Detroit Real Estate

Unless you have gone to a Metro Detroit Sheriff sale you may think you can pick up a deal at a sheriff sale, but you need to know what happens at Metro Detroit Sheriff sales.  They just don't give the property away.  You have to be the high bidder and you have a big competitor.  You have the bank that holds the mortgage as your biggest competition. The bank just doesn't give up their interest.

When a Metro Detroit home goes into foreclosure the house is scheduled for a sheriff sale.  The Metro Detroit sheriff sale usually happens at the county offices.  On most homes the bank ( the lender/mortgage holder) buys the home back.  The bank bids it up high enough so the borrower, friends, family members, or even the general public doesn't buy cheap.

What the bank wants to do is to buy it back so it releases all other lien holders (2nd mortgages) or others that have claims against the property.  Such as contractors, lawyers that have judgements.  When the sheriff sale takes place the winner gets the property with no liens.

So if the

• 1st mortgage company is owed $170,000
• 2nd mortgage company is owed $35,000
• a judgement from an ex wife and divorce attorney is owed $8,000
• a window installer is owed $2,700

Then most likely the 1st mortgage company is going to bidding the house up over the market value of the home and up close to the amount owed on the mortgage.  So the 1st mortgage company is going to bid close to $170,000.

The second mortgage company won't, ex wife, divorce attorney, an window installer won't bid $170,000.  They won't get their money back if it is only worth $170,000.  Because now they will have bad 170,000 and they would have to add what they are owed to it and sales commissions.  They will just lose their money. So why bid that high.

A home buyer or investor isn't going to buy it either.  The only way the 1st mortgage company won't buy it back is if they make a mistake.  It happens once in a great while at Metro Detroit Sheriff sales.  But most of the time the price the home is bid up to is close to the 1st mortgage amount and the winner is the 1st mortgage company.