Vacant Home...Who Owns It?
I pass several vacant, boarded up homes every day.
How can I find out who the owner is so that I can maybe make an offer? Some aren't in terrible shape....perfect for a rehabber.
Thanks for all of your expertise!
I always start by calling the city or county and ask for the property tax statement name and mailing address. You can send them a letter...
Phone books may give you a telephone number and neighbors seem to prove helpful. It depends on how far you want to dig.
Here is a general blanket statement I post from time to time since this topic comes up quite a bit....
Some of my best deals have come from these sort of dead leads. I have made a lot of $$$ off these sort of leads since no body else can find them. If none of my competition can get a hold of the homeowners quite quickly then that means I have a better chance of getting a jump on the deal. Granted there have been a few times where I have tracked the owners down of these dead leads and they were not ready to sell but 6 months to a year down the road they have called me back interested in selling. So the work is not entirely in vein.
Here are the steps I take when tracking down owners:
1. After bird-dogging the area I look up the owners on my local County Appraisal District, CAD website.
2. Search www.Anywho.com for a phone number to call them. If that does not work then I mail them a letter inquiring about the vacant property.
3. If still no luck or the letter comes back undeliverable I then look them up at www.knowX.com. But I wait until I have a list of dead leads to do this. For $29.00 a day you can do unlimited searches for a full day. The downside to this site is that I cannot find unlisted #'s here.
4. If still no luck or the letter comes back undeliverable I then look them up at http://www.thecreativeinvestor.com/modules.php?name=Services. We will search unlisted information and non public records to come with information so you know you are getting accurate information and they are cheap to, $24.95.
HTH
Check with your county tax assessors or tax collectors office for the owner of record. If all else fails knock on a neighbors door and ask if they know the owner and their address and phone number.