From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Foreclosure is the legal and professional proceeding in which a mortgagee, or other
lien holder,
usually a lender, obtains a court ordered termination of a mortgagor's equitable right of redemption. Usually a lender obtains a security interest
from a borrower who mortgages or pledges an asset like a house to secure the
loan. If the borrower defaults and the lender tries to repossess the property,
courts
of equity can grant the borrower the equitable right of redemption if the
borrower repays the debt. While this equitable right exists, the lender cannot
be sure that it can successfully repossess the property, thus the lender seeks
to
foreclose the equitable right of redemption. Other lien holders can
also foreclose the owner's right of redemption for other debts, such as for
overdue taxes, unpaid contractors' bills or overdue homeowners' association dues or
assessments.
The foreclosure process as applied to residential mortgage loans is a bank or other secured creditor selling or repossessing a parcel of real property (immovable
property) after the owner has failed to comply with an agreement between the
lender and borrower called a "mortgage" or "deed of trust". Commonly, the
violation of the mortgage is a default in payment of a promissory note,
secured by a lien on the property. When the
process is complete, the lender can sell the property and keep the proceeds to
pay off its mortgage and any legal costs, and it is typically said that "the
lender has foreclosed its mortgage
or lien". If the promissory note was made
with a recourse clause then if the sale does not bring enough to pay the
existing balance of principal and fees the mortgagee can file a claim for a
deficiency judgement.
REALTOR®
Magazine-Daily News-Foreclosure Bargains Are Disappearing
REALTOR®
Magazine-Daily News-Foreclosure Bargains Are Disappearing: "Foreclosure
Bargains Are Disappearing
Buyers of foreclosure have to be quick these days.
Some houses go under contract fewer than 90 minutes after they are put on the
market, says Brad Geisen, founder of Foreclosure.com.
'For every listing
that comes out, we have 10 buyers,' says Cesar Dias, an associate with Approved
Real Estate Group in Stockton, Calif.
Dias had 15 minutes of fame after
introducing foreclosure sales tours last year. Now the tours are defunct because
there are not enough homes to show.
'We had a lot of inventory last
summer. Now we're down to 1,500 listings %u2014 from more than 5,000,' Dias
says.
In Florida, real-estate investment companies, buying in bulk and
paying cash, face competition"
