All About Bulk REO Investments
The weakness of the U.S. economy has given rise to the largest epidemic of foreclosures in American history. Yet as always, this challenge has given rise to a huge new opportunity for alert real estate investors.
The real estate investing strategy du jour is called ‘Bulk REO Investing‘ and is a real monster.
The basis of the Bulk REO business is foreclosures, so let’s analyze the foreclosure process now.
To understand investing in Bulk REO, you have to understand the foreclosure process.
As a borrower becomes increasingly behind in his mortgage, the lender regularly calls and writes the borrower with default warnings and threats. After a certain period, the lender will then formally begin foreclosure proceedings. The name for this period is ‘preforeclosure’.
Foreclosure is completed when the defaulted property is auctioned. If there are no buyers at the foreclosure auction, the lender regains title to the property. The designation of ‘REO’ (Real Estate Owned) is then attached to the foreclosed property.
REO properties are usually listed for sale with local real estate agents. But as a consequence of the weak economy, lenders are frequently selling their REO properties far below their actual value. The trade-off is that the buyer must purchase multiple REO properties in each transaction.
The REO investment packages available today have provided a way to profitably capitalize on the U.S. recession. The most successful Bulk REO Investors will have a well-respected source of funding for their transactions. Some sources of funding for these transactions are: personal funds, hard money lenders, commercial lenders and non-conventional sources such as private investors and hedge funds. Additionally, one man is becoming very well known in the field of bulk REO investing, and his name is Sal Buscemi of Dandrew Capital Partners, a New-York based hedge fund.
