Tax lien/deed investing?

S

Stealth

Veteran XV
Anyone have experience investing in tax liens or deeds? The 12%-24% interest rates (based on state) makes it sound tempting, but I've also seen infomercial douches hopping on it and pitching it as "risk free investing!!!". There's no such thing as risk free investing, so I'm sure there's a lot more to this than meets the eye.

I've done a lot of research, but it's hard to find state specific experiences and information. My state (MA) does tax deeds as far as I know. I'm sure this market is saturated with major investors, which makes it harder for smaller guys to get in. I'm making very little interest on a decent sized bank account right now, so I'd like to know if anyone here has tried this out and if it's worth the time to study it.
 
Pats are in 1st!


i don't invest, so can't help you, but always appreciate a fellow masshole. lowell representing
 
If the tax lien goes unpaid and you end up with the property aren't you also stuck with the associated mortgages on said property?
 
Stealth said:
I used to work up there a few years ago. Elliot's damn near killed me.
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the hot dog place or is there a dam called elliots? we just moved from Dracut to lowell. I grew up in North Reading till High School and Tewksbury till USAF
 
ThrillKillKulT said:
the hot dog place or is there a dam called elliots? we just moved from Dracut to lowell. I grew up in North Reading till High School and Tewksbury till USAF
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The hot dog place. I'd go there with my co-workers sometimes. There's a few good places downtown too.
 
anomaly said:
vinyl square is in nocho

its where my poor friends lived :sunny:
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remember when that stupid fat cop used to get the traffic all fucked up everyday bitching people out in the intersection when they tried to edge out which was necessary to get through it. think his name was adams or some shit
 
I used to work for a company that invested in tax liens.

It's a shark tank that small investors should not attempt.

No amount of research will benefit you if bigger fish are in the sea.

Where I live (PBCounty, FL) the interest rate starts at 18% and there is a 5% penalty if the tax is unpaid after April 30.

Wealthy investors bid the interest rate down to zero on desirable properties just to get the 5% penalty. So the lien goes to the lowest bidder and the municipality gets all the interest. All that's left are undesirable properties that might not even be worth the amount of tax owed. Also, you typically have to buy 3-5 years worth of consecutive liens before the property changes hands. Professional investors have whole armies of researchers and mountains of cash.

In PBCty, there are usually a couple hundred thousand liens and 99.9% of them are gone in two days! The rest never sell. They aren't all homes, most are business properties and vacant land.
 
ThunderDawg said:
I used to work for a company that invested in tax liens.

It's a shark tank that small investors should not attempt.

No amount of research will benefit you if bigger fish are in the sea.

Where I live (PBCounty, FL) the interest rate starts at 18% and there is a 5% penalty if the tax is unpaid after April 30.

Wealthy investors bid the interest rate down to zero on desirable properties just to get the 5% penalty. So the lien goes to the lowest bidder and the municipality gets all the interest. All that's left are undesirable properties that might not even be worth the amount of tax owed. Also, you typically have to buy 3-5 years worth of consecutive liens before the property changes hands. Professional investors have whole armies of researchers and mountains of cash.

In PBCty, there are usually a couple hundred thousand liens and 99.9% of them are gone in two days! The rest never sell. They aren't all homes, most are business properties and vacant land.
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Exactly.

Big banks did/does this still. They sent their agents to the lien sales with certified checks in their briefcases for all types of amounts. I have only bought a few properties for the taxes owed.
 
ThunderDawg said:
In PBCty, there are usually a couple hundred thousand liens and 99.9% of them are gone in two days! The rest never sell. They aren't all homes, most are business properties and vacant land.
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So basically, the small time investors that claim to make a living from this are probably not making very much since the banks come in and clear these auctions out. Any decent property probably gets bid back up to market value or close to it I'd imagine?
 
Stealth said:
So basically, the small time investors that claim to make a living from this are probably not making very much since the banks come in and clear these auctions out. Any decent property probably gets bid back up to market value or close to it I'd imagine?
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That's about right. Depends on the county 'rules' for how the liens are handled. In my county, you use to be able to buy these, but not any more. Stupid.

The people you see on TV getting lots of houses are putting in shit-tonnes of work and research...driving, looking, everything just so they can get a property (maybe) at auction...because you need to know about the properties before you bid.

Yes, sometimes, the banks make mistakes and miss a property that is very decent, but that's the exception. Most of these are empty lots and worthless for one reason or another....empty or zoning issues or it needs a variance from city retards....
 
Banks do not buy tax liens. It requires too much work, and they just want free money. Plus, they can't make the tax lien squirm. Lawyers are big investors though.

It is easier to hit the Lottery than to buy a tax lien on desirable property and then keep the property. And the entire process from buying the first lien to foreclosing is well over 5 years, so, dreadfully long.

But again, an investor who comes to the courthouse steps with, say, ten million dollars, can buy a block of thousands of liens (a block is the preferred and necessary method) in a single bid.
 
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