An auction is a great way to sell a home. It is fast, efficient and final. The results are normally known from the beginning to the end, within 30 days or so. The type of auction I am talking about is an absolute auction. In this type of auction, the final price offered is the price the seller gets. Normally, an auction sale closes within 30 days. It is a cash offer, "as-is" sale. Besides selling the home fast, the auction sale will reset the value of homes within the subdivision where the auction is conducted.

In an August 28th, 2007 article in the Orlando Sentinel, a very serious subject is addressed - rising foreclosure rates hitting many states, including Florida.  Indeed, we are the epicenter of foreclosures to come and I agree a bailout is not the right approach. However our skyrocketing property taxes have to bear a huge burden on this problem. We have killed off most investor buyers who are buying homes to rent out and have done so by property tax increases. It is impossible to find a home to rent out unless you pay cash for the home. The property taxes are so high, investors will have a  serious cash flow and will take their money somewhere else.  Meanwhile, we are sitting here with bulging inventory of unsold homes and no buyers. Property tax relief is in place to try and reverse this foreclosure avalanche.

Foreclosure Defined

A foreclosure occurs when a property owner cannot make principal and/or interest payments on his/her loan, typically leading to the property being seized and sold.

Stages of Foreclosure

The foreclosure process is not very difficult to understand. There are several stages during which the homeowner has an opportunity to bring the loan current and avoid foreclosure.