The Foreclosure Process in British Columbia

We have been doing some foreclosure work lately and I am always asked what the process is and how it works. The first thing you should know, in Canada, or atleast BC foreclosures rarely sell for much less than market value. The best you can do is 10 to 20% below market value. The banks won't even entertain low ball offers. So if you are looking for an insane deal, as sometimes happens in the US, it is simply not going to happen.

The process for financing is the same process you would go through if you were buying a nonforeclosure property. Nothing is different in the regard.

And this  is a little information on how the rest of it works.

When a party (you as the buyer) has expressed an interest in making an offer, your realtor or the selling agent will draft an offer, directed at the Vendor (usually one of the Mortgagees, as in  The Bank) At this point their realtor should confirm that the purchaser understands that although they will be negotiating with the vendor and a deal may be agreed on, there is still a possibility that, when the offer is presented to the courts, the offer may be subject to a sealed bid process by other purchasers.

Once the offer is made and the terms are agreed to, the Purchaser commences their Subject Period. If the purchaser removes its subjects, the offer will be presented to court.

In the courtroom, the process works as follows:

• The vendor’s lawyer presents the purchasers’ offer to the Judge, (in foreclosure proceedings they are referred to as Masters.)
• The Master asks if there are any other parties in the courtroom who would also like to submit an offer. If there is not, and the appropriate marketing has taken place and the price of the offer is market value, the Master will approve the sale. If there are competing offers in court the Master will instruct all parties, including the original purchaser to leave the courtroom and resubmit their final offer in a sealed envelope to the vendors lawyer.
• After these offers have been submitted, the Master reviews the offers and approves the best deal.

Here are some informational video's on foreclosures from my partner Ian Watt http://www.ianwatt.ca/Foreclosure-Court-Order-Sales-Videos

This the Technical information on how foreclosures work.

In British Columbia, it is the judicial sale process that involves Realtors most frequently. The petitioner or any of the respondents (i.e. 1st, 2nd or 3rd Mortgagee) can apply for a judicial sale, also known as a court-ordered sale, which will be carried out under the supervision of the court.