Rochester, Minnesota foreclosed homes for sale and Rochester short sale properties offer homebuyers the opportunity to buy real estate at reduced prices. While buying foreclosures and short sales may intrigue first-time homebuyers on a limited budget or investors looking for new opportunities, anyone can take advantage of buying these properties – it just takes a little bit of patience, and you will want an experienced foreclosure or short sale REALTOR ^® on your side.

Rochester foreclosures are properties that the lender plans to repossess or has repossessed because of missed mortgage payments. Once the foreclosure process has been completed, the lender owns the property and prepares to sell it.

Rochester short sales are homes whose seller is asking the lender to accept less than the amount owed on the home. The short sale price is lower than the amount required to pay off the remaining mortgage amount and costs of the sale, so the current homeowner and lender need to negotiate the terms of modifying the mortgage in order to sell the home.  Learn more about buying a short sale home .

There are many reasons why some homeowners try to sell short sale homes, and it’s a difficult decision to make. Every lender has different requirements that sellers must meet in order to qualify for a short sale, but the homeowner will likely need to be able to prove they are experiencing a financial hardship.  Learn more about selling a short sale home .

In both Rochester foreclosures and short sales, you can find very nice homes in good condition. However, some of the homes are distressed or in need of repairs, so remember that you purchase them as-is and will need to build renovations and repairs into your budget.

It’s important to note that you must be patient with this type of home purchase – especially when waiting for responses to offers from the bank. Each lender has its own forms and processes. You could possibly wait as long as 3 to 10 months to hear back from the bank about your offer.