Buying foreclosed homes: It’s so easy, a 14-year-old girl can do it.

Well, it’s not really that easy, however, a young entrepreneurial Florida teenager, Willow Tufano, did indeed invest in a distressed property along with her mother. The two-bedroom home, originally valued at $100,000 several years ago, was available for a bargain-basement price of $12,000.

It was a deal that even a middle school student couldn’t ignore, according to a recent NPR.org article.

Willow offered to put up half the purchase price with money that she had earned selling items from foreclosed homes on CraigsList.com, which makes her about $500 per month. Her mother, a distressed real estate agent, covered the difference. The pair then fixed up the place and rented it for $700 month, meaning that in just two years the small investment will begin to turn a tidy profit.

And by the time Willow turns 18 years old, at which time she intends to buy her mother out, the property will likely have quite a bit of built-up equity.

It goes to show that even just a little bit of initiative, combined with a professional/motherly assistance, can go a very long away in this market. No high school diplomas required.

To check out foreclosed homes for sale in Florida or anywhere else in the United States click here.

Foreclosure.com is extending Black Friday throughout the month of December!

We are so grateful for our newsletter readers and website visitors. We started Foreclosure.com more than a decade ago with the goal of making it the number one-ranked online destination for distressed property listings.

And here we are, 13 years later, thanking you for helping us make that vision a reality.

To commemorate the holiday season this year, we are excited to announce a treasure trove of our most generous money-saving opportunities ever, which we designed especially with you in mind. Enjoy extended free site membership, discounted foreclosure and short sale educational programs and much more.

As always, we also invite you to check out the myriad free tools available on our site to help make your foreclosure and short sale searches a success. It would be just silly to miss our free On Demand webinars, free foreclosure listing alerts and everything else that we offer at absolutely no charge.

The November 2011 edition of Foreclosure.com’s free educational newsletter, “Investment Exchange,” is now available, which will help you uncover the unbelievable wealth that might just be waiting for you right around the corner — literally — thanks to an unprecedented package of discounted resources.

We’ve never offered such an amazing bundle of deals and zero-cost learning opportunities to kickstart the real estate investment careers of our website visitors. So, take advantage of the free, money-saving offers that we are gifting to you this holiday season before it’s too late.

And well before all the New Year “resolutioners” flood the market.

To read this month’s free educational newsletter from Foreclosure.com and cash-in on our limited-time holiday offerings CLICK HERE.

Abandoned, empty homes apparently do more than attract illegal squatters and vandals.

Foreclosed homes in Las Vegas, Nevada, and elsewhere are “going to pot,” literally, according to the Los Angeles Times. Marijuana “grow houses” are no longer set up in the seedy outskirts of society, but rather nestled among well-to-do, albeit distressed, neighborhoods.

And the nationwide housing crisis is apparently one of the many factors fueling the “pot home problem.”

William Sousa, a criminologist at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, explains:

“You can’t have crime without opportunity. And all those empty homes present an opportunity for criminal activity.”

“Sin City” and its surrounding area has been hit exceptionally hard by the downturn in real estate, ranking among the most troubled markets/states in the United States since it began several years ago.

And when growers/dealers can pick up a nice (relatively) new five-bedroom, 2,600 sq. ft. home in a Las Vegas suburb for more than 60 percent less than market value (this is just an example, NOT a marijuana grow house), while making making millions off a grow operation in six months or less, it’s no surprise, really.

It’s important to note that this is not an isolated problem that affects just Las Vegas. Therefore, if you suspect suspicious illegal activity is taking place at a house (or houses) near you, be sure to share your concerns with local authorities.

The 2011 real estate season may be mercifully winding down, but its investment scene continues to heat up.

If you ever dreamed of investing in a short sale, foreclosure, tax lien or any other type of distressed real estate situation, preparation is the key to success. And the sooner you get up to speed on whatever money-making plan you intend to hatch, the better it will be for your bottom line (savings or profit).

Even in this market climate, in which inventory is high and prices are at rock bottom, you can’t afford to be caught unaware.

It’s all about staying on top of what’s new and what’s changing in the real estate investment arena. That way, when that perfect property lands in your lap — the one that could be your forever home or your next big investment windfall — you’ll be ready to take action and scoop it up before someone else does.

The October 2011 edition of Foreclosure.com’s free educational newsletter, “Investment Exchange,” is now available, which shows you how to get your real estate investment career rolling right now.

New Year’s Eve is right around the corner and you know what that means: Real estate resolutions. Seize the opportunity to get rich with distressed real estate right now before the thousands of well-intentioned “resolutioners” crowd the competition pool come January 2012.

To read this month’s free educational newsletter from Foreclosure.com CLICK HERE.

