Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Louisiana Tax Sales

Although I want to discuss Louisiana tax sales, I fully intended to sit down, put pen to paper and do a follow up on one of my last post by providing you with a collection of tax deed lien information for my home state of Louisiana. I cut my tax foreclosure sales teeth at Louisiana auctions but had never put together the contact information for all sixty four (64) parishes. I was just about to do so when my semi silence was broken by a local news alert teaser.

The local news station was informing the world that a parish government tax sale auction had broken all attendance records. Of course they were spinning the increased interest as a response to the downturn in the national economy, with desperate people seeking opportunity, when they left for a commercial break, but would have pictures and a complete analysis of the surge behind tax sale later in the broadcast. For a brief moment I thought I was watching a late night tax sale infomercial and waiting to see the number to call.

Of course anyone that has paid any attention to Louisiana tax sales knows that an auction can run the full gamut; from a couple of local guys telling the sheriff what properties they want with the entire sale being over before you could finish your cup of coffee to a multi day event that attracts many institutional investors and beaucoup smaller investors putting you to sleep.

Anyway you have to love news stations trying to drum up advertising revenue. The economy affects them too.

Over the years I have attended this particular Louisiana tax sale religiously. It has a good number of quality properties that make great candidates for ultimate ownership. It’s a rural parish that has a lot of urban development which allows for the purchase of acreage that has the added attraction of sub divisional opportunities on the back end after acquisition. As if any additional incentive is required. Quieting title isn’t much of an issue as property changes hands via title confirmation proceedings on a regular basis. It’s well traveled territory for the legal community.

Although the news station dramatically overplayed the issue, the sale did kind of take on a circus atmosphere. The place was packed and there were a lot of newbie investors that were using the research stat requirement sheets that come straight from the latest tax sale investing seminar.

The fact that newbie investors were in attendance doesn’t bother me in the least. In fact I encourage it. They don’t affect how I conduct my investment strategies. But with all the interest that has been generated over Louisiana tax sales (all tax sales for that matter) and the influx of new players. It does have an effect on the industry overall. Let me explain by first giving you a very quick overview of how tax lien certificate tax sales are conducted in Louisiana.

Louisiana conducts their tax lien certificate tax sales (as opposed to tax deed tax sales) using a process that is a combination of random selection and bid down ownership. Typical of a random selection auction, an auctioneer will read the legal description and the taxes owed, and then randomly select a bidder willing to pay. That’s usually the end of the matter and the auctioneer moves on to the next property. However, on occasion one of the bidders not recognized by the auctioneer may speak up and offer to take a smaller portion than the whole to satisfy the taxes owed and a back and forth bidding may ensue. For the most part bidding down the property is the exception rather than the rule. There is a kind of unwritten rule; there is plenty for everyone and really no need to pay full price for less property. But it does happen and depending on the parish more so in some than others.

If your investment strategy is to purchase tax lien certificates for the statutory interest because you see them as a more secure investment and a better producer than the typical low interest CD you could purchase from you corner bank, then the influx of competition doesn’t really affect you. Your pre sale research consists of making sure the property does indeed exist and that it‘s not a dual assessment. The ratio of the cost of the tax lien certificate to the value of the property secured by the tax lien is so grossly slanted in your favor that the risk of losing money is almost nonexistent. Sure you could purchase something that has an environmental issue like an old gas station that had sunken tanks that leaked. 50 years from now some attorney is going to name you in a suit because you tax lien certificate shows up in the chain of title and they are looking for previous owners to pay for clean up. If you plan your life like that stay away from gas stations, industrial sites and toxic waste dumps. Maybe you should avoid Louisiana tax sales altogether if your view on investing via risk is so temperamental.

