Bought 1st home at Auction.com!! How Soon can I start Cleaning It up.

Hi,

Please I am a newbie and would like some advice here. I was so excited to puchase my 1st home at auction. I am now ready to clean it and get ready to rent it out. It is empty has been for over 10 months. (Ive spoken to the neighbor.) I was wondering how soon I can get over there and start cleaning it and changing the locks.

Auction. com says I have to wait for the deed to arrive, but that is the pat answer, they said to be on the safe side to wait. What should I do? The house has been vacant that long and the outside has weeds that are 5’ tall all around it! we are worried about fines and or fire! I know its lasted this long whats another 10 days, but Its my $$ on the line now.

So heres the question?? Can we go over there and clean up the yard at least?? (I’m not worried about putting out cash as we do the Yard work ourselves) Or should we just wait it out and hope for the best… Who is responsible for it if it does get damaged before the deed gets to us?

I am hoping for some great advice from some seasoned investors here that possibly have dealt with this company before.

Thank you so much in advance…

T. Perry

Auction.com’s advice to wait for the trustee’s deed upon sale (TDUS) before doing anything (entering, clean up, etc) is the conservative play … But not always the right play.

If the property is unoccupied (no tenants and no prior owners around attempting to claim they’re still in possession) then you can go in, change the locks, and do as you please. It’s your property. As long as the TDUS is recorded within 15 days from the trustee sale, the sale is perfected as of 8:00 a.m. on the date of the auction (trustee sale).

Since the neighbors have reported that no one has been around for 10 months, it a safe bet that it’s unoccupied. But even a couple of articles of clothing or furnishings laying around can complicate matters in the event of a possession challenge. So to be uber safe (takes very little extra effort), I’d get a short written statement from the immediate neighbors attesting to the fact that “no one has been living the property for 10 months.” I’d also take a video and multiple photos inside and out showing the property to be vacant. And finally I would post a change of ownership notice on the front-door (take photos and keep a digital copy) explaining that, following a trustee sale, you are the new owner … include your contact info. Keep it posted for a couple of days.

You are probably safe to put on your work gloves, get out the weed-wacker and cut back the fire-hazard brush. And yes, you are the new owner, so if there’s damage, even prior to your getting the TDUS, it’s on you. Get insurance ASAP.

One thing though, do not undertake any costly remodeling or major landscaping project until you’ve recorded the TDUS. Better to not spend substantial $$$ on fixing up the house until you’ve made things official (recorded the TDUS).

My bad … I should have read your headline more carefully … looks like you did NOT buy at a trustee sale … but more likely you bought a real-estate-owned “REO” (post trustee sale - bank-owned property). You will not have the eviction issues that a trustee sale buyer might encounter. The bank should have already taken care of that responsibility. Although, there are plenty of stories about squatters and rent skimmers taking advantage of absentee bank (REO) owners. Go ahead and clean up your new property … the neighbors are starting to complain ;).

When we purchased it the auction company did not know that it was vacant. It was posted as a trustee sale not reo. They told us we would have to evict any tenants that were there. And currently it shows that it is owned by a “person” not a bank. You can email me and I woul
d gladly give you the property details for more advice.

Thanks again,

T. Perry

Thanks for the clarification … for better or worse, it looks like Auction.com (REDC) has now contracted with a number of lending institutions to conduct “trustee sales.” JMHO, but many of the REO auction sites leave a bad taste in the mouth and have been notorious for shill bidders and post sale surprises ala “Yes, you did WIN the auction, but the bank is telling us that you must come up with another ($$$) to meet their ‘special minimum reserve’ price” … “What?! You mean you didn’t read the fine print?!” That said, if Auction.com is conducting true “trustee sales” then they must comply with State Code and many of the dubious practices in REO auctions (e.g. auction sales not final until bank approves, shill bidders, online bidders, etc.) will likely NOT be part of the process.

I know I’m not answering your question here, but I hope my first reply is somewhat applicable to your situation.

Where’s the property located at?

Well, there were reserve prices on the auctions there, several that were bid on, after the auction ended they said “sold back to the bank due to didn’t meet the reserve price” so I hope that means I wont be hit any hidden prices. They paper they gave me has no "small print or anything like that…

Thanks for the advice.
T. Perry

I didn’t realize my email doesnt show. Here it is if you would like to discuss it further: stormphyre@pacbell.net

I would welcome all advice I can get.

