Distressed Real Estate Investing: How to Tell a Real Discount From a Risky One

Distressed real estate investing sounds like buying a dollar for seventy cents. In practice, a distressed property is one with more unknowns, and the price is supposed to pay you for carrying them. The rest of this guide is about telling the difference between a real discount and a risky one.

Physical vs. financial distress

"Distressed" covers two different problems that often get blended together.

• Physical distress is about the building: deferred maintenance, a failing roof, water damage, fire, code violations, months of vacancy. The owner may be perfectly solvent and simply unwilling to fix it.
• Financial distress is about the owner or the loan: missed mortgage payments, unpaid property taxes, a commercial loan that cannot be refinanced at maturity, an estate that must sell to pay the deceased owner's debts. The building itself may be in good condition.

A physically distressed property sold by a solvent owner is mostly a renovation problem. A financially distressed property is mostly a legal and timing problem. When both are present, every estimate in your analysis gets wider, and the price has to reflect that.

Buying the property vs. buying the debt

You can invest in the same troubled asset in two ways, and they are different businesses.

Buying a non-performing loan puts you in the lender's seat: you do not own the house, you cannot walk in and renovate it, and you take on the legal duties that come with collecting a mortgage. Our guide to note investing covers pricing, servicing and the note holder's side of a default. Some experienced operators do both: the show notes for episode 49 say Trion Properties, co-founded by guest Max Sharkansky, exited its earlier portfolio before the financial crisis and, with cash on hand, targeted both distressed multifamily debt and distressed multifamily REOs during the downturn. Note the precondition: liquidity when the downturn arrived.

Types of distressed deals: pre-foreclosure to REO

When a missed payment is not cured, residential distress usually moves from a period before foreclosure to a foreclosure sale and, if nobody outbids the lender, a bank-owned listing (REO, for "real estate owned"). Each stage puts a different party across the table and changes what you can verify before you commit.

Pre-foreclosure

Pre-foreclosure is the window after an owner falls behind but before a foreclosure sale. Federal servicing rules (Regulation X) generally bar a mortgage servicer from making the first notice or filing for foreclosure until the loan is more than 120 days delinquent, with narrow exceptions such as a due-on-sale violation, so by the time a default notice or court filing appears in public records, that owner is usually at least four months behind. Servicers other than small servicers also cannot hold the sale while a complete loss mitigation application received more than 37 days before it is unresolved. These protections apply only to loans on a borrower's principal residence, so a delinquent rental or second home can reach foreclosure sooner.

The owner still owns the property and still has options: a modification, a regular listing, a short sale or bankruptcy. Many also have equity to protect: an archived January 2023 CFPB blog post, citing Black Knight data, reported that 81% of homeowners in active foreclosure in the third quarter of 2022 had at least 10% equity (the share today may differ). Approaching owners at this stage carries real legal limits, covered under approaching owners below.

Short sales

A short sale is a sale for less than the mortgage balance. It is a form of loss mitigation, so the lender or servicer has to agree, and any other lienholder whose lien must be released at closing has to sign off too. The price may be reasonable, but the timeline is out of your hands: the lender can counter or decline, and the seller's situation can change while you wait. The CFPB also notes that in some states the lender can sue the seller for the remaining deficiency after a short sale, which affects how willing a seller is to proceed.

Foreclosure auctions

Foreclosure sales are run by a trustee in a non-judicial foreclosure or under court supervision in a judicial one, depending on state law and the loan documents. Terms often include payment in cash or certified funds on a tight schedule, no financing contingency, no inside inspection and no seller disclosures. HUD's rules for post-foreclosure sales of FHA-insured homes, for example, require the listing to say the property is sold "as is" and that its condition is unknown and may include defects or hazards, and to state clearly when it is occupied. Sales can also be postponed or cancelled at the last minute; a Chapter 13 bankruptcy filing, for instance, automatically stays most collection actions, including foreclosure. Auctions reward investors who finish their title and valuation work before sale day and can afford to lose a deposit or walk away.

