How to legally solve this challenge

[Karl James]

I am looking for ideas and opinions (not legal advice of course) from BP colleagues that might help me an approach (for which I’d consult a lawyer) to solving a challenge.

I am new to real estate investing in Real Estate. I live west of Houston and have begun seeking to buy vacant land / lots with past due property taxes which have not yet gone to tax sale.

In a couple instances, I ran into this situation:

-Have an owner who is a willing seller

-Past due taxes are a relatively large

-Too few comps to ascertain resell value with enough certainty to ensure a profit

I am looking for an approach that would allow me to legally market the property for the owner and split the profit with the owner if I am able to locate a buyer at a price sufficiently high for the owner, and me, to be satisfied.

In these instances, the magnitude of taxes due has increased the risk of finding a buyer willing to pay enough to make a profit if I were to buy the property outright from the past-due owner and resell.

I have contemplated a couple possible approaches:

1) A purchase option with the past-due owner for a period of time during which I would market the property. I’ve seen articles and heard podcast that suggest this would give me an equitable interest in the property and enable me to legally market it (without a real estate license) and then do a double close

2) Secure a special power of attorney from the owner granting me the authority act on their behalf to market the property for a defined period of time and receive a portion of the profit from any sale at closing.

Any thoughts on either of these approaches or any other approaches that would might be legal / illegal, particularly in Texas?