Thanks,

T. Perry

FWIW I took a peek at Auction.com’s “new and improved” trustee sales promotions on their site. Looks to me like you’ve now got a new middle-man taking a slice (REDC aka auction.com). They disclose that payment must be in cash or cash equivalent (which is standard) or cashiers checks made payable to a special Auction.com LLC (Zing! Therein you have evidence of the new middleman). IMHO Auction.com specializes in the “bid you up” game via their standard REO auctions. Their webinar suggests that postponements won’t be an issue via their new and improved trustee sales and they will have “low opening bids in almost all cases far below the previous unpaid balance or notice of sale amount to ensure a realistic sales price.” … What auction.com does not disclose in their webinar is that lenders (aka beneficiaries) have the right to post a low opening bid and, if they so choose, bid through the auctioneer, or hire someone to attend the auction and bid on their behalf. My guess is that this is what is happening at virtually all of Auction.com’s “new and improved” version of trustee sales. This high-low bidding (see here > http://goo.gl/Ng0sc) can also happen at regular trustee sales conducted at the courthouse steps, but it is not the rule (rather the exception). Again, I suspect that via Auction.com this “bid you up” (high-low bidding) game would be standard practice. That’s just my opinion … and I have never participated in the Auction.com version of trustee sales … so I could be wrong. JMHO, DYODD, your mileage may vary ;).

The ads I get from auction.com company in the U.S. mail indicates they are selling REOs for lenders. They aren’t clear. I did, for fun, call them and they said they have reserve prices on all their sales. IOW, the “opening bid” is meaningless. If you go to their web site (where you can “bid”, they show the current high bid but also indicate the reserve price hasn’t been met. It appears they are looking for low end buyers who need financing. (Some sales are for cash.) They do make it clear there is a “buyer’s premium” meaning your bid is really 5% (10%?) -forget the amount - more than what you bid.

HI Everyone,
In the past few weeks Auction.com has indeed entered the arena as an auctioneer for trustee sales. If the property was purchased as a trustee sale auction (not the usual REO auction) then T Perry should receive the trustees deed from the trustee and provided it is recorded within 15 days then the sale becomes valid as of the auction date.

If the sale was a result of an auction on a REO property then escrow would have to close just like a traditional sale.

Yes, i did indeed recieve the deed within the 15 days and have filed it. So thank you so much for the great advice. It was just very confusing at first.

Thanks again,
T. Perry

Mr. Perry -
Is what you received a “Trustee’s Deed”? or a “Grant Deed”?

Hi Perry, If your looking for help with the Auction Properties I would love to help you. I work for Fidelity National Title and have over 18 years in the Title & Escrow business. I can explain all the documents and help you with any questions about the Title Process. Would love to help you in exchange for escrows. Call me when you get a chance. Smiles Shelly 916-708-2603

This is SImon Wu of advantage title.
Just want to let people know i was there many times at auction.com auction events…
Auction.com indeed do “trustee sale” on locations(like convention center…) but also have regular auction and REO on their websites. I was told that the owner of Auction.com actually owns Commerce Title, that’s why they push for Commerce TItle to insure the deed right after their purchase.

If winning purchaser got Trustee’s Deed, then it was Trustee’s Sale. If a grant deed, probably it was a REO deal.

FYI, only few title companies can offer 50% discount rate for REO Deals (for people who purchased at Trustee’s Sale" and unfortunately Commerce and Fidelity Title Can not offer.
As far as my understanding, ONLY Advantage title offers 50% for owner title policy, in which Advantage title will insure the “Trustee’s Deed upon sale” I think only Advantage, Fidelity, and COmmerce title insures the TDUS so far. SO IF EVERYTHING BEING EQUAL, THEN TAKE THE 50% rate~~!!

SIMON WU
626 589 8822

Simon - I just did a search here on FR and looked for a sale anywhere in Ca. handled by “auction.com”. I couldn’t find any. Of course, maybe I didn’t know how to do it. I checked off all types of fcl listings and checked the box to show historical records. I entered “auction.com” as the search term under the Trustee category.

A partial answer to my own post to Simon, above. It would be possible that that “auction.com” is simply the auctioneer for the Trustee of record - the way ASAP cries sales for numerous Trustees.

Hi Miketh, They will not appear as the trustee because they are only acting as the auctioneer. As an example, In Riverside County the 3443 Orange Street auctions are auction.com sales.

They have had a couple of sales in Northern CA also Contra Costa County, San Joaquin, Stainslaus, Fresno and Sacramento. We hear they are adding Alameda and Santa Clara soon.

Michelle -
So, if they are simply acting as auctioneer for the Trustee of record, you get a Trustee’s Deed? And it is an all cash sale - like all other Trustee Sales?
In this regards, are they acting any differently than ASAP, Reliable Posting or other posting, publishing, “sales criers” companies?