Do Investors Actually Gain from a Lower Auction Price for Foreclosed Properties

Numerous studies have shown that the auction price of foreclosed properties is significantly lower than that if sold in a normal market. A recent study on Taipei real estate market suggests a figure of 17.2% to 20% for this price difference. Other studies also repeatedly point out the very high proportion of investors in bidding for the foreclosed properties. The two phenomena put together raise an ignored but we believe an interesting question- does the lower auction price provide investors an opportunity to earn a higher profit than investing in the normal properties? Most attention has been paid to the price difference at the time when properties are auctioned, but little attention to its consequences after auction. Investors will after all sell those auctioned properties later in a normal market. Datasets of property sales both in auction and normal markets are utilized. Properties that were auctioned and later sold in the normal market are identified, along with properties that were sold twice in the normal market during the record period. In view of the investment nature of foreclosed properties, the redecoration costs and relevant legal expenses before resale are considered. We find that the rate of return in investing between foreclosed and normal properties is different but only marginally, at around 2.5%. This result seems to be in conflict with the widespread view that investment on foreclosed properties often commands a substantial higher profit due to their lower price.