Buyer Guide • Palm Beach County, FL
Foreclosure Homes for Sale in Palm Beach County, Florida
The short answer
Foreclosure homes for sale in Florida are everywhere online, but in Palm Beach County the real list is short. Our MLS feed shows 44 bank-owned (REO) houses and townhouses for sale, 36 short sales and 9 listed as in foreclosure. Bank-owned houses that sold in the last 12 months went for a median of $500,000 (Flexmls, pulled 2026-10-17).
By
Brian Wilder · Keller Williams Realty · In business since 1996 · Flexmls data pulled October 17, 2026
Foreclosure homes for sale in Palm Beach County right now
Foreclosure homes for sale in Florida are everywhere online, but in Palm Beach County the real list is short. Our MLS feed shows 44 bank-owned (REO) houses and townhouses for sale, 36 short sales and 9 listed as in foreclosure. Bank-owned houses that sold in the last 12 months went for a median of $500,000 (Flexmls, pulled 2026-10-17).
"Brian, can you get me a foreclosure?"
I can. Here's what I tell everybody first.
Out of about 4,000 houses for sale in Palm Beach County today, roughly 60 are bank-owned, short sales or in foreclosure. That's about 1 in 65.
You're not looking for a deal hiding in plain sight. You're looking for a needle.
Foreclosures by the numbers
Distressed houses and townhouses for sale in Palm Beach County (Flexmls, pulled 2026-10-17)| Type of sale | Houses | Townhouses | Total | Lowest asking price, houses |
|---|
| Bank-owned (REO) | 29 | 15 | 44 | $95,000 |
| Short sale | 24 | 12 | 36 | $265,000 |
| In foreclosure (owner still selling) | 8 | 1 | 9 | $395,000 |
Among the 29 bank-owned houses, Boynton Beach, West Palm Beach and Lake Worth carry the most. The lowest bank-owned townhouse is $132,000 in West Palm Beach. The lowest asking price on the list is a South Bay house at $95,000, so double-check that listing's condition and access before you get attached to the number.
And here's what actually closed over the last 12 months, houses only:
Distressed house sales in Palm Beach County, Oct 17, 2025 to Oct 17, 2026 (Flexmls)| Type of sale | Houses sold | Median sold price |
|---|
| Bank-owned (REO) | 85 | $500,000 |
| Short sale | 35 | $427,500 |
Bank-owned sales were spread across the price range: 28 under $400,000, 23 from $400,000 to $599,999, and 34 at $600,000 and up. The lowest bank-owned house sale in that window was $70,000.
Is a foreclosure really cheaper?
Now let me shoot you straight, because this is where people get hurt.
Banks sell what they took back, and in Palm Beach County that includes plenty of good houses in good neighborhoods. Thirty-four of the 85 bank-owned houses that sold in the last year went for $600,000 or more. A bank that owns a $700,000 house is not going to hand it to you for $400,000.
So the honest answer: sometimes cheaper, sometimes not, and never automatically. Compare a bank-owned house to the sales on its own street, not to a headline price.
What a foreclosure really costs
The price is only the first number on a distressed house. Here's what I'd want checked before you write.
Bank-owned (REO): the bank usually sells as-is and adds its own addendum to the contract, and that addendum can override parts of the standard contract. Read it before you sign. Get a full inspection, a four-point and a wind mitigation report anyway, because an empty house hides things.
Short sale: the seller owes more than the price, so the seller's lender has to approve your deal. You can have a signed contract and still wait weeks on a bank you never talk to. If you have a lease ending or a rate lock, plan for that.
In foreclosure: the owner is still selling, but the clock is running on them. The deal can change if the foreclosure moves faster than the sale.
For any of the three: insurance on the exact address, the roof age, the flood zone on the parcel, and a title search that looks hard at liens. On a house that's been through a foreclosure, open permits and unpaid bills can follow the property.
That's what The Wilder Way Home is for. It's our free buyer's guide: what to get in writing, what to inspect, and the order to do it in, so a bargain doesn't turn into a repair bill.
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How to actually catch one
With 44 bank-owned houses and townhouses in the whole county, the good ones don't sit. Here's how I'd set you up.
Get your preapproval done first, in writing, and keep it current. A bank picking between offers looks at proof of funds before it looks at your story.
Know your numbers cold. If you need a house under $400,000, the bank-owned list is short: 28 closed under that price in a full year.
Widen the net to regular listings in the same cities. West Palm Beach, Boynton Beach and Lake Worth carry most of today's bank-owned houses, and a priced-right standard listing next door can be the better buy.
Let me set your search to send you every new bank-owned and short sale listing the day it hits. My site can get that specific.
Selling your current home too?
Plenty of foreclosure shoppers already own a place. A condo you've outgrown. A house you'd sell if the right one came along.
On a bank-owned or short sale house, timing is the hard part. Banks set their own clocks. The Wilder Way to Sell and Buy is how we line up your sale so you're ready when the bank is.
Start with a free value on your current home.
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Foreclosure homes for sale in Florida: FAQ
How many foreclosure homes are for sale in Palm Beach County?+
Our MLS feed shows 44 bank-owned houses and townhouses for sale in Palm Beach County today, plus 36 short sales and 9 listed as in foreclosure (Flexmls, pulled 2026-10-17). That's about 89 listings in a county with roughly 4,000 houses for sale. Condos are not included in those counts.
Are bank-owned homes in Florida cheaper than regular listings?+
Not automatically. Bank-owned houses in Palm Beach County sold for a median of $500,000 in the last 12 months, and 34 of the 85 sold for $600,000 or more (Flexmls, 2026-10-17). The Wilder Real Estate Group's free guide,
The Wilder Way Home, shows you how to compare a bank-owned house to its real neighbors, and you can reach Brian Wilder through the contact block below.
What's the difference between a foreclosure, an REO and a short sale?+
A short sale is an owner selling for less than the mortgage balance, with the lender's approval. "In foreclosure" means the owner is still selling while the lender's foreclosure case moves forward. An REO, or real estate owned, is a house the bank already took back and now sells itself, usually as-is.
Can you find bank-owned properties in Palm Beach County under $100,000?+
Almost never. The lowest asking price on a bank-owned house here today is $95,000, a South Bay listing, and the next lowest house is $190,000 (Flexmls, 2026-10-17). The lowest bank-owned house sale in the last 12 months was $70,000. Double-check any listing at that price for condition, access and what the bank will actually accept.
Can I buy an abandoned house in Palm Beach County?+
Only if its owner, or the bank that took it back, puts it up for sale. An empty house isn't for sale just because it's empty. If one in a neighborhood you like comes to market as a bank-owned or short sale listing, we can have it in front of you the day it lists.
Brian Wilder, Keller Williams Realty: 561-201-4717
Lucy Lopez (Espanol), Keller Williams Realty: 561-285-8809
Wilder Real Estate Group at Keller Williams Realty. Brian Wilder is a fifth-generation Palm Beach County resident and a second-generation agent, licensed since 1998. The Wilder Real Estate Group has been in business since 1996 and our team has closed more than 1,500 transactions across the county, through good markets and the foreclosure years too.
Market figures are from Flexmls (BeachesMLS) as of October 17, 2026 and change daily. Counts use the MLS Special Listing Conditions field for Palm Beach County houses and townhouses; condos and land are not included.
