I attended the RCBC Dream Buys Public Auction of foreclosed properties yesterday, February 28, 2009. I am making this recap of the public auction proceedings to give a first-hand account of what happens in a public auction of bank foreclosed properties, for the benefit of those who have not yet attended one and would want to know more about it.
The RCBC Dream Buys Auction was held at the Jade Palace, located at 106 Shaw Blvd, Kapitolyo Pasig City, Philippines. Since it was a Saturday, getting there was a breeze. Jade Palace is hard to miss. I arrived early and parking was hassle-free as valet parking was available. When I arrived at the auction area, I was greeted by the very pleasant staff from RCBC and was shown to the registration area. As advised by my broker (who handles the area of the property I was interested in), however, I waited for the last minute to register. Just to give a background, a couple of days prior to the auction, I inspected a number of properties in the same vicinity with my broker, and when she showed me a property that looked very promising, she mentioned that the previous owner’s sibling was already going to bid on it. I told her that if thats the case, then I don’t intend to bid on that property anymore as I believed that the previous owner’s family should get first crack to get this property. I felt it was the right thing to do. However, the night before the auction, I texted my broker and asked if I can attend the auction anyway just in case the previous owner’s sibling would change their mind or lose interest on the property. Of course she said I could attend and so I did. I just did not register immediately as I was still waiting for the previous owner’s sibling to show up and bid. Some of you might think I was hoping they would not show up. Nope, that never crossed my mind. However, I was not going to let such a great opportunity pass if ever they did lose interest in the said property.
During the auction proper, the pace was very relaxed and very friendly to first time bidders. The auctioneer handled the auction quite well without rushing the bidders, giving them a lot of time to outbid each other before banging his gavel to announce the winning bid. The atmosphere was very festive as people applauded after each time a property was sold to the winning bidder. I noticed there were some foreclosed properties that had no bidders, but there were also a lot of properties that had lots of bidders which resulted in very high winning bids, sometimes reaching more than Php500K higher than the minimum bid price. For a few lucky bidders, they were able to acquire the properties they were interested in at the minimum bid price because there were no other bidders. I was one of the lucky few who won their bids at the minimum bid price.
In retrospect, this was the 7th public auction of foreclosed properties I have attended, the 4th which I actually made bids, and this was the 2nd where I won my bids. I noticed that my nervousness was already gone and attending public auctions have somehow become routine to me. This is why I advice those who are new to foreclosure investing to start attending public auctions even if you have no intention to bid yet, provided you’d come with someone who is actually bidding (because you won’t be allowed inside without him/her). I assure you that your time would be well-spent. When the time comes for you to make your bid, it would be very easy.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my mailing list so you won’t miss any new updates. If your mailbox is getting full, you may also subscribe via RSS reader.
Hi Jay,
What are the best residential neighborhood in Metro Manila? Areas that are not affected by flood. I have been looking online for foreclosure property if possible in an upscale neighborhood.
Even if I look, I am really lost. I left the country when I was 16 yrs. old. Is there any website that you might be willing to share including website for online bidding.
Another thing, my mother owns a piece of land in Bagombong, Novaliches or Caloocan? It has a clean title, no tax arrears, and no tenants. My mother is considering selling but at the price that we want. Can you tell me how we can find out the real market value of the property so that no one can scam us? Do you know any reputable international website to post the sale of the property once we decide to dispose it. I want to do it myself.
Thank you very much.
Hi Jay,
I’m in the US right now and planning to come home next year to scout some foreclosed properties. Can you give me an idea on what percentage should be my offer on the listed price of properties.
My husband and I really want to venture into this investment and it would be my first. Your blog educates a neophyte like me.
Thanks for your time.
Hi Jay. Thank you for sharing your knowledge about foreclosures…
Jay,
I would also like to invest in real estate properties and i am new in this field. Can you give me some advise and can you send me the upcoming events regarding this matter?
