Everyday, possible home buyers are calling me about Temecula and Murrieta foreclosure homes. The foreclosure market is a hot topic at this time with market conditions being what they are, so I am taking a moment to put down my thoughts for Temecula Valley foreclosure home buyers thinking about buying. The initial point to realize is that in a poor credit or lending situation you will see foreclosures and short sales popping up.

Often people dread this situation, it comes up very rarely and is a major opportunity for them to take a major financial leap. The conditions necessary for a foreclosure market center around a decent sized percentage of equity loss, over supply of homes available, and a restricted or limited amount of qualified buyers. Right now, we have all three of these and it is a safe bet to say that we will be in a a foreclosure real estate market for the next year.

It is a short sale and foreclosure market that starts people strongly examining foreclosures over other homes. Why? Because they find great homes and save lots of money. Solid and approved buyers are rare in our current credit market. Due to this fact, approved buyers can get incredible on Murrieta and Temecula homes in foreclosure.

However, often people assume any home in foreclsoure is a deal but that is not very realistic. Many times homebuyers need to see the truth in regards to Murrieta and Temecula Valley foreclosed homes. When working with Temecula Valley foreclosures, three bulletpoints that will aid you guarantee what you find is a good investment:

Top-Line and knowledgeable real estate representative

Get numbers and approval on necessary loan

Make sure you consider how to value the long term value

First, it is paramount that you have a knowledgeable Temecula Valley real estate expert working for you. You are shopping for a home, so the broker’s service is 100% free of charge and is incredibly valuable to you. They will help you target the properties, detail out the pluses and minuses of different properties in terms of which is the better investment.

Any agent worth their name will use their experience to investigate the total investment value and team up with escrow and loan partners to make sure everything flows in concert. Just make sure that the Temecula Valley real estate broker you select actually has foreclosure experience and success.

The next step, is to get your team in place by choosing and getting pre-qualified with a loan officer that is fluent Temecula, Murrieta, Wildomar, and Menifee bank foreclosed home sales. The chosen lender needs to be able to react quickly and highly competitve rate wise. I have always thought of a buyer as the the big team boss, who then hires a team leader.

In this case the quarterback is the real estate broker and then lending or loan broker would be the the tailback on the squad. Many times your real estate agent or broker will be able to offer some names for you to evaluate that they have had good transactions in the past. With a Temecula Valley home foreclosure, the real estate broker and loan officer have to be in sync or you may miss the best long term investment opportunities.

This is where we get to the third important step in buying a foreclosure home, weighing the pros and cons. This is where a great broker goes into action and begins breaking out some important foreclosure investment values. For example, how much work is needed on each? Which home has a superior lot location inside the development and what are the other properties like? Has either foreclosure been damaged? Is there any criminal events at the either property or past insurance claims? What is the property tax rate of each property and how do they contrast with each other?

Those variables and others need to be examined thoroughly, in a small period of time to work out the superior investment value. Often people purchasing a Temecula foreclosure house just assume they will get a great deal. Perhaps they see a Temecula banked owned home that is $60k under the last few sales in the community, so it is a excellent opportunity. However, if it is in need of any major repairs, has a marginal lot, or is positioned poorly in the tract (facing a main road, etc.) its total valuation is severely affected.

But lets say that the Murrieta property is the ideal 3-car garage style in the home development, has a big lot on a cul-de-sac, but needs carpet, paint and some minor yard repairs, I am going to send it over to my homebuyer. A good broker will be detail oriented and examine the school system, look for value-added options like a view, or check crime statistics, etc. Because when all is said and done the Murrieta home has the combination of value features that make it by far the best bet over the foreclosure home in Temecula.

The last key that plays a large part in buying any good Temecula, Murrieta, Menifee, or Wildomar foreclosure home is time. How long will you take to get an offer in? Will some other homebuyer beat you to the punch? You have your squad in place, the broker has foreclosure home background, and your financials are pre-approved and just waiting. All that is vital because the best Temecula foreclosed home deals go FAST! Make sure you know the payments, know your contingencies, and are set to go. Be smart and fully understand the valuation and investment potential of a foreclosure purchase, you will do fantastic in today’s market!

