Californians are having more difficulty avoiding foreclosure. Depreciating home values and worsening employment status for many may mean more homes facing foreclosure soon.
Many are wondering where they could find help to avoid foreclosure or where they can find tips on how to have a great foreclosed home purchase. There are infomercials, radio ads, seminars and leaflets given along the streets that try to offer help. But doing research online may be the easiest and smarter way to find help in avoiding foreclosure and finding a good buy.
Internet resources that offer pre-foreclosure help
Before starting your online research, you must first know what you want.
- Are you looking for a home at courthouse – steps auction on the day of its foreclosure, where you can purchase at a lower price but you have not checked on the property beforehand and even need to evict the old owners?
- Or would you rather purchase a bank-owned house that has been done with the foreclosure proceedings, where you do not have to kick out anyone from the already cleaned property?
For those who choose the courthouse-auction style, check on The Blue Sheet for Santa Clara County homes undergoing pre-foreclosure proceedings, or ForeclosureRadar for a California-wide search. These sites regularly update their auction data that keeps you on track on postponed foreclosures.
If you choose to purchase bank-owned foreclosures, ForeclosureRadar also has information about California’s foreclosure process and primer on the local foreclosure laws. In their affiliated site ForeclosureTruth, there are also Q&A forums for interested buyers, renters and investors.
Searching for bank-owned foreclosures
If you search for bank-owned or real estate owned properties that have been foreclosed upon and are listed for sale with an agent, there are a lot of options to choose on.
There is Coldwell Banker, Alain Pinel and Intero, the big local brokerages that let you search for listings on their websites, while ZipRealty and Redfin have made searching for homes easier. Cyberhomes does not only include bank-owned homes but also properties that do not have reached the MLS.
How to avoid foreclosure online help
Many are now being troubled on how to keep up with their mortgage payments are trying avoid to foreclosure. Online help is readily available but remember that personal meetings with lenders and mortgage counselors are needed too.
Start at the website of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development or HUD. They give advices on how to avoid foreclosure and words of advice against scams. But what you must check on their site is their list of HUD-approved home counseling agencies.
If you want to know more about President Obama’s loan modification and refinancing programs, you can check out the website for Making Home Affordable.