Buying a house at a foreclosure auction

[Mikey C.]

Hello, this is my first post here.

There is a foreclosure auction on a 850 square foot house that's appraised at $330k.  The land that the house sits on is 50ft by 300ft. The house on one side is nearly 500k and the house on the other side is about 700k. Both are bigger house though.

I did some research and it seems like the person that lived there owed $285k total and couldn’t make the payments. I’m assuming that $285k will be the starting bid. The foreclosure auction requires $33k deposit to bid in the auction.  This place seems vacant and the grass and everything is over grown.

I want to bid in this auction up around $350k. I want some insight on the due diligence on liens. Is calling the town clerk the only way to see if there is a lien on the house. Also I plan to hire a home inspector to inspect the outside of the foundation for any issues.
Any issues with the  foundation will be a no go for me. I want the inspector to fly a drone to inspect the roof.

Are there any other things that I should do before hand in term of due diligence?

Thanks

[Verna Littleton]

I buy at auction often.  You definitely want to check for delinquent taxes as well as potential IRS tax liens. If I am not mistaken, IRS tax liens convey with the foreclosure sale and remain on title for 120 days after the sale.  Here in Memphis, the foreclosure notice usually lists that info with the exception of the property taxes. Also is there a way to find out when the house last had utilities on? The county you live in may require code inspections if utilities have been off for an extended period of time. Good luck!