Bank-owned (REO) and government-owned homes

REOs are usually listed through agents, so you can normally inspect them and close with a title policy, but sellers typically sell as-is on their own contract addenda. Three government-related platforms list foreclosed homes directly, and each gives owner-occupants a head start:

• HUD Homestore for HUD-owned homes from FHA-insured loans. According to the HUD Homestore FAQ, homes eligible for FHA financing generally open with a 15-day exclusive period for owner-occupants, HUD-approved nonprofits and government entities; uninsured homes first go to a 7-day lottery for nonprofits, government entities and, in revitalization areas, Good Neighbor Next Door buyers, then a 5-day exclusive period. Investors bid only in the extended period that follows.
• HomePath for Fannie Mae-owned homes and HomeSteps for Freddie Mac-owned homes. Freddie Mac's First Look Initiative reserves a home's first 30 days of listing for owner-occupants, public entities and nonprofits engaged in community stabilization. Fannie Mae runs a similar FirstLook program for owner-occupants and nonprofits, so check each listing for its current window.

Federal policy is leaning further toward owner-occupants, so far by targeting large institutional buyers rather than typical individual investors. Executive Order 14376 (January 2026) directs HUD, the FHFA and other agencies to issue guidance that keeps federal programs, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from facilitating home purchases by large institutional investors and promotes sales to owner-occupants, including through first-look policies. The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act bars for-profit entities with investment control of 350 or more single-family homes from buying more, with listed exceptions, starting January 7, 2027. As of early October 2026, HUD Homestore and HomeSteps still published the listing periods above; check each platform's current rules before you plan around them.

Tax sales, probate and other life events

Unpaid property taxes lead to a separate, local process. The government may sell the property itself or a lien on it, and owners often get a period to redeem afterward. State and local law decide which kind of sale applies, how long redemption lasts and, since the Supreme Court held in Tyler v. Hennepin County (2023) that a county keeping a home's value above the tax debt can violate the Takings Clause, how surplus proceeds are handled. Check your county's rules before you bid. Estates, divorces and job relocations also create sellers who need certainty more than top dollar; our guide to probate real estate investing covers the estate side.

How investors find distressed properties

Distressed inventory shows up in a handful of places, and working two or three consistently usually beats working all of them occasionally.

• Public records. Recorded notices of default or sale (in many non-judicial states), foreclosure lawsuits and the lis pendens often recorded with them (in judicial states), sale calendars from trustees, sheriffs and courts, and county tax delinquency and tax sale notices.
• Listed inventory. REOs and short sales usually appear on the MLS, so find an agent who regularly handles them. Add HUD Homestore, HomePath, HomeSteps and the online auction platforms where lenders and trustees sell.
• Local signals. Code-violation records, vacant-building registries where cities keep them, and long-vacant properties in neighborhoods you know well.
• Relationships. Real estate attorneys, title companies, property managers, contractors and wholesalers all see distress early; when a wholesaler brings you a deal, verify the numbers and the right to assign the contract. For commercial property, add brokers, lenders, special servicers and court-appointed receivers.
• Direct outreach. Letters, calls and door-knocking reach owners before a property is listed, which is why the rules on owners and occupants below matter. Phone and text campaigns raise their own federal and state compliance questions, so get advice before you start dialing.

For building a steady pipeline, see our guide to deal flow for wholesaling and flips.

Foreclosure rules depend on your state

There is no national foreclosure process. The CFPB describes two broad categories:

• Judicial foreclosure goes through a court, where the borrower can raise defenses.
• Non-judicial foreclosure happens without a lawsuit, through required written notices under a "power of sale" clause in the mortgage or deed of trust.

States also differ on whether a former owner can buy the property back after the sale (a statutory right of redemption, which lasts a limited time that varies by state), whether the lender can pursue a deficiency, how much notice occupants receive, and how fast the whole process moves. The spread is large. ATTOM's mid-year 2026 report found that properties foreclosed in the second quarter of 2026 had been in the process for an average of 563 days nationally; Texas was fastest at 155 days, New York averaged 2,007 and Louisiana, the slowest, 3,491. A strategy built on one state's speed will not transfer to another.

