I've been seeing houses for sale, adv on line or in the newspaper.It gives basic info,along with a few pics.
Then a few days later it says have your best bid in by 5pm today.You don't see that property again,so have no idea what it sold for.This just something new to us,never saw property sold in that way.
They are not re pos...or at least,not mentioned in the adv.Does anyone know what this is called? Want to find out for a friends DS who will be looking to buy 1st house in the Spring.

Never heard of that. I'll be watching the post.

I don't know, but the selling price is a matter of public record.

If you're curious about the selling price, you can check it in a couple of ways. Several counties have their PVA online so you can look up information about various houses. This normally includes date of last sale and the selling price. Also, the newspaper by me includes property transfers in the public records section on a regular basis (I think maybe once a week?) and it includes the address, name of seller, name of buyer, and the recorded selling price.

Try doing a search for the address sometimes that will bring up the sale. Almost sounds like they are short sales and those take awhile to show up. The banks can take up to 6 months to decide which offer they are going to take so you won't see a sale price until it's actually sold.

Find a Real Estate Agent to help you. They have all the current listings and sales and what they sold for. You can also go to the website for "Help U Sell" and those are for sale by owner.

Houses being sold like that are auctions. We have a number of realtor clients that handle this type of sales.

they might be short sales. but after the property closes, you should be able to find out the sales price. if enough time passes, you can often find the sales price in the tax records... at least for some counties.

Not sure, but sounds like the houses are being sold at auction to me- I'm not a realtor, tho!

i've seen newspaper listings on houses sold with all the info.

We have a lot of houses selling here by Deadline Sale. You have to have all offers in by the deadline, and the seller than chooses the best one.

Sounds like houses owned by a bank...

YUP...bank owned being Auctioned off...See allot of that areas with allot of foreclosures...in hard hit areas

So sad!

Thanks for the info. Think he needs to talk with a realtor.Hope he can wade thru it. Buying property can be a long process these days.

Same here. They try to get all the offers they can by a deadline, and then make a decision. They are not bank owned or short sales.

We have bought some that way. The last one was a house from the tax sale. It was valued at 85,000 and we paid a VERY small fraction. You can see pics on my blog below.

Must be same as what we're seeing here. Just seems odd to adv at whatever price, then 2 days later it'll say to submit bids.

Pat, those are auctions. Possibly homes that have been for sale with no serious offers; then the owners simply tell the agent or an auction co. to advertise for the highest bid. When your friends get ready to look around, it is important to get an experienced Realtor as their buyer's agent to help them through the current maze of buying and selling in this economy. The Realtor will give them accurate information on sale prices and what to pay, and a buyer's agent represents the buyer only.

We re-do older homes and most often buy them through auction sites on the internet. If he is looking to buy in the Spring he needs to go to a bank or loan office and get prequalified. Then he needs to find a good Realtor. Shop ahead of time and learn your own market, they are all different.
We have a house for sale that qualifies to go with any loan program....however, we must have a buyer who qualifies to buy. Restrictions have changed.

I am a realtor at Keller Williams in Northwest Indiana and what you have described sounds like a Sheriff Auction which the bank arranges after the house has been on the market as a short sale. If no one buys the house at the auction, the bank gets it back, puts it through the foreclosure process cleaning up the title of liens and judgments, and then after 1-2 years, that property, which has been sitting vacant through summer heat and winter cold, is put back on the market as an REO...Real Estate Owned property. Please feel free to contact me personally and I can help you find a realtor in your state and answer any other questions you have...219 241-8220.

Just seems odd that a house is adv for 3 days,then says send bids.Oh,well. He has a good down payment,has been living at home, saving $$.His parents aren't up on real estate,having lived in same place for over 30yrs.I told him he needs to get pre approved,choose a realtor & go from there.Thanks again.

There is also something newish called Quick Sale. Don't know how it works.

There is no "quick sale"...it's a SHORT SALE. A short sale is selling your home for less than you owe...thus...short of your mortgage balance. And...the sale is never Quick!!! Short Sales usually take months and months to sell because the bank allows a realtor to list the property and then when the owner receives offers...the bank collects them until they see the highest and best offer. This can take months and months. It is a nightmare and the banks are extremely difficult to work with requiring mounds and mounds of paperwork from the owner and the realtor.
Hope this helps...Maryann Maki/KELLER WILLIAMS REALTY LEADERS in Northwest Indiana.

maryanne in Indiana says the same thing my realtor friends say....

I have seen that in our neighborhood a couple of times. I, too, would check w/ a realtor you trust to help negotiate the process. my best friend is a real estate agent and according to her these sorts of sales can be really hard and messy for everyone involved :?

Selling price as public record depends on the state you're in - Oklahoma it's not, Ohio it is.

Sounds like a short sale. The lending institution has to approve the sale (because they may end up with less than owed). It creates a bidding war and no one knows what the other bids are. I suppose the seller could create the bidding war without it being a short sale.