Local Listings



Most people make the mistake of limiting their search for cheap houses for sale to only their local listings. For example, they may check the newspaper to see the announcements for the public auctions. While these are good places to find good deals, you're limiting yourself greatly. That's also true if you only look through real estate listings in hopes of finding a good deal, possibly an REO home that needs to be sold so the bank can get back some of its money. Many of the homes won't be labeled as REOs so unless you have a good feel for home values you might miss a great deal.

Another problem is that you'll find the selection fairly limited. And you might have to keep checking daily which is time-consuming.

Using the Internet

Another option is to use one of the sites that help you find cheap houses for sale by providing up-to-date information on the latest foreclosures. The good thing about these sites is they are more convenient because some will allow you to sign up for email notifications when new properties are added and because they allow you to look at a broader area in case you're interested in investing in other parts of the country.

The Internet sites are normally basing their information on public records so they'll have a much wider range of choices than most of what you'll find in local listings. Plus, you can track the progress of a property so you can make an offer at the right time.