you want a home inspection, you must do so before hand.  The listing agent is supposed to hold a few open houses in the weekends prior to the auction.  This is the time to have an inspector go in there look the place over.  Or better yet, if you are working with a good Real Estate Agent, they will insist that an inspection is conducted and they will arrange it and be there with you.

Ok, the inspection is complete and you feel that you can live with the condition of the home.  Now you need to register online at Auction.com.  If you are working with a Realtor and they have agreed to be there with you on auction day, you will need to ask them for their Real Estate license number because that will be required on the form.  PRINT THIS FORM!  That way, if you computer at check-in is saying that you have not yet registered, you will have all the info on the form that the check-in person will need to re-register you… Yes this has happened to me before!  If you do have a Real Estate Agent, they will also register ahead of time and they will need to bring along a copy of their RE license and a W-9.

What to bring on Auction Day:  This is IMPORTANT… If you do not bring the following items, you will not be able to bid on a home during that auction.  First, you must bring a $2500 cashiers check made payable to yourself.  You must also bring a personal check to pay the remainder of the balance for the required 5% earnest deposit.  These amounts change if you are planning to purchase mulitple homes.  See the webside for additional information.  Secondly, unless you are planning to acquire financing through available lenders at the action, you must bring a Pre-Qualification form from your chosen mortgage company.  If you would like to acquire financing at the auction you will need 2 years of tax returns, W-9s and 30 days of pay stubs. Finally, you will need a valid photo ID.

What to Know:  IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT… You must know about the required 5% premium charged by Auction.com.  This is howAuction.com makes their money.  Let the math do the explaining….

Your Winning Bid $200,000

Buyer’s Premium 5% = $10,000

Total Purchase Price = $210,000

5 % Earnest Money will look like this- $2,500 Cashiers Check and $7,500 personal check due on auction day.

What to Expect:  Expect competition!  You almost always will be bidding against an investor.  They have cash and they know what that house is worth to them.  Don’t expect a deal!  The investors are keeping it fair.  You may get the house below appraised value, but don’t expect go get a move-in ready single family-detached home for $20,000.  The investors want the quick flips or easy rentals and they will do their best to win the bid.  Ask your Realtor to run comparisons of the home and discuss what the home is worth and what it will appraise for.  If you were willing to make an offer on the home before you knew it was pre-auction, then make that offer price your highest bid (don’t forget to add in the buyer’s premium).  I would feel safe guessing that more then half the winning bids will go to the investors.  Be prepared to pay what the home is worth, then you will set yourself up to be pleasantly surprised if you get it for less!

If you do have the winning bid, a nice lady dressed in black will come get you and take you “behind the curtain.”  There you will pay your earnest money, sign your purchase contract and provide them with your lender information.  It is my understanding that all sells will be given a 30 day Close of Escrow.  Please talk to your lender about this before hand and be sure that they will be ready to close in 30 days.  For most this is doable but can be difficult if a holiday weekend falls in to that time frame.  They have a lot to get done in that short amount of time.

Okay, I believe I have covered the important stuff.  If you have questions… Auction.com has Live Chat agents available all the time to help you out.  They have walked me through the process a couple times.  Also, if you live in the Phoenix area and feel overwhelmed by the whole Auction.comprocess, please contact me at the phone number below and I will assist you through the whole process.  Good luck bidding!

Are you shopping for a new home?  My name is Tiffany Pettit and I am the Peoria, Arizona Real Estate expert.  My husband, Eric, and I live and raise our two boys in this beautiful west Phoenix suburb.  We love everything about our little city and think you will too!  Please contact me anytime at 602-614-6493, toll free at 888-897-7821 x.132 or at tiffany@tiffanypettit.com.  Please check out my website, www.CometoPeoriaAZ.com, where you can perform an MLS search just like an agent would do.  I look forward to assisting you in finding your perfect Peoria, Arizona home!

Common Ways of Holding Title to Real Property in Arizona

COMMUNITY PROPERTY:

Arizona is a community property state. This is statutory presumption that all property acquired by husband and wife is community property. Community property is a method of co-ownership for married persons only. Upon death of either spouse, the interest of the deceased spouse will pass by either a will or in testate succession.

