The foreclosure market in Calgary isn`t as juicy as you might think - if you can`t get in contact with the owners before they go into foreclosure you won`t get much of a deal - maybe like 5-10% below market max and you cannot inspect (or sometimes even view!) listings. Also most of the foreclosure leads are very thin on equity right now and lenders arent giving them away like they are in the states. There is no `list of bank owned property` here... once a bank forecloses they are mandated by the courts to attempt to sell for the highest price possible and they have to show a proper marketing effort... so most end up on the MLS anyway or advertised in the paper for sale.
Even if you are able to get in contact with the owners they all want to stay in the property and do their darndest to do so - including running all possible refinancing options by different banks after they`ve talked to you
Most get refinanced if you can believe it.
There are however lots of motivated vendors and great deals on the open market. My advice would be to look and see if what you are after is available there - where you are much better protected and can get much better information on the property you`re interested in.
