I listed this home for a bank at the end of this winter. It sold for $151 per SQ/FT and not to the highest offer.

Here are a few real estate tips to remember when buying a Steamboat foreclosure:

When working with Chase bank they are not always interested in selling to the highest offer. That seems crazy, but true. The bank will mostly analyze the probability of the buyer closing the deal and price is important too, but a contract that fails is more time, money and expense for the bank. This home sold for $575,000 and they did have an offer of $599K on the table, but the bank chose the better qualified buyer who positioned their contract and terms in a way that banks like to see. This home was located on Caribou Lane with a ½ acres overlooking downtown Steamboat Springs and enjoyed amazing views of Strawberry Park. It’s on a cul-de-sac and the street has pride of ownership and had lots of potential.

The key is to have the type of loan approval documents in hand that the bank are looking for and to write a very “clean” offer which shows that you are not going to try and create hassle on small items during the inspection process. The truth is that you will diligently inspect the property and push on any issue within the contract terms, but writing difficult language in the terms of the offer will show a red flag to the bank.

I would be happy to look at any foreclosures that you might find (or my listings) to help provide a tactical approach to buy the property at the lowest possible price.