Foreclosure sales go from courthouse steps to online

Sarasota, Florida - As foreclosure filings continue to rise at more than 1.9 million cases nationwide, county clerk's offices are deep in paperwork. Some say they can't keep up.

Florida's foreclosure estimates top 100,000. Some counties are looking for more efficient and user-friendly ways to get these foreclosed properties sold.

Sarasota County has signed on to software that allows investors to bid online. Realforeclose is being launched July 14^th. On Tuesday, the county gave hungry investors a free training class to learn how to navigate the new web site.

Barb Donaldson is looking to buy a foreclosed home for herself. She signed up for the class. "This gives us extra knowledge. It's invaluable for us," says Donaldson.

Jackie Phifer invests in foreclosed and refurbishes them for resale. She says the website saves buyers lots of time and leg work, "Normally you have to pull the tax website, go to the tax collectors, check zillow.com, the property appraiser's office... Now you just click, click, click. Just abut anybody can do this."

"We don't have to go to the courthouse or leave work. We put in a bid either we get it or we don't get it no waiting around," says Donaldson.

Lloyd McClendon's company Realauction.com developed the software used by nearly a dozen Florida counties overwhelmed by hundreds of foreclosure filings each month.

"There are fantastic deals to be had for anyone looking at foreclosures. They should not worry about the software part of it. Even a novice user can be up and running in a few minutes."

Anyone can register on the site. Interested buyers must deposit money into the county account for bidding use. Each property purchased requires a five percent deposit.

To view the properties, click on the calendar to see what properties are up for auction. July 14^th will have 30 properties set for auction and on the 15^th there are 24. The site offers links to help research each one.

"You want to see recent tax history click on tax collectors link," illustrates McClendon.

Other links to use as research tools include property appraiser, zillow.com, street map, satellite map and final judgment on a case.

McClendon says the system also protects bidders from sniping during the two minute long auction.

"Any bids come in with less than 30 seconds left in auction, it extends the auction by one minute and gives everyone a chance to see what the new high bid is."

Realauction.com also allows for a proxy bid. McClendon says investors place a bid prior to the auction and then the system continues to bid for them at 1 dollar over the last bid up until it reaches their highest bid.

The investor does not have to be on line during that time. If the bidding stops before it reaches an investor's proxy bid he or she wins that property at the lower price.

The software also lets the bidder know if they have the highest bid.

"One investor said cash is king. These have to be paid in cash," says McClendon. All purchases are paid for by the end of that business day.

Sarasota County officials hope the online service will help handle the more than 800 foreclosures filed each month and help drive up property values.

"Hopefully more bidders means higher bid price for the plaintiff who has the lien and the defendant," says Karen Rushing, Sarasota Clerk of the Circuit Court.

Her are the numbers of foreclosures according to Foreclosure.net: Hillsborough has more than 1,400 cases, Pinellas and Polk have topped 1,000 and Manatee County has nearly 500 foreclosures.