Many Thanks and God bless…
Hi ADRC, would you want to attend a seminar to be conducted by Larry Gamboa, author of Think Rich Pinoy? You can check it out here: https://www.foreclosurephilippines.com/2010/11/how-an-employee-found-the-path-to-financial-freedom.html
wow i hope someone who is going to bid will take me. i so wanted to observe.
Hi jay.
I met a friend of yours in a Toastmasters meeting just this evening. Her name is April Eden. Forgot her last name. But she knows you. I was asking her a lot of questions on real estate investing. Hope I will meet her again so I can learn more. And you too! 🙂
Hi Peder,
Ah, you met Eden Alemanya! Nag toast masters nga siya and even Larry Gamboa mentioned that it would be a good idea for me to attend Toastmasters meetings. Maybe next year when I have more time freedom to do so.
Yes, I would also want to meet you one of these days!
Hi Jay.
Quezon City will have a public auction on tax delinquent real property on December 10, 2009 at 10am. I just saw the ad on a newspaper. My problem is I don’t have anyone to go with in the auction. This is my first time. And I am only eyeing on properties below ten thousand pesos. Hehe. Yun pa lang ang savings ko. Bata pa kasi ako.
Here’s my cellphone number in case we would have a chance to communicate in the future. 0916-765-1014.
If you are interested or anyone among your readers is interested in the listing of tax delinquent properties that will be auctioned on December 10, just send email me so I can send you a copy.
Thanks again. Good day.
Hi Peder!
Thanks for the heads up! I also saw the ad sa Philippine Star and I have just scanned it, medyo malaki nga lang yung file. If you can also send your copy, I would appreciate it, baka mas maliit siya. I’ll drop you an e-mail as well and continue discussing there. Thanks again!
Good luck sa auction on sa QC! Just make sure you do your due diligence, I’ll also create a guide on tax foreclosure investing which I’ll post in a day or two.
Hi Jay!
I finally have the time to read your posts after a while of knowing about your blog! It’s just wonderful. If you remember, I called (texted) you about meeting up or talking over the phone regarding possible partnership on real estate. Can you call or email me? 515-0238, 0928 5074655, [email protected].
Thanks!
Hi Bryan, yup, I remember but my phone got erased(again), drawback of having a 4 year old PDA. Anyway, will give you a call tomorrow. Thanks!
Hi Mitz, It depends a lot on the price range you are targeting. For example, if you are targeting properties with a selling price of 1M, and you intend to get the maximum loan to value ratio of 90%, then you need Php100K for downpayment plus enough money for repairs and other expenses like taxes CGT or CWT, holding costs(at least the first 2 months amortization) etc. I would say 200-300K would be enough for a 1M property that only needs 10% downpayment.
Hi Jay,
I haven’t attended a public auction yet. I’m not sure if they also have that in Cebu. For someone who wants to start investing in real estate, how much capital would one need? Just curious. I’ve been browsing through some of the properties and most of these exceed my budget. Would 200-300k be enough?
Hi Anonymous, you basically just need to bring your 25K show money in the form of cash or MC to attend a public auction. Of course you should only buy a property through auction if you have done your due diligence like doing the numbers to check if it is a good investment, inspecting the property, etc. Announcements are posted through classified ads and are also sent by banks to clients through e-mail. For tax foreclosures, these are posted at bulletin boards at the city halls. You can however get all of these from this blog. =)
hi,
i’m interested in getting into the business of purchasing foreclosed properties. just a few questions…how does one get invited to public auctions? where should we look for announcements? can anyone register for the auction? what/how much are the fees, if any? By show money, what exactly do they require (form/amount)? thanks thanks. i’m really new here, please help.
Hi Jay, thanks for the interest and for visiting my blog. I’m also interested in JV’s and I’ll give you a call asap so we can discuss further.
do you entertain joint venture (JV) project? For I’m looking for a lot for JV 10 hectares, it can go as far as provinces.
Thanks for the info.
0927-3485608 / 409-6751 (JAY MENES)
@jeffrey, thanks a lot! If you need any help, just let me know!