What is foreclosure? Foreclosure.com Director of Education, Linda Yates, talks about the foreclosure process in the video above, as well as how it’s different everywhere, depending on in which state you live and the laws (non-judicial or judicial) in place. From start to finish, Linda provides a high-level overview of the foreclosure process and the various stages included in it. She also explains the terms Lis Pendens, Real Estate-Owned (REO), Sheriff’s sale and other key words that are common in the foreclosure process.

This morning I was speaking with the head of our data team when he mentioned several listings that he has seen reduced in price by as much as 80 percent over the last year or so. Right now represents a truly great opportunity to find amazing deals.

Sometimes it just takes patience.

As we researched these particular deals, we noted that there were multiple offers throughout the listing process. If the offers were rejected, and the homes would be re-listed, the price would be reduced about six weeks after it hit the market again.

Patience and the discipline of patience is where money can be made, or saved, for that matter.

That blend of risk taking and waiting can only be achieved by practice and knowledge. First you need the knowledge and then the practice. The application once these two key ingredients are combined is where wisdom is gained.

Have you ever noticed that change both positive and negative occur line upon line and precept upon precept? Taking an action, even if it’s small, takes you in a direction. From there, you can always change course, but taking an action is where it begins.

Long-term perspective can be a fruitful practice and the virtue of patience is real.

To check out (and monitor) listings in your target market be sure to check out Foreclosure.com today. You can “save” properties of interest and watch them, as well as their descending prices, until you are ready to make your patient move.

Technology is a beautiful thing. It can also be stressful and confusing, if you’re a little late to the game and unsure of where to start.

Apps, smart phones, iPads and other innovations are all the rage these days. Real estate agents, sellers, buyers and investors are all taking advantage of the latest technology to expedite the marketing and sales of homes at seemingly every turn.

But with the competitive market flooded with so many products, services and short cuts, it can actually hamper your home search rather than make it smoother … and cheaper.

The August 2011 edition of Foreclosure.com’s free educational newsletter, “Investment Exchange,” is now available, which teaches you which technological gadgets are worth the effort of getting to know and how to put them to work so you can save time and make money faster.

We’re also very excited to tell you about a 100 percent free opportunity to learn all about integrating technology into your investment strategies quickly and easily. It’s a crash course in the essential technological tools that, when used correctly, promise to make a real difference in your bottom line.

Learn about the most innovative and intuitive technological tools that will make finding, purchasing and profiting from distressed properties easier than ever before.

To read this month’s free educational newsletter from Foreclosure.com CLICK HERE.

If you can afford it, of course.

Home prices today in your area are likely the cheapest they have been in years. Mortgage rates, too, are hovering around all-time lows. Meanwhile, the cost to rent is around the same it has been and will likely grow year-after- year.

In fact, since 1986 it’s never been this cheap to own a house as compared to the cost of renting.

Mark Zandi with Moody’s Analytics explains the long-term benefits of owning rather than renting:

“I think the arithmetic is such that if you plan to live in your home five or more years, then you should really consider buying a single-family home in most parts of the country at this point in time. Prices have fallen so far, that single-family housing now is very, very attractive; very affordable [...] and it’s now even attractive relative to renting.”

Several buyers are still waiting for the market to hit “bottom.” Those folks might miss the boat entirely … especially if they are in financial positions and personal situations to invest in a home right now.

The fact that not more people are “jumping in” has many housing experts “puzzled,” thinking that a monumental shift in buyer behavior is underway. One theory is that younger professionals are opting to spend their money renting condominiums and apartments in expensive cities — where “homes” are virtually obsolete — until their futures are more certain.

Whatever the case may be, the fact of the matter is that there are incredible real estate deals available throughout the nation. And most of them can be found on Foreclosure.com right here.

Catch them while you can.

That’s the opportunistic approach that many investors in major real estate markets such as Detroit, Mich., Las Vegas, Nevada, Miami, Fla., Phoenix, Ariz., and Tampa, Fla., are taking as home prices plunge at or below 2002 levels.

Foreclosed homes and other discounted distressed deals are being “snapped up” with a quickness, “forcing down” collective home prices and “thinning the supply of homes” by as much as 13 percent, according to BusinessWeek.com.

In fact, the report reveals that 35 percent of previously-owned homes purchased in March 2011 were done so with cold-hard cash, indicating that investors are hoping to buy low today and sell high someday in the future.

Mike Shannon, an agent who specializes in Detroit-area foreclosures, marvels at the recent surge in buyer activity:

“It’s like a feeding frenzy when a home goes on the market now. We’re getting a few dozen offers on some homes in a matter of days.”

If you’re not interested in “swimming with the sharks” or just don’t have cash at your disposal to compete with investors, remember that there are several programs such as Fannie Mae’s “First Look” that give traditional buyers the first crack at scoring a fantastic foreclosure deal.

To search foreclosed homes for sale in your area today free for seven days check out Foreclosure.com … before it’s too late.