Free Foreclosure Info!

Cashing in on Foreclosures . .
. . . One Gullible Subscriber at a Time

Judging by the incoming email pitches I’m receiving — plus some of the “spam” posts this blog is now attracting — there’s a ton of money to be made in foreclosures. No, not buying and flipping them. Rather, selling information about foreclosures.

For $19.99 a month (or $29.99 or similar), http://www.foreclosures-r-us.com/ (fictitious, or at least I hope) will supposedly give you the scoop on the best deals in town, plus a “heads up” on upcoming deals only “they” know about.

Yeah, right.

First, it ‘aint that easy.

For every supposed $300k house selling for $100k that “just needs cosmetics,” there are dozens of formerly $150k houses selling for $120k that, inconveniently, need to be gutted and put back together. Estimated cost: $50k – $100k or more.

Second, just like all the companies that will sell you credit reports that you can obtain for free, these companies typically offer less — and staler — info than any realtor can access, any time on the local MLS (“Multiple Listing Service”) database.

So, if you want to know what’s really going on with foreclosures . . . talk to your realtor. It won’t cost you a dime.