Now, if you are trying to gain full ownership then you research is quite exhaustive as you are searching for those few properties that have a good chance of not being redeemed and uncontested when you bring you conformation action. Walking into a Louisiana tax sale that is a packed room, can send you into a panic attack rather quickly if you have not laid the proper ground work. When the sheriff/auctioneer calls out the first couple of properties and 50 hands go up to get acknowledged as the winning bidder. It really doesn’t look like an auction as far as you are concerned it’s taken on the appearance of a tax sale lottery. Here you are on the day that all those hours of research are going to pay off. You have narrowed your prospects to a list that consists of a half dozen or so tax lien certificates that have a good chance to hit you a home run. The only obstacle you have now to overcome is how to get recognized when all those hands go up when your number is called. While it may appear that you have just entered the Louisiana tax sale lottery zone and all your hard work is about to go down the drain. It hasn’t. There really isn’t any reason that you shouldn’t walk away from that tax sale purchasing everything you came intending to buy.

Your lesson is to think about the dilemma in which you find yourself. You’re at a Louisiana tax sale. You know what you came for. The question is how you are going to get it. I’ll fill you in on a later post.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

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Thursday, June 25, 2009

Tax Lien Foreclosure

I’ve invested in tax liens and deeds throughout the country for over two decades. It’s almost second nature for me now. In all that time one of my biggest gripes is the terminology that’s used in different locals. I guess it’s to be expected. The title of this post is a perfect example of one of the most confusing terms used I can imagine. Google the term tax lien foreclosure and you will get 714,000 hits.

But when I hear the term I’m not quite sure what it means. My first thought is the process in a tax lien state where the redemption period has run and I am now in a position to perfect my ownership in a property secured by a tax lien. In Louisiana that action would either be a suit to quiet title or more commonly referred to as a suit to confirm title. The suit is a fairly simple filing that can become quite complicated if the previous owner appears and defends or actually institutes suit to annul the tax sale. Most tax lien certificate defenses revolve around the issue of notice or lack thereof to the previous owner or other interested party prior to the auction, as well as possession issues. The other avenue to perfect title is an action in monition. Which is basically clearing title by advertisement, a suit is brought and an advertisement is placed in the appropriate legal journal to notify previous owners that they must bring an action to annul or the title will be perfected. I can’t however say I ever heard either process referred to as a tax lien foreclosure.

You may possibly hear the term as it relates to the process by which the Internal Revenue Service enforces collection of taxes by auctioning off property that is seized with a tax lien for failure to pay taxes due. When dealing with immovable property there is almost always a redemption period and if you are lucky enough the tax debtor doesn’t redeem and the service issues you a deed. However, my experiences with these sales haven’t turned out that simple. Be prepared for additional litigation. The good part is you can usually just piggy back on the US attorney that will be defending the IRS’s position. But remember they represent the government. You are not their client.

I know I’ve been real general in the above discussion. I’ve done it purposely. Over all the many years I’ve invested in tax lien certificates there have been a great many changes in the law, statutes and interpretations. What may have been good twenty years ago is no longer valid and what was impossible just a couple of year ago may not only be possible, it’s commonplace. The whole idea behind this blog is to get you to see the money making opportunities of tax lien certificates so you can develop strategies that work. I will not and will never attempt to tell you what the law is. You need to seek legal advice from a legal professional on questions and matters pertaining to legal issues. But I will discuss ideas that are legal in nature as all tax sales are governed by laws and statutes of the jurisdiction in which the property is located.

I guess it would be a good time to get back to the subject of this post. What is the meaning of tax lien foreclosure? I can probably sum it up like this; I’ve been investing over twenty years and the term tax lien foreclosure has been used five times in this post. Than four more times than I’ve ever heard it uttered in the real world.