Federal tax liens add a wrinkle. If the IRS holds a junior federal tax lien, it can generally redeem the property within 120 days after the sale or the state redemption period, whichever is longer (26 U.S.C. 7425 for non-judicial sales; 28 U.S.C. 2410(c) for judicial sales in which the United States is named), and a non-judicial sale generally clears a lien filed more than 30 days earlier only if the IRS was given proper written notice at least 25 days before the sale.

Before you buy in a new state, learn its rules from the statutes, court self-help pages and attorney general's consumer pages, and from a local real estate attorney and title company who handle distressed sales. Treat any article, including this one, as a map of questions rather than an answer for your county.

Owners, occupants and tenants

People behind on their mortgage, and people living in a property you want to buy, are often under real stress. The law treats homeowners in default as vulnerable to bad deals, and occupants keep rights after a sale, which shapes what an investor can say, offer and do.

Approaching owners in pre-foreclosure

• Federal rule on "foreclosure help." Regulation O, the Mortgage Assistance Relief Services rule, covers paid services that claim to help stop or postpone a foreclosure, obtain a modification, or arrange a short sale or deed-in-lieu. Providers generally cannot collect a fee until the homeowner has a written agreement from the lender or servicer. If your pitch includes negotiating with the lender for the owner, find out whether you are offering a regulated service.
• State equity-purchaser and foreclosure-rescue laws. Many states regulate buying a home from an owner in default, especially when the owner stays on as a tenant or keeps a right to buy it back, and the details differ sharply. Florida's statute on foreclosure-rescue transactions sets written-contract requirements and a three-business-day cancellation right. New York's home equity theft prevention law lets covered sellers cancel until midnight of the fourteenth business day after signing and bars the buyer from accepting or recording the deed before that deadline passes. Minnesota regulates foreclosure consultants and foreclosure purchasers in its own chapter. Know your state's version before you contact anyone.
• Structures regulators warn about. The FTC warns homeowners about rent-to-buy-back schemes in which the buyer usually never sells the home back, or only on terms the owner cannot meet, and notes that transferring the deed does not transfer the mortgage, so the owner can still owe the loan. Even with good intentions, a lease-back or "subject to the existing loan" deal with an owner in default resembles those schemes, so get a lawyer's review before it goes anywhere near a contract.

Beyond compliance, a respectful approach is the one that holds up later:

• Say plainly that you are an investor buying at a price that works for you, not a rescue service.
• Encourage the owner to talk to their servicer and a HUD-approved housing counselor, and to get independent legal advice before signing.
• If the owner has meaningful equity, tell them a normal listing may net them more. Some will still choose speed and certainty; that should be an informed choice.
• Put every term in writing, give people time to decide, and never pressure, mislead or promise outcomes you do not control.

Occupied properties

Many distressed properties are occupied, by a former owner, by tenants, or by someone whose status is unclear.

• Tenants in foreclosed homes. The federal Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act, restored in 2018, requires the immediate successor in interest at foreclosure to give bona fide tenants 90 days' notice before eviction and to let tenants with leases stay until the lease ends, except that a lease can be ended on 90 days' notice if the unit is sold to a purchaser who will live there. A tenancy is bona fide only if it was arm's-length, at a rent not substantially below market (unless subsidized), and not held by the former owner or the owner's spouse, child or parent. State or local laws that give tenants more protection still apply, as do extra protections for tenants with housing choice vouchers.
• Buying at the sale vs. later. If you buy at the foreclosure sale, those obligations fall on you. If you buy later from the lender, ask what leases exist and what notices were served, because you generally take the property subject to existing tenancies and your state's landlord-tenant law.
• Former owners. Removing a former owner who stays after a sale requires your state's court process. Changing locks, removing belongings or cutting utilities to force someone out is unlawful self-help eviction in many states and can expose you to damages.
• Negotiated move-outs. Many buyers offer a written "cash for keys" agreement: the occupant receives money and time to move in exchange for leaving on an agreed date in an agreed condition. It is often faster and kinder than litigation, but it should be voluntary, documented and reviewed by an attorney.

