Zero Risk Real Estate: Creating Wealth Through Tax Liens and Tax Deeds

10 Rules for Qualifying Every Property

Once you get started researching properties, you’ll quickly get the hang of it and get a system down that works for you. To help you out, here’s a quick checklist of rules for qualifying each property that you consider. Follow these steps, and you will once again be looking at zero risk.

1. Once you receive the list of tax sale properties, immediately eliminate anything that is outside your budget, is located in the inner-city (rundown areas), or is outside your property type, meaning not residential.

2. Check the county’s assessed value on the property. Eliminate it if the lien amount is too high.

3. Check assessed value history, and land vs. improvement value ratios.

4. Verify the PID, and check the treasurer’s records for past tax payment history.

5. Check the Recorder’s records to see if any mortgages or other encumbrances are present.

6. Visit the online GIS system to verify parcel location, boundaries, and features, including improvements.

7. Compare GIS imagery with Google maps to confirm research and visit the property virtually.

8. Check value sites like Zillow and Realtor.com for value histories and sales or marketing efforts.

9. Perform a Google search on the address itself to locate any other information about the property or neighboring parcels.

10. Set a maximum bid budget for each item, based upon your research.