Friday, June 19, 2009

Tax Lien Deed

Don’t let the title throw you. I’ve just been receiving too many requests from people wanting to know whether the sate they live in is a tax lien state or a tax deed state. So I am not talking about a tax lien deed in the sense of the deed you get when you quiet a title on a tax lien that was not redeemed. Since this question takes up way too much of my time I decided to put the tax lien deed issue to rest here by providing a simple State listing;

Alabama tax lien

Alaska tax deed

Arizona tax lien

Arkansas tax deed

California tax deed

Colorado tax lien

Connecticut tax deed

Delaware tax deed

Florida tax lien

Georgia tax deed

Hawaii tax deed

Idaho tax deed

Illinois tax lien

Indiana tax lien

Iowa tax lien

Kansas tax deed

Kentucky tax lien

Louisiana tax lien

Maine tax deed

Maryland tax lien

Massachusetts tax deed

Michigan tax deed

Minnesota tax deed

Mississippi tax lien

Missouri tax lien

Montana tax lien

Nebraska tax lien

Nevada tax deed

New Hampshire tax deed

New Jersey tax lien

New Mexico tax deed

New York tax deed

North Carolina tax deed

North Dakota tax deed

Ohio tax deed

Oklahoma tax lien

Oregon tax deed

Pennsylvania tax lien

Rhode Island tax lien

South Carolina tax lien

South Dakota tax lien

Tennessee tax lien

Texas tax deed

Utah tax deed

Vermont tax lien

Virginia tax deed

Washington tax deed

West Virginia tax lien

Wisconsin tax deed

Wyoming tax lien

That should cover the tax lien deed question. Be advised there are some exceptions. Parts outside of San Francisco are permitted to conduct tax lien certificate sales, Delaware conduct tax deed sales that have a right of redemption and Michigan and Minnesota used to be tax lien states but now conduct tax deed sales. I guess the tax lien deed question may never get answered. There are others exceptions but the list above should more than cover you for now.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Building Your Tax Lien Certificate Empire Takes Time

As the title suggests there are no easy short cuts to investing just like there are no tax sale secrets.

Right now in Louisiana, it’s tax sale time and research and prospecting have required my attention preventing me from posting as I would like.  That being said, attending my most recent tax sales has given me a new story.

Case in Point:

At a recent tax sale, I ran into an acquaintance that is a tax lien investor whom I’ve known for some time.  The sale was not going to get a lot of action as the property list wasn’t very large.  As for me, the tax lien property I was most interested in was scrubbed because the homeowner paid his taxes prior to the sale.

 Anyway, in my conversation with my friend, she commented on the lack of interest and then pointed out a “newbie”  tax lien investor that was one of those “idiots” who had attended a couple of tax sales  because he must of seen one of those late night tax lien investing infomercials.

I don’t take offence when people make dumb statements; I just chalk it up to ignorance and try to garner whatever tidbits of knowledge they may contain.  Anyway, the sale proceeded and our newbie tax sale investor purchased a property.

 Immediately, my tax lien investor expert friend whispered to me, “Good thing he only spent $98.00, he won’t get too badly hurt.  The lot he just purchased isn’t big enough to build on its too small.  He’ll never get a zoning variance. Like a lamb led to the slaughter, that poor infomercial watching guy”, as her eyes rolled back into her head! 

Well, I started to analyze the situation as the tax collector continued to knock down properties.  Here was a person that I knew strictly from attending tax lien auctions.  I never really considered what her angle or perspective was on tax lien investing. But now, I was pretty sure it was a static approach.  She knew how to deal in a certain types of property and if it didn’t fit her mold, she wasn’t interested.  There’s nothing wrong with that approach.  Find a formula that works and just keep repeating the process. It can make you a ton of money.   However, I tend to reject this view when it comes to my tax lien investment strategy.

First, I think it shows a total lack of understanding.  I want to understand the investing process and accurately appreciate real estate and tax liens. Doing so makes it possible for me to respond whenever any dynamic in the process changes.  Consequently, I’ll know what changes I need to make to continue to be successful investing in tax liens.  We live in a world of constant change. And if you don’t have an understanding and appreciation of the dynamics of what you’re doing when change happens you’re lost. Now, instead of being at the forefront and taking advantage of the situation, you’re stuck with everyone else trying to regroup and figure out what to do.

Second, if I view my investments as nothing more than a cookie cutting process, I miss big opportunities.