Short sales are now a large segment of the Southern California real estate marketplace. Many agents, let alone buyers, do not understand short sales and tend to avoid them. The first big issue in pursuing a short sale is finding a broker willing to put the time necessary for the job. Most don’t want to show these for several reasons. The big three are short sales are a lot more work, homebuyers get very impatient, and they can be stressful if done wrong.

Let me explain these three issues in order. First, short sales are more difficult because in the place of a two party negotiation with just a buyer and seller, you have a four party deal with the buyer, seller, and two banks. And in this situation the seller and two banks don’t act the way a traditional seller would act. The current owner is upside down financially and just wants the loans of their back. They don’t always care about getting the best price which is wonderful for you. But the homeowner can also work a little against the purchase at times by not letting people see the house in the best of shape or even at all.

Meanwhile, the banks aren’t owners, adhere to certain bank rules and can be difficult to reach and negotiate with. They often use agressive type strategies in their efforts to maximize the absolute most money. In fact, the first and second loans fight between themselves because what one bank gets moneywise the other doesn’t. And getting access to those people require completed paperwork packages from the seller and an purchase contract from a potential buyer before the clock can start. Eventually there has be an agreement between two banks, a seller, and a buyer. By the time you get this all set, a period of 2-3 weeks can easily pass. Plus with the significant amount of short sales flooding in many banks are understaffed to handle the increased workload.

Once you are over that hurdle, the second biggest one is buyer impatience and lack of understanding. The worst buyer for a short sale is usually an excited first time homebuyer unless they have a solid communication level with their real estate agent. Because after the broker has everything forwarded to the financial institutes, the banks will take 10-14 business days to even examine it and pass it to a closer.

Preparing an pumped up couple to wait this out is tough. This is doubly true in Menifee and neighboring real estate marketplace now that there are a large supply of properties to look at. Plus, housebuyers today have the people around them in their head whispering that they should get better price or more service when they buy. Buyer lack of patience can be the most important variable and should be discussed before any bank short sale properties are looked at. If the clients are able to handle their patience, they just may get a fantastic deal!

Here is an example. Last month I promoted a Temecula home possible short sale deal to a new client of mine where they could get a house for over 70k off the its real value. But they would to have to wait a bit for bank approval, perhaps up to 3 weeks. The home was perfect for the buyer and was turnkey condition. Their response was in this market they would demand a response within 48 hours.

I risked my client contact and told them this opportunity isn’t for you because the banks don’t remotely care about you. They are 8-5 employee’s and have no attachment to the property and if you want to miss a fantastic deal, that is up to you. But I am willing to put in the time and effort if you can have the patience. And when we get approved, you will be moving in with significant equity and I will secure your business for the next time. After breaking out the details, they put in an purchase offer, got approval, and will close at the end of this month. Clear channels of communications, integrity, and patience can get the job done!

The last big issue is stress. Part of this has already been discussed when dealing with patience. However, the stress of what the bank will do, what people are telling you, and how drawn out the process is can make you crazy. For the broker, dealing with the other party and banks is downright tough. For the buyer, not screaming out your frustration on your broker is vital. Much of the tension is reduced by a thorough understanding about the situation and a twice a week update. If the buyer hears that the banks have not returned calls, they shouldn’t get upset.

With all that said, why do I suggest looking into bank short sales? Because short sales can offer a huge opportunity to get a great new home at a significant price. These homes are usually in great shape than REO houses and often they are still being taken care of. Also, they can be great for price negotiation for many of reasons.

Right now, banks are filled to the gills with foreclosure properties and the last situation they desire is another, especially when there is a solid buyer ready to buy. Why would a bank want to gain another when given the chance to sell one while more expenses accrue or the market goes down further? Their deduction is your gain and an good agent’s goal should always be to get you, the buyer, the greatest investment possible for today and in doing so, earn your business tomorrow.

Do have kids and did you want to buy a home in Temecula California? If so then please let me introduce you to Homes in Menifee California. Menifee is 16 miles north of Temecula. Both cities are located next to the freeway, and are 10-15 minutes apart. Most people know more about Temecula than Menifee. Menifee began to take shape in the 80s. At the point of this writing in 2007 I want to share about a particular place in Menifee because not all of Menifee is ideal, but there is one place where all the local professionals, police and fire officers and teachers go to raise their children and it has everything! So much so that I wish I grew up in a place like it. There is more in this place being offered to children for FREE than was offered where I lived in Los Angeles and Orange County growing up. The place I want to talk about is my listing in Menifee Lakes California.

