My curiosity was kindled by an office presentation by a fellow Realtor about his experience purchasing property at the county sheriff's foreclosure sales. So off to my first Sheriff's sale I go.
I arrived about 15 minutes early and I was the first one there. The only indication I was in the right spot was a sign stating "Sheriff's Foreclosure Sale" in the lobby in one of the DuPage County buildings. I had heard in the old days the sheriff would actually stand on the steps of the county building to conduct the auction. Today however we get to sit in an air conditioned lobby in one of the wealthiest counties in Illinois (corporate headquarters of McDonalds and the famous Naperville River Walk).
There were about 25 people in attendance, most dressed in shorts and casual shirts. One was a Realtor I spoke to and asked if this was his first foreclosure sale. He said no, that he was there to see about the possibility getting REO listings. When I asked if this was successful for him, he indicated not really. He did have his 10 year old daughter with him so maybe it was "take your daughter to work" day.
At 10 am sharp the clerk (and not the sheriff) asked if there were any lien holders present and asked that they step forward first. Then she went on to explain you are bidding on houses where there may be all types of liens on them. She mentioned taxes, homeowner assessments, and mechanic liens as examples. She further mentioned you may incur the cost of evicting the homeowner and the "no representation to title". Visions of Wild Bill Hickok standing on the county steps went through my head.
The clerk went on to explain the bidding process:
1. You need 10% of the opening bid in certified funds to be eligible to bid for that particular property
2. The balance (90%) is due the following day by 3 pm, again certified funds
3. The initial bid is to start at $1 over the offering bid and then in $100 increments thereafter
4. Once you stop bidding on a property you are out and cannot rejoin the bidding for that property
Seemed straight-forward enough. So I was ready to observe my first sheriff's sale. What would it be like? How many would participate? Would it be like the charity auctions I had been to? Or would it be the wild west? I will tell you in my next blog what the action was like.
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