Let’s look at the case in point.  Our newbie investor just purchased a tax lien certificate on a vacant lot that probably had a value of $40,000.00 even if he can’t build on it (if we take into account the building restrictions issue that our tax lien expert advised us of).  Our little lamb to slaughter just made a potential $39,902.00 profit from a $98.00 investment.

The possibility also exist that the tax lien newbie can get a zoning change,  increasing the value of the lot at the same time, and then build on it himself or sell it to a builder. He could also donate it to a neighborhood organization and take a tax credit for the $40,000.00 value of the property.  There are any number of ways to approach a zoning matter.  Where my tax sale expert saw a problem others would see an opportunity, less competition.

In that 30 minute tax lien auction our newbie bought one more property.  On my way out, I stopped and introduced myself and commented on what a super buy his first purchase was.  He introduced himself and proceeded to thank me as he had attended his first tax sale some years ago and overheard a conversation I was having with someone else. He informed me that his fortuitous eavesdropping confirmed he was on the right track.  It was at that point I asked him if he intended to build a swimming pool on his new lot.

The look of puzzlement on his face was priceless.

You see, my friends, I was interested in two tax lien certificates that day.  One got paid before the tax lien auction took place and my newbie tax lien investor had beaten me to the punch on the other.  Once he introduced himself, I knew exactly who he was.  The piece of property he bought was owned by a man who had passed away and left no heirs. It was a slam dunk buy property for pennies on the dollar type of tax lien certificate most people dream of.

He learned this when the neighborhood kid that cut the grass stopped cutting it.  I learned it through research, but my newbie friend and his two other neighbors would have been the first people I would have approached with an offer to sell if I had acquired that tax lien certificate.

Yep, lambs to the slaughter….

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Tax Sale Secrets…. There are no Secrets

Regardless of what you may have heard about Tax Sales.  There are no secrets when it comes to buying property and making money. Everything is dictated by state law and statute and conducted in full public view. If you don’t know what they are, it’s because you don’t know where to look. While there may be no secrets.  There certainly are tips and techniques that you can use to turn a relatively mundane 15% annual return on your investment to a truly spectacular return in the 1000 %  range.

First, you need a basic understanding of the process’ and definitions of what’s involved when it comes to dealing with Tax Liens and Deeds. I’ve been investing in Tax Lien Certificates (TLC’s) for so long it’s not hard for me to forget just how foreign some of the terminology actually sounded when I just started out. Back then, I read everything I could put my hands on and remember well how I depended on my Black’s law dictionary. I still do at times. Rest assured, I can get you more than enough information to put you well on your way to realizing just what a great wealth building investment Tax Lien Certificates truly are.

Shall We Begin……?  Some Quick Explanations

State, County (in Louisiana… Parish) and Local governments all need money to provide the basic and sometimes not so basic services we as citizens have come to expect. Of the many taxes that are used to fund government services, the most common is assessed against real property,  known as a Property Tax.  The amount that the property owner owes is usually (there may be other factors which I won’t go into now) based/assessed on the value of the land and improvements and collected by the county sheriff/ tax collector in which the property is located. Many times and for a lot of different reasons a property owner may not pay his property tax.  When this happens the property is auctioned or sold at a Tax Sale. In the United States there are two methods of doing this; Tax lien Certificate Sales and Tax Deed Sales. The method employed depends upon the State in which property is located. What you need to understand now is the differences.

At a Tax Lien Certificate (TLC) Auction a lien is placed on the tax debtor’s property. This lien acts as security for the repayment of the money expended to satisfy the taxes plus interest. This lien is placed first and superior to all other encumbrances or obligations against the property and stipulates a fixed period of time in which the taxes and interest can be repaid (the redemption period). If the tax debtor does not redeem, the purchaser of the lien can bring an action to prefect his/her title to the property. In Louisiana you bring a suit to Quiet Title or an action in Monition.

At a Tax Deed Auction a deed is issued to the purchaser. Once you tender payment you acquire ownership of the property. In most states you own the property free and clear of any encumbrances or obligations.

