real estate gurus

[IceBergSLiM]

I saw an infomercial about "tax sales" where you can buy houses for like 1k-3k by just paying off the owed property taxes.

They claimed there are 1.8 million tax sale properties like this in the US and canada.

I know its a scam but I need clarification,

 

[EagleKeeper]

Originally posted by: IcebergSlim
I saw an infomercial about "tax sales" where you can buy houses for like 1k-3k by just paying off the owed property taxes.

They claimed there are 1.8 million tax sale properties like this in the US and canada.

I know its a scam but I need clarification,

If a government entity has a tax lien on a property, you can purchase that lien.
However, most of the properties may be rat holes, abandoned buildings, dug dens that were operated by slum lords, etc.


There may be one of two gems (which is what they show on the TV for suckers show).
Decent places that have a morgage, will get grabbed by the banks.


The scam is that you pay for listings that you can get from the local government for free by asking.

They are not going to filter out the quality of the place that is for sale.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Originally posted by: Common Courtesy

Originally posted by: IcebergSlim
I saw an infomercial about "tax sales" where you can buy houses for like 1k-3k by just paying off the owed property taxes.

They claimed there are 1.8 million tax sale properties like this in the US and canada.

I know its a scam but I need clarification,

If a government entity has a tax lien on a property, you can purchase that lien.
However, most of the properties may be rat holes, abandoned buildings, dug dens that were operated by slum lords, etc.


There may be one of two gems (which is what they show on the TV for suckers show).
Decent places that have a morgage, will get grabbed by the banks.


The scam is that you pay for listings that you can get from the local government for free by asking.

They are not going to filter out the quality of the place that is for sale.

So this is only valid if nobody is living in the home?

 

[boomerang]

If the home is up for tax sale, the owners have already been evicted. However, once the home is sold at tax sale, they have a period of time in which they can reclaim the house by paying the taxes and fees due. Kind of a crock, but nontheless how it is.

This is how it works in my state. I would think these laws would vary from state to state.

Also, I'm about 95% certain about my facts.

Where I live, these sales are posted in the newspaper. Legal notices. They give the address and you could check them out ahead of time prior to the sale. At least drive by and walk around the outside. I don't know if you can look around inside or not. The date and location of the sale are in the notice.

 

[eshtog]

Lol, when I saw these infomercials I started laughing. Why would the government sell you a house for 1-3k if they can sell it on the market for a lot more?

btw, I am a realestate agent

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Originally posted by: eshtog
Lol, when I saw these infomercials I started laughing. Why would the government sell you a house for 1-3k if they can sell it on the market for a lot more?

btw, I am a realestate agent

Thats the obvious question. THe other is why doesn't some eccentric billionaire buy all the properties.

 

[boomerang]

Originally posted by: eshtog
Lol, when I saw these infomercials I started laughing. Why would the government sell you a house for 1-3k if they can sell it on the market for a lot more?

btw, I am a realestate agent

Where I live, houses are on the market for years if they even sell. I am not exaggerating. Many homes up for tax sale do not even sell at tax sale.

Many are mortgage foreclosures too. In our area, banks or the government would be happy to get nearly anything out of the sale. Remember, a bank is responsible for upkeep and property taxes on the mortgage foreclosed home. By upkeep, I mean cutting the grass, shoveling the sidewalks, etc. Liability issues. They will have to keep up the property to keep HOA's happy too.

They don't want these homes and they've got plenty of them.

 

[boomerang]

Originally posted by: IcebergSlim

Originally posted by: eshtog
Lol, when I saw these infomercials I started laughing. Why would the government sell you a house for 1-3k if they can sell it on the market for a lot more?

btw, I am a realestate agent

Thats the obvious question. THe other is why doesn't some eccentric billionaire buy all the properties.

He might, if there were a bunch of adjacent properties in an area that he could have rezoned to suit his purposes. The ghetto wouldn't meet that criteria.

An eccentric billionaire isn't interested in renting out homes to the downtrodden masses. Who needs the headaches.

 

[CPA]

Originally posted by: IcebergSlim

Originally posted by: eshtog
Lol, when I saw these infomercials I started laughing. Why would the government sell you a house for 1-3k if they can sell it on the market for a lot more?

btw, I am a realestate agent

Thats the obvious question. THe other is why doesn't some eccentric billionaire buy all the properties.

In Houston, many lawyers wait at the court house for the new tax lien list and then snap up the properties.

 

[Demon-Xanth]

Originally posted by: boomerang
Where I live, houses are on the market for years if they even sell. I am not exaggerating. Many homes up for tax sale do not even sell at tax sale.

Many are mortgage foreclosures too. In our area, banks or the government would be happy to get nearly anything out of the sale. Remember, a bank is responsible for upkeep and property taxes on the mortgage foreclosed home. By upkeep, I mean cutting the grass, shoveling the sidewalks, etc. Liability issues. They will have to keep up the property to keep HOA's happy too.

They don't want these homes and they've got plenty of them.

Do you live in Detroit?

 

[alkemyst]

1) the government like banks is not setup to maintain property nor wants to be in a position of liability that an unoccupied property presents.

2) chances are you are not going to get anything free, but there is a lot of competition in buying these properties. Many places now require you to be there in person to view the listings. IMHO this only helps the pros that can simply wait in line or pay a kid to do so.

3) These properties are never really the model style homes they show on TV. Expect no furniture, some fixtures missing and usually a lot of work needed.

 

[911paramedic]

It's like buying a car that has been impounded for the fees, or an abandoned storage locker. If you pay the outstanding fees they are more than happy to get rid of the property.

They don't make money on property just sitting there with no taxes to collect, they would rather somebody buy it and start paying taxes.

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Originally posted by: 911paramedic
It's like buying a car that has been impounded for the fees, or an abandoned storage locker. If you pay the outstanding fees they are more than happy to get rid of the property.

They don't make money on property just sitting there with no taxes to collect, they would rather somebody buy it and start paying taxes.

how do you find out about these listings, cars, storage lockers and properties?

 

[boomerang]

Originally posted by: Demon-Xanth

Originally posted by: boomerang
Where I live, houses are on the market for years if they even sell. I am not exaggerating. Many homes up for tax sale do not even sell at tax sale.

Many are mortgage foreclosures too. In our area, banks or the government would be happy to get nearly anything out of the sale. Remember, a bank is responsible for upkeep and property taxes on the mortgage foreclosed home. By upkeep, I mean cutting the grass, shoveling the sidewalks, etc. Liability issues. They will have to keep up the property to keep HOA's happy too.

They don't want these homes and they've got plenty of them.

Do you live in Detroit?

I'm in a rural area between Detroit and Flint. Good guess.

I should say that the problems you read about here are really statewide. It's not just an urban problem. Of course our expatriate Canadian governor thinks raising taxes is the only answer.