If you cannot see inside an occupied property or do not know who lives there and on what terms, price that in as extra time, legal cost and repair contingency.

Troubled commercial assets

Commercial distress usually comes from the capital structure as much as the building: a loan that matures when the property cannot support a new loan at current rates, falling occupancy, rising expenses or a capital project nobody funded. These assets change hands through owner sales, note sales, receivership sales, lender REO sales and recapitalizations in which new money comes in as equity or preferred equity.

In KBRA's September 2026 report on its rated universe of U.S. private-label CMBS, the 30-plus-day delinquency rate was 7.7% and the "distress rate" (delinquent loans plus current loans in special servicing) was 10.3%, with office at 17.6%. That is one slice of commercial lending at one point in time, and a high distress rate in a sector does not make any particular building cheap. In episode 700, Omar Khan of Boardwalk Wealth discusses what happens when aggressive underwriting meets higher interest rates, why buyers should be wary of rosy broker projections, and how overleveraged owners can create opportunities for disciplined operators. For one operator's approach to distressed multifamily and neighborhood retail, see Distressed Multifamily & Retail Investing.

Commercial due diligence adds items a house purchase does not:

• Leases. Verify the rent roll against leases, tenant estoppel certificates and payment history. Whether leases survive a foreclosure depends on the lease terms, recorded subordination, non-disturbance and attornment agreements (SNDAs) and state law.
• Environmental risk. Buyers commonly commission a Phase I environmental site assessment; EPA recognizes the ASTM E1527-21 standard as satisfying the "all appropriate inquiries" process that can preserve federal liability protections for purchasers.
• The debt. Loan documents, recourse provisions, reserves and any special servicer's process shape what is possible and how long it takes; commercial loans fall outside the consumer servicing protections described earlier.

Due diligence when information is incomplete

Distressed deals rarely give you full information, so due diligence means verifying what you can and pricing what you cannot.

Valuation

Start with two numbers. The after-repair value (ARV) is what the property should sell for once fixed, based on recent comparable sales of renovated homes nearby. The as-is value is what an ordinary buyer would pay today in its current condition. Investors who look only at ARV tend to mistake the cost of renovation for a bargain. Use sold prices, not asking prices, adjust for real differences (size, layout, lot, condition, location), and be skeptical of comps from a hotter market period.

Inspection

Match your inspection to your access. With full access, bring a general inspector and specialists for the expensive systems: roof, foundation, sewer line, electrical, plumbing, HVAC and any sign of moisture or mold. With exterior-only access, assume the worst plausible interior and widen your contingency. For homes built before 1978, EPA's renovation rule requires anyone paid to disturb painted surfaces to be certified and trained in lead-safe practices, and EPA says the rule also applies to landlords and house flippers doing the work themselves. Some states run their own versions of the program.

The line between cosmetic and structural problems matters most. In episode 694, Jeff Emalaba describes losing more than $11,000 on a North Carolina duplex after paying a non-refundable due-diligence fee, earnest money, an inspection and an appraisal, only for the inspection to uncover foundation, structural and undisclosed electrical problems. He frames cosmetic fixes such as paint, flooring and landscaping as where value is often created, and structural red flags as the reason to walk away. The episode also covers keeping earnest money refundable during due diligence, which is worth negotiating where the seller allows it; auctions usually will not, and REO sellers set deposit terms in their own addenda.