SIDEBAR…… Go Figure

The Internal Revenue service places a lien on a tax debtor’s property and conducts a Tax Deed Auction that has a Redemption Period.

And it is becoming more common for tax lien states to also conduct Tax Deed Auctions on properties that didn’t sell to 3rd party purchasers at the Tax Lien Certificate Sale(in Louisiana these revert to the parishand are known as adjuciated properties) after the redemption period lapses.

Back on track….

This friend is Tax Sale investing taken to the lowest level:  Government needs money to provide services, taxing property is one method of raising the money needed. If the owner of the property doesn’t pay, the government will sell your property. Simple and effective isn’t it. Now consider there are 50 states, of which 48 have operational county governments. Alaskans call their counties Boroughs and Louisianans use Parishes. Connecticut and Rhode Island have geographic counties but not functioning governments. There are 3,033 counties and another 33 city-county governments. Now throw on all the city governments that use a property tax to fund services. Each and everyone conduct their sales different so it’s not hard to get confused! But it sure looks like there are more than enough opportunities for everyone to get involved in investing in Tax Sales.

You may say to yourself why is this blog focused on investing in Tax Liens and not Tax Deeds.

 The answer is really quite simple.

1; Louisiana is a Tax Lien State. Although my activities have taken me to other states my area of expertise is Tax liens and in particular Louisiana Tax liens.

2;  On top of that I view real estate as so much more than just buying a property low and selling high or the cash flow that can be generated from owning. The thing I love most when it comes to investing is LEVERAGE.

Let me explain….  It’s not hard to go to a Tax deed auction and purchase a $ 150,000 property for $130,000 and see an immediate $20,000 equity. Not bad for a day’s work, Right? Let’s scratch just a little deeper at this scenario. If I wanted to sell the property tomorrow a real estate agent is going to charge me  6% on the $150,000 sale price or $9,000. Now my profit just dropped to $11,000. There are going to be seller’s costs associated with selling the property of about $2,000. Now I am at $9,000 profit for one day’s work, still a very nice return on the money. If I hold the property for 3 years and see an appreciation of 10% I will have a $165,000 property that an agent will charge me $9,900 (6% of 165k) to sell + $2,000 in closing costs, leaving me a profit of $23,100 or a return of 17.769% on my $130,000.

Now let’s take the $130,000 to a Tax Lien Auction in Louisiana. I buy a $150,000 house for $1,500 which isn’t a hard thing to do. But now I can purchase 86 houses (Tax Lien Certificates)  ($130,000 /$1,500 I’ve rounded down from 86.67 houses) and since Louisiana allows  a 5% Penalty and 1% per month interest. My one day return is $7,800.  I have no agent commissions or closing costs as the Parish Sheriff can handle all the details for me. Not bad but not as good as our Tax Deed scenario.

SIDEBAR….

I am using the 5% interest and 1% interest because this is the figure most tax sale Guru’s use. While this is correct, if you thoroughly read and understand Louisiana’s Tax Sale Laws you would understand there is so much more that the law allows than Interest and Penalties. Rest assured we will explore these areas in depth.

RETURN TO YOUR SEAT…

But wait, we are in a superior lien position on $13,000,500.00 worth of real estate (86.67 houses at $150,000 apiece)

Let’s look at our return 3 years out. With a 10% appreciation the properties are now worth $14,300,550.

We have agent commissions to sell the properties of $858,033.00 (6% of 14,300,550) + $172,340 (86.67 closings @ $2,000 apiece) in closing cost to sell + we also incur an additional cost to prefect the titles of $260,010 (86.67 actions to clear title @ $3,000 apiece) for a total of $1,290,383 in expenses. Subtract out our $130,000 Tax lien investment and our 3 year profit is $12,880,167 or a return 990.79%.

Leverage my friend is the NUMBER ONE reason I concentrate on and invest in Tax Lien Certificates.

Now, let’s back up and look at the 3 year Tax Deed return again ($23,100 or a return of 17.769% on  $130,000.) That 17.769% isn’t an annual return, that’s the 3 year return. 

