Driving for Dollars Nightmare

[Account Closed]

I look for properties while driving around town. I came upon one that was very obvious that it had been vacant a while. I jotted down the address, mailed the owner a yellow letter and got a call within 3 days. After talking with the owner for a couple of days, I made him an offer 80% below ARV. He gladly accepted. This home is in a very desirable neighborhood and needed very little repairs. I knew there was $970 of past due taxes. No big deal right!? Well, something told me to get a full title search. I'm so glad I did. I found out that there are $340 of late HOA fees, $2,200. In past due taxes paid by another RE investment group. AND to top it off, here's the big doozie, there is a lien on the property for $202k. Yep, that's 6 places past the decimal point. I honestly don't know how to help this owner. There is so much debt attached to this house. I can't imagine how overwhelmed they feel. No wonder they just up and left. I want to live up to our company's name as much as possible...Winning Solutions. I know not every vacant property can not be turned into a deal. This maybe a far fetched question, but is there anyway to help this owner? Can I create for them a winning solution? What are your thoughts? "Never give up. Never surrender" -Dee Dee Huey Winning Solutions Real Estate Investing