How do I buy this vacant property no one is claiming??

Question

Need some creative investor help!  There is an attached villa that has been vacant since the owner died 3 years ago.  It was also condemned at that time.  I've done a ton of investigating including talking with an agent, real estate attorney, and going to the county to pull records.  The daughter was put on a beneficiary deed in 2017, but I've talked to her and she says she wants nothing to do with the property.  I found out there is a current mortgage, talked with the company, but they won't give me any info because I'm not authorized.  The daughter won't sign anything to that affect.  She just wants nothing to do with any of it.  She says she just "walked away" from it when her mom died.  I'm running out of options.  I have a distressed property, an owner-ish who doesn't want, and a mortgage company who won't talk to me.  Any thoughts from this awesome community??

Sariya Saabye · Answer

I kept talking with the neighbor who had the trust of the daughter who was out of state.  She was convinced I wanted what was best for everyone and genuinely wanted to help.  That helped the daughter want to work with me.  It was months of a text here, a call there.  It was difficult to get the mortgage company to even talk to the daughter.  I got an attorney at the title company to write a letter, and the daughter to consistently keep pushing the mortgage company.  I assured her that she was liable for the property according to two different attorneys and sent her the documents.  She was scared once she believed that and wanted out as quickly as possible.  It took months to get the payoff statement.  Once that happened things went fairly quickly.  There were about $9K in back HOA fees due but the profit margin was so high that was no big deal.  The property was also in far better shape than the neighbor or the daughter believed it to be once we cleared out all the junk.  A couple of minor plumbing issues and a cosmetic rehab.  Paid the daughter $500 which she was ecstatic with as she would have been happy just to walk away from it and never have to deal with it.

Chris Martin · Answer

Not an opportunity worth pursuing from my standpoint.

From: "The daughter was put on a beneficiary deed in 2017, but I've talked to her and she says she wants nothing to do with the property." Sounds like she owns the property. When the city comes after people, they go to the owner. If you are hell bent on owning this condemned property, have her deed you the property and then, since "she wants nothing to do with the property" she can be legally free from any obligations. That's the big 'what's in it for me' pitch. No lawsuits from the city. Then when you are the legal owner, the mortgage company might talk to you.

Make sure you have that attorney you talked to on board. Without payoff and lien info, this is a complete gamble for you, IMO.

Bill B. · Answer

Until it goes through probate nobody can sell it to you. I don’t know if there’s any way you could force probate to start. You said you checked the county website for the property tax records. Did you notice if they are paid up (is the lender paying them, if so they are being added to the fees, penalties, and interest owed. If not the county should be close to auctioning it off if they haven’t auctioned off the liens already.).

Chance are it ends up on the MLS because of the probate or at auction for property taxes or foreclosure. Is there a chance the water was on and all the pipes froze and then flooded the place? If the heat and ac are off a few years of 100 and then minus 10 isn’t good for a house either.

Sariya Saabye · Answer

UPDATE:  I was told by every investor I met to let this one go, but I didn't.  It was a long road, but I was finally able to buy and flip the property.  5 week rehab.  Closed last week.  Final profit was $95,513.31! Learned so much from this experience and can't wait for the next one! Sometimes the best flips are the ones you think are lost causes.

Ned Carey · Answer

Just because you think something should be a deal, doesn't mean that it is a deal.

Your best bet is getting the heir to agree to sell. It is up to your salemanship but if she has just mentally walked there is not much you can do. (you can't buy it from her but she could have an estate opend and then you buy from the estate)

Your next chance is simply watch for notices of sale or auction but that may never happen

David Dey · Answer

These scenarios are some of my favorite to do.

First line of attack, make sure she is the only heir.  Build a family tree on ancestry.com

If she is the only heir, she is the one to go to.

First thing, the most obvious reason she is not wanting to do anything is because it’s not real to her.  The second reason is fear.  In order to make it worth her while you will have to answer both questions to her satisfaction.

To answer the first issue of not being real to her, I use a tool I call flash cash.

I will bring 1-5k with me in $100 bills and when overcoming her first objection, “I don’t want anything to do with it,” I will fan out the cash like a deck of cards and say, “I know this doesn’t feel real to you, but I am actually here to give this to you.”

You would be surprised how many times this will change their mind.

(like in the movie anchorman, like the cologne,”s-x panther,” 70% of the time, it works every time!!😜)

Sometimes the money I bring may be enough to buy the whole place, sometimes it will be the deposit, but in either situation it makes it real.

Second issue, Fear.

The biggest fear I always encounter is the fear that the debt owed against the estate will somehow attach to him/her personally.

I find articles from attorneys that most closely meet their situation and while explaining to them that, “unless they personally signed for the debt, they will never personally responsible for the debt.”  I send them the articles to read.

Further, I would point out that everything we do will be through a licensed attorney and the attorney whom I will pay for, still works for them so any question they may have I will be happy to pay for them to speak to them.

Often the articles I find will be enough.

If all this doesn’t work, I would still offer them $500 in exchange for “non-interference.”

There is a concept most people don’t know about, called adverse possession.  (Most people know it by it’s slang name, “squatter’s rights.”)

Under this scenario, if you claim the property for a certain number of years and pay the assessments against the property, (taxes etc) and maintain the property for that time.  If no one challenges your rights within that time, you can end up the owner.

What the heir is being paid the $500 for is 2 things.

1) to sign the authorization to release information.  Then I can hand that to the attorney to speak to them and continue this as a sub 2.

2) Non interference.  For the time you are fulfilling the criteria to gain ownership, she will not object or interfere.

Especially because the bank is involved, I can’t guarantee success, but for $500, I’ve spent more on a gamble before with the chance to play.

Look at it this way, let’s say that someone offered you the opportunity to buy a lotto ticket with a 50/50 chance to win 100k.

Would you buy it for $500?

Just some thoughts.

PS the 50/50 is for when all else fails.  If I get her on board with flash cash, I’m in and winning!!

Hope this helps.

Eliott Elias · Answer

You must track down all the heirs or anyone who knows the heirs. Someone smart enough with enough influence to get the family to sell. If they are not motivated, there is nothing you can do.

Sariya Saabye · Answer

Thank you! This was a God send for sure.

Jaron Walling · Answer

The best deals involve solving problems and you did just that. Homerun. Congrats.

How do I buy this vacant property no one is claiming??

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