 Louisiana allows an investor a return of at least 1% per month plus 5% penalty. In a 3 year Tax Debtor's redemption scenario that equals 41% or a return of $53,300 on our $130,000 investment. Now that 17.769% really starts to look weak in comparison.

 Considering I didn’t have to take possession of the property. Wash it, clean it, promote it, sell it, and negotiate with a realtor, a buyer, a title attorney. I didn’t have to do anything but go to the Tax Sale buy the property and let the sheriff send me my checks.

How easy do you want it to get.

I am not trying to dog Tax Deed sales. They can be great investments. And there are Tips and Techniques that you can use to make them a great deal better. I’ve bought them and continue to own them and will do so in the future. But in my humble opinion they can’t hold a candle to a Tax Lien certificate. 

A DISTRACTION….

Today’s CD (Certificate of Deposit) APR is 2.65 on a 1 year CD and an APR of 3.25% on a 3 year CD. Why am I going to put money here? I won’t.

DISTRACTION OVER….

 

IT”S TIME FOR YOU TO TAKE ACTION.

Get on the phone and call your county Tax collector/ Sheriff or Assessor/Treasures and ask them

1.       When is the next Tax Sale?  How often are they held?

2.       Where is it held? On the court house steps? In the Council chambers? Where? Get a Time when the sale begins and location.

3.       Where or how do I get a copy of the rules that they use to conduct the Sale. What method of payment is accepted? Do they take credit cards, etc? Do I need a form of Identification to register? Do I even need to register to bid?

4.       Where can I get a list of the properties that will be sold? Most of the time the advertisements are listed in some obscure little legal journal. Sometimes the Tax collector may offer a list and with the advent and popularity of the internet it is becoming more common to find a county list on line.

5.       What happens to properties that aren’t sold to 3rd party purchasers? Let me be clear on this. There are always at least 2 parties to a tax sale. The tax debtor (the person or entity) that owes the taxes and the government (who the taxes are owed to). Anyone else that purchase at a tax sale is a 3rd party purchaser. You would probably be surprised at the number of properties that don’t get purchased or go unsold at a Tax Sale. The Question is what happens to these properties? In Louisiana they are acquired by the parish and usually offered for sale at a different time and in a different manner. ASK!

6.       Hopefully you live in a Tax Lien State. Ask what’s the interest rate and how is it calculate. What’s the redemption period and how does a tax debtor redeem?

7.       Most Important of all. Get the information you need. If the person on the other end isn’t helpful ask to speak with someone else. When you have located a helpful person remember them, Write their name down and ask for them when you have other questions. Introduce yourself to them when you attend the sale. I can’t stress enough, how helpful people in the tax collectors office can be.

You now have more information than I had 25+ years ago when I attended my first Tax Sale in Louisiana. Remember Tax Lien Investing Is extreamly Profitable but when it comes to Tax sale Secrets ......  There are no Secrets!


Saturday, April 4, 2009

Tax sale...lets have a conversation

So you’ve heard you can make truck loads of cash by investing in Tax Lien Certificates. Like most people, you have probably seen a late night infomercial, pitching programs that will show you how to buy a 200k house for 350 bucks. My God, the world must be full of fools paying thousands of dollars a month on a mortgage when you can buy the same house for 350.

 

Well I hate to be the guy that tells you. But you can. Hell, $350.00 would even be considered expensive at some Tax Sales.  Does it happen all the time?  You bet, millions of times a year.

It’s just not quite the way they want you to believe.

 

Flash back…..

 

Like most people that are young and ambitious I dreamed of working for myself and real estate seemed a mighty fine way to make a living. It was the early 80’s when Real Estate was crashing. The Resolution Trust Corp. (RTC) was taking over failed banks and there I was with a little bit of cash and a whole lot of desire. I started to make some decent money flipping houses and was investing profits in strip (zero coupons) bonds that were paying about 20% interest yearly. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, interest rates got sane. The 20 % strip bond return was gone and I needed another secure place to put money and a 3% CD wasn’t going to do it.