@teamchi, not sure if you received my e-mail pero I can’t come to the BPI auction. Year end closing na kasi sa office and I still have a lot of pending tasks, hirap talaga ng nasa rat-race pero konting tiis na lang. =)
@Javier, Thanks for visiting and I look forward to seeing you in upcoming auctions.
@teamchi, looks like marami nang pupunta, mukhang masaya ang auction nato!
I also plan to attend the BPI auction, makikiusyoso lang 🙂
congrats! i always wanted to take part in foreclosed property auctions. your blog will be of great help!!! thanks.
i also like these blogs:
Pinoy Money Talk
the earning student
Sir Jay congrats!!!
Been reading your every entry, till now i’m still looking for a property. Your blogs are such a big help! Wish you all the luck on your new property!
@ teamchi, I guess I was lucky an investor/broker was the one handling the area. I can learn a lot from her!
@Dragoro, I might attend if time permits, though I wish the auction was on a Saturday instead. As for the broker, it really helps to have one if you are just starting. Broker’s rarely work for the bank, they are just accredited, so they can handle multiple banks.
@Dinah, thanks!
Thanks for sharing this Jay! I was just telling my husband about this and he was very interested, Siempre, we will wait for more of your stories para matuto!
Goodluck!
Congrats on the new property Jay! I have it in mind to attend the march 12 auction because its only a stone’s throw away from our office. Will you be going too?
I didn’t know about it, but I was also thinking about the idea of getting a broker, though I wasn’t aware that that was a better avenue compared to scouting on my own. This emphasizes it. Is it advisable to get a broker working for a bank? Can I also inquire about properties that other banks are handling from my broker who for example works for another bank?
Once again thanks Jay 🙂
Now I get it :)Thanks!
@ Teamchi and Tyrone, thanks! For now, let’s just say that the property is somewhere in Rizal and it only needs very minimal repairs and painting. I’m thinking of flipping it for quick cash. I’ll let you in on the details once I turnover the property and i’ll also create a post about it so I can also share my learnings.
As for the broker, yeah I had a broker because she was the one accredited by the bank. It really is a lot better having a broker as you can ask anything with regards to the property and she can give you advice, especially since she herself invests in real estate and also has rental properties. It was also a coincidence that the broker assigned to me by the bank was also a bidder in the Marikina Tax foreclosure auction and we exchanged calling cards there, which is why she already knew that I was an investor. The bank will be giving her a commission for the sale. When I resell the property, I also gave her first crack at being my selling broker and I would be the one to give her a commission once she finds a buyer and the deal is closed. I think this is a start of a long business relationship with her.
Thanks Jonvex for visiting. Just let me know if Land bank has any new listings so I can post it here. By the way, would you want to exchange links? Nice blog!
Hi Lei, that’s too bad, di bale, marami pa namang susunod na auction. For now, the only upcoming auction is the the BPI Buena Mano auction on March 12. No announcements yet for other banks and also for tax delinquent auctions for Makati and San Juan. Don’t worry, if I get any info on new auctions, I’ll post it here. Thanks for visiting!
Wow, congratulations for winning the bid Jay! I was wondering what’s the location of the property and how much was your bid? If that’s ok for you to divulge.
Congratulations! If it’s ok with you can you share with us the property you won and what do you plan to do with it? Or maybe you can do that with a new post 🙂 Also you mentioned that you have a broker, but you are also a broker, right? I’m just curious how does that work, did you give your broker a commission for finding the property (which i doubt coz you know about the properties in the auction already hehe) or accompanying you to the property? Sorry for having many questions, just curious how it works and I was surprised that a broker can also have a broker. 🙂
Congratz jay! Hope you’ll have a good propit margin for that one! Btw, thanks sa support and I got a lot of inquiry because of your referrals. Good luck!!!
http://healthconsciousguy.blogspot.com/
I had my eye on one property in the last auction but wasn’t able to attend due to an emergency. Sayang lang nabenta pala ung property na gusto ko. When is the next auction besides the BPI one? I looked at the list and nothing caught my interest.