Finding a Homepath Foreclosure Home for Sale

When you are looking for a new home, whether it is a first home or your seventh home, you should always be looking for the best deal available. These days, it is very common to have foreclosures and short sales on the market. The key is knowing how to deal with them.

With short sales you are at the mercy of the company or bank holding the mortgage. They are often not very negotiable since they would have to take a loss on the property. The process of buying a short sale has been known to be extremely long and painful. Some do not ever make it to the closing table.

Foreclosures that have been released to Real Estate companies to sell are often the safest bet in terms of purchasing. Though, at this time, many of the homes might end up being trashed or cleaned out of anything of value by the former owners. Having an REO educated real estate agent is recommended.

Another route for finding great deals is to look for a Fannie Mae foreclosure. You should visit their website, www.homepath.com which lists all of their foreclosures across the country. You can drill down to state, city, country, or town. The website is very user friendly and you can even save properties to a favorites list or set up an email alert for new listings that match your requirements.

The Homepath program aggressively markets its homes and makes them affordable to all buyers. They even sell to buyers who already own homes or investors. The first 15 days of a listing are reserved for first time buyers only. They call this period "First Look" and the properties are marked as such online. You have the ability to sort by status, so you can sort by "First Look", "Active", "Price Reduced", "Back on Market", or "Under Contract".

You can find any kind of real estate foreclosure on the Homepath site including single family homes, townhomes, mobile homes, and condominiums. Most of their listings have multiple pictures and most homes have been minimally fixed so that they are move in ready.

The best part of buying a Fannie Mae foreclosure is that they offer Homepath financing. There are links on the website where you can find an authorized lender in your area. This type of loan only requires a down payment of 3 percent and it can be gift, grant, or your own money. You will also save money since these do not require an appraisal and there is no PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance) on the loan.

For the properties that require work, you will see a notation that the house qualifies for a Homepath Renovation Loan. This mortgage loan follows the same requirements as a regular Homepath Loan except that it allows you to borrow up to 20% over the purchase price to make the repairs. For example, if the house you are buying is 100,000 you can buy it with 3 percent down and use your own money for repairs or you can buy it for 120,000 with 3 percent down and get 20,000 back at closing to make the repairs. It is a great enticement for people with limited funds that want to paint, replace countertops, or do minor changes.

No matter which type of property you buy, be sure to consider the location too. Location will always have an effect on market values. Even if you can get a great deal on a house that backs up to the railroad tracks, it will always be a house that backs up to the tracks, no matter how many upgrades and improvements you make to the property. Homepath homes can be shown by Realtors. Try to find one that is familiar with the program. Many times Fannie Mae offers agents bonus commissions in order to move inventory. It's a win-win for everyone!