 

When one door closes another one opens.  

 

For some reason, ever since I was a little kid I’ve heard the term Tax Sale. Maybe because I grew up in a home with a mom and dad that were lawyers or maybe I was just a strange little kid. But the terms Tax sales and Tax liens were familiar. Since I have the capacity to add 2 plus 2 I figured this might be a good place to get a decent return on my money when the strip bonds dried up. So what did I do next?  Why of course, I ordered some bull shit course on Tax sale, Tax Lien and Tax Lien Certificate that I heard pitched god knows where.  When it came, I quickly realized it consisted of a couple of pages of  phone numbers and some bush league ideas and facts that weren’t worth the cost of a single call to  directory assistance much less the 75 bucks or so that I just pissed away.

 

It wasn’t long after, I attended my first tax sale. I had a basic understanding of how the system worked by simply asking the Sheriff that conducted the sale what was what.  I bought about 10 Tax Lien Certificates that day. Spent about $1,500 and waited about 30 days for the sheriff to process and record my purchases. When they came in the mail I pretty much put them in a file and forgot about them.   The way I figured it. (Remember my figuring was based on my conversation with the sheriff that conducted the Tax sale) I was entitled to a 17 % annual interest rate and the tax debtor (the owner that didn’t pay) had three years to redeem (pay me what I paid + interest).

 

If you have figured out, that my first tax sale was in Louisiana… congrats.

 

I will never claim to be the sharpest pencil in the box. Looking back on that day when I purchased my first tax lien certificates I realize just how uninformed I was. But I made a decision to act. I knew a Tax lien had some value. I was just totally clueless about just how powerful those pieces of paper really were.

 

A short Sidebar……………(dramatic background music begins to play)

 

This is where I sell you on what this site is REALLY about. If you’ve surfed the web for 5 minutes you’ve seen the pitch.  It’s where I tell you I’ve reviewed all the Investing in Tax sale /Tax Lien programs. I know which ones really work and those that are trash. Out of the goodness of my heart I am going to steer you in the right direction. I am going to lead you to the great programs that will show you how to make a ton of money with little or no work. All you have to do is buy this magical program. I just happen to have a link that will take you to this very special secret place (Investing in Tax Sales Heaven) where you’ll never have to work another day in your life. A place where everyday people just like you move into their 200 thousand dollar home that they just purchase for 350 dollars. Pay no attention to that affiliate code attached to that magical link that just happens to be mine.  You certainly wouldn’t begrudge me a couple of dollars to show you all the answers.  Remember I protected you from all those rip off guys. Yep that’s the plan. It’s just too bad I haven’t found that magical program and I never had the dream growing up to be a piece of crap ripe off artist.

 

What I am looking to do is have an honest discussion about investing in Tax Lien Certificates. I’ve got nothing to sell, pitch, cajole or ridicule you into buying.  Things that may have value I’ll be upfront about and I will never have a financial stake in what I may recommend.  With the exception of buying property at the Tax sale you don’t have to buy anything. All the information can be gotten from public documents, newspapers, courthouses, the internet and libraries.

So what will I get?  Well believe it or not I probably get the better end of the deal. Some 25 odd years ago at that first tax sale I didn’t have a clue of just how much money could be made. But in my dealings over the years I learned a great deal. I’ve met some generous people who’ve shared their ideas with me.  Realizing that and knowing how thinking aloud about something can enable you to see things in a different light and spark a truly creative idea inspired me to create space.   Just consider this me thinking aloud with you in the room.

Perhaps this post got into a ramble and off topic and if that’s true, I promise to get into some of the real substance of what’s involved in Tax Lien Investing in my next post.

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Tax Lien Investing

Welcome to Tax Lien Investing. This site provides tips and techniques in order to make money with Tax Lien Certificate Investing. If you have questions not covered regarding Tax Sales or Tax Liens feel free to email your question.