Title and liens

Order a title search before you commit money. Distressed properties tend to carry extra claims: second mortgages, HOA liens, mechanics' liens, judgments, municipal code-enforcement liens and unpaid taxes. Lien priority decides which survive. In general, a foreclosure sale can wipe out properly notified liens junior to the loan being foreclosed, while senior liens stay attached, and property tax liens usually carry special priority. The exceptions are state-specific (Nevada, for example, gives up to nine months of unpaid HOA assessments priority over the first mortgage), which is why a local title professional should read the report. Also confirm whether you can get title insurance: a policy is normal on REO and short sale purchases, but buyers at some foreclosure sales cannot get one until a redemption period runs out or a title defect is cured.

Financing, costs and exits

Financing constraints

Condition and timing limit your financing. Standard mortgages generally require a property that appraises and meets minimum standards, which many distressed homes do not. The HUD Homestore FAQ, for example, labels homes needing more than $10,000 of repairs as uninsured: they cannot get an FHA-insured loan unless a 203(k) renovation loan is arranged, and HUD's FHA handbook allows that on HUD homes only for owner-occupants and eligible nonprofit or government buyers, not investors. Auctions usually require cash or certified funds quickly. Investors therefore lean on cash, lines of credit, private lenders and hard money loans, which are faster and more flexible but cost more and run short terms, so every delay raises your costs. Line up financing and proof of funds before you bid, and ask what your lender will not fund (some avoid occupied properties or title problems).

Renovation budgets

Build the budget from a written scope and contractor bids, not a per-square-foot guess. Include permits, debris removal, utility reconnection fees, code corrections the city may require once permits are pulled, and lead-safe work if it applies. Then add a contingency sized to how much you could not see: modest with full inspection access, much larger with none.

Carrying costs

Every month of ownership costs money: loan interest, property taxes, insurance, utilities, HOA dues, lawn care, security and winterization. Call your insurance agent before closing. The NAIC notes that many homeowners policies have a vacancy clause and might not pay claims if a house is vacant for 60 days or more, so ask whether the property needs a vacant-dwelling or builder's risk policy, or a vacancy endorsement, while it sits empty or under renovation. Estimate a realistic hold time, including possession, permits, construction and sale, then add a cushion.

Plan the exit

Decide how you will get out before you decide how much to pay. The common exits:

• Renovate and resell to an owner-occupant. Depends most on ARV, renovation execution and the resale market when you finish.
• Renovate and rent, often refinancing once the property is stabilized. Depends on rent, operating costs and whether a lender will refinance at the value you expect.
• Resell as-is after solving the hard part. Sometimes the value you add is legal or logistical (clearing title, resolving occupancy) rather than physical.
• Wholesale or assign the contract to another investor. Licensing and disclosure rules vary by state; our wholesaling guide covers the trade-offs.
• For notes: a reperforming loan, a modification, a payoff, a deed-in-lieu, a foreclosure, or resale of the note.

A sound distressed deal works through at least two exits under conservative numbers. If only one exit works, and only at an optimistic ARV, the price is too high.

Does the discount cover the uncertainty? A decision framework

The question is not "how far below market is this?" but "does the price leave room for everything this deal will cost, plus a margin for what you cannot verify yet?" One way to write that down:

Required discount from ARV = repairs + repair contingency + carrying costs + buying costs + possession costs + selling costs + profit and risk margin

Maximum price = ARV − required discount

Buying costs include closing and title costs plus any loan points and lender fees. Two refinements keep the formula honest. First, size the contingency, hold time and possession costs to the uncertainty of the specific deal; that is where an auction differs from a listed REO. Second, compare your maximum price with the as-is value. The gap between those two numbers is the true distress discount you need; the rest of the discount from ARV (ARV minus the as-is value) is what any ordinary buyer already gets for taking on the renovation, not a bargain.

Hypothetical example: the same house as an REO listing and at auction

This is a made-up example with round numbers chosen for illustration, not typical market figures. A single-family house has an ARV of $300,000 based on recent renovated comps, and a contractor's base repair estimate is $45,000. Carrying costs (interest, taxes, insurance, utilities and upkeep) are $2,500 a month in both scenarios, held constant for simplicity even though a lower purchase price would mean somewhat less interest. Buying costs are $5,000 (closing, title and loan fees), selling costs are 7% of the sale price, and the investor wants a profit and risk margin of 10% of ARV. A title search found no liens that would survive the purchase, and the state has no post-sale redemption period; if either were not true, a title and legal reserve and a longer hold would lower the maximum price further.

