Investment

On the basis that you have no non decuctible personal debt then set up a 100% offset account and place the funds in there.

You will have the double advantage of having the funds at call but also receiving the same rate of interest as you are being charged on your mortgage account tax free.

Also try and trim back that interest rate you are currently paying as it is higher than the norm.

RVP

Try http://www.nmdata.com.au they have sales by Public Trustees, Mortgagee Sales etc listed on their site all over Australia.

Hope it helps.

Ros 

RVP,

Its pretty hard to find foreclosures without chatting to realestate agents. They are apponited by Lawyers who act on behalf of the lending institutions. Most go to Auction so they will not always sell up front. So having an agent working for you in the area you are looking at is best option. Or explained above browse for vacant dwellings.. hit the roads not the night clubs which will please your pocket and scampi…

While there are forclosures (known as mortgagee sales) in SA, there are no real bargains to be had.  Once upon a time banks would sell properties for whatever they could get for them but now they are obliged to get at least 2 – 3 independent valuations and take the median price as reserve.  This means that there is a reserve for all mortgagee sales in SA at least.

It is useful to look at the websites with Public Trustee and Mortgagee Sales on them but, as I said, there are no real bargains out there (unless you can find an unintentionally undervalued property out there).  In my opinion, a property with 2 – 3 valuations is more likely to be accurately priced than a property listed with a RE Agent who doesn't know the market very well. 

Do your research on the area you like and you will soon find out what houses are going for and will be able to spot a bargain if it comes along.  I would bet that it won't be through a mortgagee sale though.

Cheers

K

Well at least you do your best to study before you rush into something. That's good.
Foreclosures are held in auctions. Although at the moment, like someone said, there's no real gain to be had in foreclosure auctions yet. It's very , very bearish and in about 6 months you can get any house for 50% less than you'd pay in 2006-2007. The last auction of 9 houses, only 1 sold. 8 weren't even bid on. Banks will sell for whatever they can get very soon, especially when they get under liquidity pressure ( either by a law change or simply by other banks not lending them money because those too , are out of cash ).

The first ripples are arriving in Australia now. Study now, go to some auctions to get a feel of what is going on ( lately auctions are going relatively fast, maybe 40 minutes for 10 homes, so it shouldn't be too boring ) and you will get a good feel of the market too. If you have a preapproval on a loan, you can even make a silly low bid just to get the feel ( you'll start blushing for sure the first time you bid, but with experience you will learn to see it as a normal buy ). For a house 'worth' 800.000, just bid 150.000 or something. Make sure you don't lift your arm when the auctioneer says something, just SAY the price "on hundred and fifty thousand" instead. Auctioneers usually just 'assume' bids, like 500.000 if you don't say anything. *IF* the auctioneer tries this on you ( it's a trick !! ) then make sure you shout out very very very loud that you didn't bid 500.000 but 150.000.

If you don't say anything on a wrong bid, you could get into trouble. So make sure you only bid on what you want to bid. When auctions get tougher, auctioneers will use trickery more. Also make sure you know the game. First time you go to an auction NEVER *EVER* bid. Just wait, watch, see and learn.
Make sure you understand how the prices go up. Usually there will be sudden increases which you need to be aware of , for instance ( this is only an example and not reality ! ):
between 50K and 100K increases will be 5K
when you get to 100K , the increases will be per 10K
when you get to 250K , the increases will be 25K.

From a buyers perspective, it's a smart idea to be the one who bids on this 'border'. So make sure YOU are the one bidding 100K, because the next one won't be able to bid 105K , but will have to bid 5K more, to 110K.
Same for 250K. If you're bidding at 200K, stop bidding and let someone else ( a third party ) catch up so you can bid the 210K. This way you can make the 250K bid, and people will have to suddenly bid 275K.

Some auctioneers will drop the increases again when people stop bidding, it all depends on the rules. So make sure you read the rulebook before you start bidding. Usually you will get a small A4 with rules on how to bid and the auctioneers name etc. Make sure you bring a dictionary the first time, or take notes of difficult words, like "box lot" , "the reserve" and "buy-back" "proxy bid" "collusion" ( illegal but very practical ) "premium" etc.
Make sure you understand what you're doing and what you will need to pay. Sometimes you need to pay a buyers fee ( premium ) , sometimes you won't, usually you will have to pay taxes etc.

When you're ready to make your first bid, make sure that you have seen the house you bid on. Also make sure there are no Liens or "Junior Liens" on the house ( also second and third mortgages, but also tax outstanding etc ) as *YOU* will be buying those as well ! It's your responsibility to make sure you don't buy a debt. ( sounds silly doesn't it.. but it's true, you can "buy a debt" this way, a perfect way to lose a LOT of money very quickly ).

Some people will put a maximum on what they want to bid. They will start lower and start the bidding. That's a tactics that can be useful if you're there for only 1 house. Another tactics which I personally like much better is to have a list of houses ( preferably listed at the middle to end of an auction ) and just bid low bids on all of them ONCE. If you attend enough auctions, you're bound to get 1-2 real good deals this way. This assumes you are there really as an investor and don't buy with 'feeling' but are looking for a cheap bargain. Take houses that don't appeal to the public, don't go with the houses with nice little red flowers and the nicely cut grass for instance, as you will most probably have to bid up against people with 'feeling' who usually aren't looking for bargains but for a nice , clean house. These people will usually buy at or near 'market value' at higher risks, and usually come in pairs ( husband and wife ). You can recognize the investors because they look generally unmoved by the houses being sold, usually they wear casual clothes.

Also, auctions can be fun. The auctioneers usually are nice chaps who enjoy their fair bit of humor during the auction. And *NEVER* bid on the first house being sold unless you *really , really* want it. It's usually overpriced and will get the most bidders.

Good luck finding a good deal. Remember, it's better to bid LOW once on 6 houses, than to bid 6 times on the same house. Once you have seen a few auctions you will recognize the agents and the bank lawyers. It will make it easier to spot a 'seller bid' ( something you should NEVER bid against )

NAB, Westpac and RAMS and probably a few more by now, use the services of one Company to handle their for-closures.

The Company , based in SA, handles the bailiff for the inevitable eviction, lockchanges, repairs, arranging valuations, and whatever else is required to get the property to auction. The property auction is usually handled by agents local to the property.
So finding out where and when the auctions will be held is a little difficult.

I used to do IT work for them a couple of years ago, they handle for-closures in every state, it was quite an eye-opener as to what goes on behind the scenes.

Cheers
Tony