Find good repossessed properties for sale in South Africa from banks and at auction centres. We look at 5 tips that will help you find house and property repossessions on the market today.
5 Tips on How to Find Repossessed Houses
- Repossessions at Estate Agents or Realtors
- Referrals (word of mouth)
- Online Property Auctions
- Property Auction Events
- Bank Repossessed Houses direct from banks
The holder of a property might not make the key or interest payments and possession of the home is with the mortgage investor. Foreclosed or repossessed houses are known as Real Estate Owned or REO.
Currently, there has been tremendous growth in the bank repossession market.
Demand for repossessed properties as well as bank repo homes, have also increased significantly. Due to this growth, investors and home buyers are using a number of ways to discover the best property on the market.
Use of foreclosure listings is among these ways. Below are top 5 common ways in South Africa to get your hands on and find good repossessed property.
This may also interest you: Find Houses for Sale under Repossession
Repossessions at Estate Agent or Realtors
The very obvious place for an individual to find repossessed property is at the local agents’ office or any realtors’ office.
When a property is repossessed, the mortgagee will basically select an estate agent who is available in his or her local region. It is the duty of the agent to get the finest probable value for the property. Thus, it will be put on an open market and marketed just like any other house.
Realtors present in your area know about a number of properties that are being sold and if the asset is in a foreclosure state. It is the job of the realtor to find a good house for you and this includes the property that has been reclaimed by the bank.
The caution with using a real estate agent is that they will get a section of the sale of the home as a commission, so ensure to factor that in any costs.
Referrals of Property Repossessions
Word of mouth is the best advertising agent. Many people discover about reclaimed properties on the market through the word of mouth.
You might know an individual who is employed at an auction or estate agencies or a colleague or friends who might be aware of reclaimed houses on their road for sale.
This is one of the best ways in which you can get in first particularly if the house is in a popular area.
Repossessed property that is cheaper will be on high demand given that the existing financial climate has put constraints on expenditure for most people. Therefore, you should ask around. You might be amazed by what you will find out.
Online Repossessed Property Auctions and Websites
Since the invention of the internet, life has become easier. The internet now offers people with more information compared to the past years. And this also includes details of all reclaimed properties for sale on places like online repossessed house auctions.
You can visit individual agency websites in your selected location, or you can opt to visit a site that is dedicated to the marketing of repossessed properties alone.
Websites have such features like this. Allowing you to find repossessed properties across a lot of agency websites.
This is one of the best ways in which one can use to compare a number of houses. However, you should know that there are some websites that will charge you a membership fee in order for you to join. Therefore, in such scenarios, it will be best if you do the research on your own.
One handy website you can visit for online property auctions in South Africa is Aucor Property. Take a look at their website here.
As well as of searching on the internet, you can also read the legal section of local newspapers to find notices of sale for any repossessed property.
The notice of sale usually includes information such as opening bid. And the exact date of foreclosure or trustee sale. Generally, notices are usually published for three weeks in the newspapers.
Property Auction Events in South Africa
Some people opt for auctions as one way of getting a cheaper property. Repossessed properties are usually advertised through this technique.
It is possible to find a real deal at an assets public sale. However it is good to at least know how the entire bidding procedure functions.
It can be a very expensive mistake to stop over at an auction and then get a bidding war without seeing the real property first. A good number of people have made the mistake before. Then found major issues with the properties at a future date. So refrain from doing the same.
As a matter of fact, when an individual is visiting a property auction, he or she will be given a paper form including all the details of the reclaimed property.
Nonetheless, the paper work might not be all-inclusive. It is thus wise to stopover at the property prior to making a bid particularly if you are not well versant with the locality of the property.
When you are purchasing a property at an auction, specified deposits and fees might also apply. So it is good notion to find out much regarding auction regulations and rules prior to visiting one.
Talk to the Bank and Creditors Directly
You can visit banks in South Africa and creditors that can inform you of properties that are in various states of repossession.
5 banks that sell repossessed houses include:
- Absa Bank
- Nedbank
- Standard Bank
- Capitec Bank
- FNB South Africa
If you buy directly from the lending institutions, they might be willing to provide enticements such as a lower interest rates and prices.
In Summary of How to Find Repossessed Properties in South Africa
To summarize all this it is not advisable to buy the first property you come across.
So doing a thorough search will help you to get the finest deal. There are a number of repossessed properties available on the market today. And it’s good to first of all investigate your options fully prior to making a deal.
Try to pay a visit to the property more than once in order to find out more about potential works needed. This can stop many hassles at a late date.
You should also attempt to find out the legitimacies of the house repossession specifically if you are trading with a real estate agent.