How to Buy North Dakota Foreclosures

North Dakota lenders may foreclose on real estate properties when the borrower who owns the home defaults on the mortgage loan. They file suit in court to get a foreclosure order. The judge then orders the county sheriff to auction off the property. Buyers need to learn how to get foreclosure notices from the sheriff. They can then select North Dakota foreclosures and prepare for the public foreclosure auction. Those who place the highest bid at an auction become the buyer of a foreclosed home in North Dakota.

Step 1:

Contact county sheriffs to find North Dakota foreclosure listings. If you are lucky, you may find full listings of upcoming local sheriff sales (foreclosure auctions occur at North Dakota sheriff sales) on the county or sheriff’s office website. Even if you cannot directly find this information online, use a search engine to find contact information for the local sheriff. You can then call or visit and ask about either getting a printout of upcoming foreclosures, viewing foreclosure notices at the sheriff’s office if you live in that area or finding foreclosure notices in a newspaper or posted at some other public place.

Step 2:

Look at the foreclosure notices to determine all the necessary details about individual North Dakota foreclosures and sheriff sales. Depending on where you find your listings, you may or may not see bidding and payment instructions and auction scheduling information in the listings. However, you can get this information from the sheriff’s office. For example, when sheriffs conduct a North Dakota foreclosure auction, they typically hold all of these sales and auctions at the same place (at or near the sheriff’s office) and time and on the same day of the week. Once you learn this information, you will have a better idea about how to participate in buying foreclosed homes in various North Dakota counties.

Step 3:

Come up with a maximum bid for any North Dakota foreclosed properties you are thinking about buying. Some ways to do this include talking to neighbors about lot values in that area and consulting with a real estate agent or appraiser. Of course, when bidding to purchase a North Dakota foreclosure, you are aiming to win a bid at below the fair market value of the foreclosed property. This is the main benefit of bidding at foreclosure sales.

Step 4:

Prepare the funds necessary for bidding on foreclosed properties. It is not uncommon for the terms of a foreclosure sale to be “cash only” and “payable on the same day as the auction.” Some locales may have more lenient policies, but always prepare according to local policy.

Step 5:

Bid on all the North Dakota foreclosed homes or land you want to buy. If you win an auction, get with the sheriff or other seller (deputy or court-appointed seller) to finish paying all of your bid money.

Step 6:

Demand a property deed once you have paid for the foreclosure. In North Dakota, as in all states, you must file a deed when purchasing real estate to fully protect your rights to the property. Each county has an office for recording deeds, mortgages and other real estate documents. File your deed in the county where your new foreclosed property is located.

Sources:

North Dakota Legislative Mortgage Statutes