Direct mail to Tax Lien List?

Question

I was compiling different outlets for direct mail , but one method I wanted to try was contacting the local assesors county office and getting a list for people mail for wholesale buyers and salers. Has any tried this and how was the results? Thanks

Sandra Edmond · Answer

I have used the county tax lists to mail to motivated sellers who are behind on their property taxes. I have had some success with that. The list can be pretty big so you will have to get creative with your sorting otherwise you will spend a lot of money marketing. I will say that list is more accurate than the list you buy from list brokers. I was surprised to see how many properties were 5+ years behind on taxes. You can try concentrating on out of state owners with back taxes to get very motivated sellers. Your best best is to request the list in excel or access format for maximum versatility.

Sandra Edmond · Answer

@Kyle B. Yes, that is very funny but true. I tell people all the time, don't ask the first operator that answers the phone for the information. Most of the time they will give you the wrong answer or have no idea what you are talking about. LOL. I ask for the delinquent tax department at the tax collector's office. Once I get someone in the know, I ask. Another option is to check the website for the policy or access to downloadable list. Usually they will have an order form with prices. You can then call the person in charge of processing the orders and ask more specific questions about the list you want. But so true... about what you said regarding catching them off guard when you call. Just remember the first person who answers is usually the operator who knows very little about what actually goes on in the building. Happy Investing!

Jonathan Batson · Answer

@Karis CampbellI was curious if you had any lessons learned from your direct mail experience?

Raymond B. · Answer

@Karis Campbell, To make the @ work, do the following: Hold down the shift key and type @? Look below this Window, and you will see a list of names of people that have posted in this thread. Click on the name of the person that you want notified via an email, that you responded to them. Raymond

Karis Campbell · Answer

@sandra Thanks for the advice and inspiration Sandra. I'm going to start compiling my list for direct mail this week. I have seen list on county website that will show you the delinquent taxes ,what they owe and the names that you can download. One more question, sandra. When buying a property say on an auction site like bid4 assets, do you use transactional funding or you buy outright then flip the property. Thanks for you help :) Karis

Sandra Edmond · Answer

Wow that's expensive. I've paid about $50-$200 here in Florida for that list. @Kyle B.

Kyle B. · Answer

@Sandra Edmond Thanks for the tips. I actually just called the courthouse and after a few transfers, was told I could get a huge data dump of this info... but it costs $1,500. A bit disapointed when I heard that. I'm going to have to look into this further though. Thanks!

Kyle B. · Answer

@Sandra Edmond

Kyle B. · Answer

@Sandra Edmond Sounds like you have a very nice system in place for generating strong leads this way. I realize this will vary from county to county, but is it as simple as calling the county treasurer or tax assessors office and requesting a list of properties that owe back taxes? I've found that employees at the courthouse get caught off guard when I ask for certain information (it's public, they must just not be used to this request), so I'm looking to see if I should prepare for that. Thanks!

Sandra Edmond · Answer

@Karis Campbell I usually do wholesale the property out or flip it. It all depends on how soon the owner needs to close and how much I am buying it for. I would say a majority of them were wholesaled out to other investors. There are times that I get such a good deal from the property owner that I purchase it as a flip. Tax Deeds are a great. You find all types of properties and situations in the delinquent tax sale list or tax deed auction(foreclosures, code enforcement liens, probates, shortsales, reo's etc) . So if you are new to real estate, it's a great way to learn about all different types of deals. @Shariyf Grevious Regarding the mail pieces it varies but I usually send more than one piece of mail to each person. My series of mail is usually 4-7 letters. I try not to send many post cards but if I do it's not the first piece of mail that is sent out... if a post card is included it's the 4th or 5th piece in the series of mail. Regarding the content: Usually the delinquent tax list has multiple motivations to sell (some are out of state, estate owned, have code enforcement liens etc) so I will appeal to that motivation. For example if I am only mailing to out of state owners on the delinquent tax sale list then I will use a letter directed to out of state owners and all the pain they feel outlined. Hope this helps, happy investing!