• REO: the house is vacant and fully inspected, so the investor adds a 15% repair contingency and expects a six-month hold from purchase to resale.
• Auction: the house is occupied and there is no interior access, so the contingency doubles to 30%, the expected hold is nine months, and $6,000 is set aside for possession (legal costs or a negotiated move-out).

The arithmetic: $45,000 + $6,750 + $15,000 + $5,000 + $0 + $21,000 + $30,000 = $122,750, and $300,000 − $122,750 = $177,250. For the auction: $45,000 + $13,500 + $22,500 + $5,000 + $6,000 + $21,000 + $30,000 = $143,000, and $300,000 − $143,000 = $157,000.

Now compare with the as-is market. Suppose similar houses needing similar work sell to ordinary buyers for about $190,000. The REO only needs to be bought about $12,750 (6.7%) below that as-is value; the auction needs about $33,000 (17.4%) below it, because the buyer is taking on more risk. If the auction's opening bid is $165,000, the house is 45% below ARV but only about 13% below the as-is value, and it still fails the test: even if nobody bids higher, spending the full contingency leaves a projected profit of $22,000, $8,000 short of the margin the investor set.

You may have heard of the "70% rule": maximum price = 70% of ARV minus repairs. It is a shortcut version of this formula that bundles every other cost and the margin into a fixed 30% of ARV. Here it gives 0.70 × $300,000 − $45,000 = $165,000, the same as the opening bid that just failed the test. That is more cautious than needed for the inspected REO ($177,250) and too generous for the auction with no access ($157,000). A fixed percentage cannot see how much uncertainty a particular deal carries.

Stress-test the deal

Next, check what happens when several things go wrong at once. Take the REO bought at its $177,250 maximum and assume the ARV comes in 5% low ($285,000), repairs run 20% over the base estimate ($54,000, more than the contingency covered), and the project takes one extra month (7 months, $17,500). Selling costs fall to $19,950 on the lower price. Profit becomes $285,000 − $177,250 − $5,000 − $54,000 − $17,500 − $19,950 = $11,300, down from the planned $30,000. Still positive, but thin: on its own, a further drop of about $12,150 (roughly 4%) in the sale price, another $11,300 of repairs or about four and a half more months of holding would wipe it out. If a deal only works when every estimate is right, the discount is not covering the uncertainty.

A checklist before you commit

1. Value: Do you have several recent, truly comparable sales for both the ARV and the as-is value?
2. Condition: How much of the building have you actually seen, and is your contingency sized to what you have not?
3. Title: Has a title professional told you which liens survive and whether the title can be insured?
4. Possession: Who lives there, on what terms, and what does your state's process require in time and cost?
5. Law: Do you know your state's foreclosure, redemption, equity-purchaser and landlord-tenant rules for this situation?
6. Money: Can you fund the purchase, the renovation and the worst-case hold without being forced to sell at a bad time?
7. Exits: Do at least two exits work at a lower ARV and a longer timeline?
8. People: Would you be comfortable if the owner or occupant described this transaction to a judge or a reporter?

If the honest answers leave too many blanks, the right price is lower, or the right move is to pass.

Frequently asked questions

Is a distressed property always cheaper than market value?

No. A foreclosure or REO is priced by the bidders and buyers who show up, and when competition is strong, little or no discount to the as-is value may remain. ATTOM reported that about one in every 3,569 U.S. housing units had a foreclosure filing in August 2026, and its CEO, Rob Barber, said volumes "remain well below historical norms." When fewer distressed properties come to market, more buyers may compete for each one. The discount has to be earned through analysis, not assumed.