COMMUNITY PROPERTY WITH RIGHT OF SURVIVORSHIP:

A version of holding title between married persons that vest title to real property in the surviving spouse when it is expressly declared in the Deed. This vesting has the tax benefits of holding title as “community property” and the probate avoidance features of “survivorship rights”.

JOINT TENANTS WITH RIGHT OF SURVIVORHIP:

Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship is a method of co-ownership that gives title to the real property to the last survivor. Title to real property can be acquired by two or more individuals either married or unmarried. If a married couple acquires title as joint tenants with right of survivorship, they must specifically accept the joint tenancy to avoid the presumption of community property.

TENANTS IN COMMON:

A method of co-ownership where parties do not have “survivorship rights” and each owns a specific interest in the entire title.

SOLE AND SEPARATE:

Real property owned by a spouse before marriage or any acquired after marriage by gift, descent or specific intent. If a married person acquires title as sole and separate property, his/her spouse must execute a disclaimer deed.

CORPORATION:

Title may be taken in the name of a corporation provided that the corporation is duly formed and in good standing in the state of its incorporation.

GENERAL PARTNERSHIP:

Title may be taken in the name of a general partnership duly formed under the laws of the state of the formation of the partnership. A partnership is defined as a voluntary association of two or more persons as co-owners in a profit business for profit.

LIMITED PARTNERSHIP:

A partnership formed by two or more persons under the laws of Arizona or another state having one or more general partners and one or more limited partners. A certificate of limited partnership must be filed in the office of the Secretary of State, a certified copy of which must be recorded.

For additional information on homes available in the Phoenix and Scottsdale Metro area please call:

Tim Broderick @ 602-741-0862 or toll free @ 888-481-4447 ext. 126.

You can also reach me by email: tim@phoenixpowersearch.com.

“I want to find a good deal”

“Now is the time to buy with all the REOs on the market”

How many times have you heard these statements made around the water cooler at work, or during the weekend barbeque? Have you been thinking or saying these things to yourself or others. Well if you want a great neighborhood at some of the best price points in years then look towards Ahwatukee Foothills.

The three zip codes; 85044, 85045, and 85048, which comprise the Ahwatukee Foothills area is one of the most desirable places to live in the Phoenix metro area. Nestled away on the south side of South Mountain, it offers award winning school districts, mountain hiking trails, views that greeting cards are made of, family values with lots of activities for the kids, and golf that most people only dream about. The only thing that makes it better is finding a home at a terrific price point.

While many of the Metro Phoenix area cities have an enormous amount of foreclosures and short sales on the market, Ahwatukee as of 8/18/09 had only 32 lender owned properties listed on the MLS and 119 short sales available. With such little inventory you would think that the pricing would be higher, but you can find a beautiful home in a great neighborhood for historically affordable pricing.

If you are planning on placing an offer on a bank owned property or short sale listing, weather it be in Ahwatukee or elsewhere in the valley keep in mind a few things. Short sales can be a lengthy process. Not only does the owner of record have to accept your offer, but the lender and/or the servicing agent has to approve the offer as well. Many times this process can take 90 to 120 days and more. As for lender owned properties they are a quicker by far. The response time to an offer can still be a bit longer than if mom and pop were selling their own home. Response times can vary from 3 calendar days to 5 or 10 business days. Then once the offer is accepted response times to inspection notices, HOA disclosures, and title work can be a little longer than normal.

In conclusion, lender owned properties and short sales offer a better price point for the purchase of your next home or real estate investment. You will however have a little longer wait, or a much longer wait to close the transaction.

Be on the look out for more blogs regarding an in depth look at short sales, lender owned and REO properties. If you have questions or would like to view a property in Ahwatukee Foothills or any other valley location please give me a call. For a free list of bank owned properties and short sales available, please call or email me.

Tim Broderick can be reached at tim@phoenixpowersearch.com.

By phone toll free at 888-481-4447 ext. 126 or locally at 602-741-0862