Struck Off Properties question
Assuming that you could find something worth buying on a county's struck-off property list, what does that entail? Is this right?--the property was already up at a tax lien sale and wasn't bought, so the county holds the certificate. So do you offer a bid to the county for the property, or do you have to pay off all the old taxes? And if the county accepts your bid, how do you make sure the property doesn't have other liens against it? My county said they could only research liens filed in our state. So would you go to a title company, and would they find ALL liens against the property, including those ofother states/countries/IRS, etc.? I'm so scared of getting stuck! Finally, can you turn around and sell the property? Thanks for any help!!!!
Hi Spot, like most things tax certificate, the answer to your question on struck off properties is yes, no, depends. It all depends on the state you are talking about and even the time of year!
In the six month period from October to May, I can and do walk into the Treasurer's office in any Oklahoma county and buy struck off liens directly, just for the back taxes. This is the cheapest way I know of to buy properties for back taxes.
If I waited until June, those same struck off properties would be sold at auction to the highest bidder.
In Florida, you choose struck off liens from the county and they then schedule and advertise an auction on those liens.
In Texas, it varies from one of their 200+ counties to the other. So you see, it depends.
You can get into big trouble listening to someone's general advice about tax liens. Get the specific answers to questions about the state and county you intend to invest in.