Is distressed investing a good fit for beginners?

Parts of it can be. A listed REO or short sale that you can inspect, finance and insure, in a neighborhood you know, with mostly cosmetic work, is a reasonable first project. Foreclosure auctions, occupied properties, pre-foreclosure outreach and non-performing notes stack legal and timing risks on top of renovation risk and are easier to learn after a simpler deal or two. If you are just starting out, our beginner's guide covers the basics first. For exposure without running a project, some investors use funds that buy distressed assets (some are private offerings open only to accredited investors); our comparison of active and passive real estate investing covers what that route gives up and gains.

Is it ethical to buy from someone facing foreclosure?

It can be, when the owner understands the deal, has real alternatives and is treated honestly; a fast, certain sale does help some owners. Problems start with pressure, misleading promises, buy-back arrangements the owner cannot realistically complete, or prices that strip substantial equity from someone who does not understand the choice. State equity-purchaser laws exist for exactly those situations.

Distressed deals reward patience, local knowledge and conservative numbers more than speed. For conversations with investors who have worked through downturns, browse The Real Estate Investing Club Podcast, or compare notes with other investors in our free community on Skool.

This article is general education, not legal, tax or financial advice. Foreclosure, redemption, tenant-protection and equity-purchaser rules vary by state and change over time; confirm the current rules for your property with a licensed real estate attorney and title professional before you make an offer.

Sources

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, How does foreclosure work? (page last modified May 28, 2024)
• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Regulation X: 12 CFR 1024.41, Loss mitigation procedures and 12 CFR 1024.30, Scope (principal residence limit and small servicer exemption) (current regulation, accessed October 2026)
• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, What is a short sale? (page last modified February 12, 2024)
• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, For many struggling mortgage borrowers with home equity, selling their home could be an alternative to foreclosure (archived blog post, January 20, 2023; Black Knight data for Q3 2022)
• Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, CA 18-4: Restoration of the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act (June 22, 2018; law effective June 23, 2018)
• U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD Homestore FAQ (accessed October 2026), Mortgagee Letter 2025-13 (April 28, 2025) and FHA Single Family Housing Policy Handbook 4000.1, section II.A.8, HUD Real Estate Owned Purchasing (handbook last revised August 12, 2026)
• Freddie Mac HomeSteps, Freddie Mac First Look Initiative (accessed October 2026)
• The White House, Executive Order 14376, "Stopping Wall Street from Competing with Main Street Homebuyers" (signed January 20, 2026), published in the Federal Register as 91 FR 3023 (January 23, 2026)
• Congressional Research Service, The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (P.L. 119-101), report R49354 (September 17, 2026)
• ATTOM, Mid-Year 2026 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report (July 16, 2026; Q2 2026 timelines) and August 2026 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report (September 17, 2026)
• KBRA, CMBS Loan Performance Trends: September 2026 (September 30, 2026)
• Fannie Mae, Fannie Mae Announces Sale of Non-Performing Loans (August 10, 2023)
• Federal Trade Commission, Mortgage Relief Scams (September 2022)
• Cornell Legal Information Institute, 12 CFR 1015.2 and 12 CFR 1015.5 (Regulation O); 26 U.S.C. 7425, 26 CFR 301.7425-3 and 28 U.S.C. 2410; Wex entries Foreclosure (last reviewed November 2023) and Tax sale (last reviewed October 2021)
• Supreme Court of the United States, Tyler v. Hennepin County, No. 22-166 (decided May 25, 2023; via Cornell LII)
• Florida Legislature, Florida Statutes 501.1377 (2026); New York State Senate, Real Property Law 265-A; Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, Chapter 325N; Nevada Legislature, NRS Chapter 116, section 116.3116 (all accessed October 2026)
• United States Courts, Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Basics (accessed October 2026)
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Brownfields All Appropriate Inquiries and Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program (accessed October 2026)
• National Association of Insurance Commissioners, consumer insurance guidance including the vacancy clause (undated, accessed October 2026)