Growth Seen In Number Of Clueless Bidders At Court-Ordered, Online Foreclosure Sale Auctions Screwing Themselves Out Of Thousand$

In Southeast Florida, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports:

• More than a year after courthouse foreclosure auctions moved online in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties, bidders are still making mistakes, some worth tens of thousands of dollars.
• Novice investors who think they're getting great deals ultimately discover they've bought worthless second mortgages or other junior liens.
• "It happens every day," said Luis Valdeon, who publishes detailed reports for investors on homes to be auctioned in Broward and Miami-Dade counties. "People who get into this and don't know what they're doing will lose their [shirt] in 15 minutes."
• The errors could have been prevented had the investors spent roughly $100 each for title searches, auctions officials say. Though figures aren't available, complaints have intensified since online auctions opened bidding to more people, observers say.
• The courthouse auctions typically attracted a small group of about 50 participants, but now anyone with a computer can bid on a foreclosed property. Palm Beach County has more than 5,000 registered bidders worldwide, while Broward has nearly 18,000.

For more, see Novice investors can lose big money in online foreclosure auctions.