I am currently selling 30486 Lake Watch Court, Menifee, CA 92584. As an Orange County and Los Angeles person, which is where I grew up mostly in Southern California, Temecula and the IE (Inland Empire real estate which includes Riverside County and San Bernardino County, Temecula is a city in Riverside County as is Menifee) meant everything east of the 57 Freeway and everything west of that was the main area where things were happening. Extremely recent changes in the California real estate market have changed all that. The Inland Empire no longer stands for the desert or a place where nothing exists. the IE is no longer a phrase for similar small town living outside the city. Now the IE is a country. So many people now live and work here. It has it’s own cities, it’s own regions, it’s own diversity, a rich diversity of city life, country life, suburban life, singles life, and all walks of life now live here.

As a Southern California Real Estate Specialist I would like to contend that Riverside County may even be more happily diverse than Los Angeles. There are people from many different cultures living side by side in Riverside County. Why? The houses. They’re nice. They’re affordable. They’re….bigger? Better? Taller and wider than the OC and Los Angeles?? Yes, yes yes! They are nicer and no matter where you seem to go you have your own space, your own personality within that space. You can be a true individual out here, a true family unit. You can fulfill all your fantasies of what a home should be in the Menifee Lakes community especially.

Menifee Lakes is a community of old family values and similarities with a slight twist, the kids that grow up in this community are self aware, abundant, really cool and plugged in to their community. Yes, finally a community that takes care of their own that’s not wierd. The kids here do not act like community droids like you would find at a boarding school or a religious community. They also do not act like country bumbkins who grow up without learning how to read. Nope, the kids here are different, unique, bold, and they reflect the modern era of what a kid is suppose to be in order to make it, an explorer, a thinker, a doer. People come to Menifee Lakes to raise their children because it is peaceful and amped with things to do.

The lakes at Menifee Lakes are crystal clear, there’s free fishing, ducks, and seagulls? Yes! It is an ideal place to live also because all the schools are in walking distance except high school which is just a couple miles away and you do not have to cross any major streets to go to elementary and middle school, how much safer can a community be? The kids are all polite and almost every household has some at all ages from babies to teens to early young adults. There is also a junior college, a very famous one, San Jacinto JC, right on the same block, which teaches at least 13,000 students a semester, so there is a mindset toward learning in this community and it saves the parents money and the kids time driving to and from school. The kids can walk to their college classes, how unheard of is that? In addition recreation and activities are also very important. There are free concerts and festivals set up by the community. There are also many activities for kids to do, a park with organized sports and adult activities like jazzercize in walking distance and open to all ages k-senior, and their is even a senior softball league, not to mention Ayso soccer, little league baseball, basketball, most of the kids that I have seen are skaters, and the list of things to do goes on. Most importantly the kids find things that they like to do and interact well with each other. New college kids are also always flooding into the area studying and eating at the local restaurants as well.

Menifee Lakes California was the first born son of the new community life in Menifee, CA. Established in 1989 the Menifee Lake community is the exemplary role model for living in Menifee city and the city is very proud to have this exclusive community as are the homeowners because of the real historic and family values here. The unincorporated city of Menifee Lakes even has its own beautiful country club, “Menifee Lakes Country Club,” which is in walking distance. Shopping is also close to this community. Everything is in walking distance and the freeways are less than a half mile. Major department stores are located here and I don’t mean more than 5 minutes away. This community is extremely clean and the people who own Menifee Lakes homes are good about looking out for each other since there are so many families that live here.

Perhaps the biggest difference between the homes for sale in Temecula and Menifee homes in Riverside County California is the price tag. The cheapest homes in Temecula range close to $450,000 at the time of this writing and the more expensive homes go up to over a million dollars. Regardless of when this was written, in Menifee Lakes the average sales price is about $50,000 less than the cheapest homes in Temecula and that’s probably going to last for a while, yet my home listings in Menifee Lakes are top of the line and with such an amazing community can Temecula match the benefits I can offer your children in Menifee Lakes? Come talk to me to buy a home in Southern California. My name is J R Middlebrook and I can represent you. My website is http://www.southerncaliforniarealestateagent.com.