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How to Buy Probate Real Estate

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If you are planning to buy a probate real estate property, there are two situations you may find yourself in. 

  1. Submitting an offer for the property and eventually getting accepted.
  2. Become one of the bidders and outbid other bidders in court.

Although the court accepted your initial offer, this does not ensure that the property will land in your possession since the property will be on sale to the public. There will be other potential buyers who will try to outbid you. 

To understand it better, given below is an example and a guideline on how to buy probate real estate.

For instance, you are browsing through your local newspaper, and you find a probate property you wish to buy. To get the chance to buy the property, you have to attend a court hearing where the property is being sold.

Suppose you are in the court; you will wait for the bidding to open. Know that the bidding process may differ depending on your state.

Sample Scenario:

Let’s say the accepted offer of the property is $200,000.

The bidding may appear like this: $200,000 plus an additional 10% and $1000, equivalent to $221,000 in total. Therefore, the minimum overbid/opening bid is $221,000. Note that the additional $1000 may vary depending on the court.

You must have a cashier’s check amounting to at least 10% of the minimum overbid/opening bid to get approved as the highest bidder on the property.

On the given example, since the minimum overbid is $221,000, the cashier’s check is equivalent to $22,100 ($221,000 x .10 = $22,100)

Lastly, finance the remaining balance and sign a contract with the estate court to conclude the purchase.

When buying a probate property, it is recommended that you work with an experienced probate expert to get the guidance you need since you will be in courtrooms dealing with laws and legal business. Please feel free to send us a message or give us a call if you are planning to buy a probate real estate property or would like to know more about the process of how to buy probate real estate.