Code Enforcement

[Robert Burns]

Some of the reading I have done talks about following up with the Code Enforcement officials in my area to find houses that are under the Code Enforcement process. Does anyone use this technique to find distressed properties and if so how effective is it?

[David MacGown]

Hi Robert,

Some code enforcement offices carry vacant and boarded lists or condemned property lists which are available for purchase...their not always easy to find but ask around, sometimes the lists can be free online if you go to the city government page.

I used the yellow letter aproach to send to all the property owners but you will need to find out where the tax bill is being sent to first and many letters will be returned as can't be found...don't throw these letters away! This is where so many investors give up...hire a skip tracer (findtheseller.com) and send them a certified letter. From what I understand the response rate is much higher with the yellow letter than postcards.

Great deals can be found this way especially unlisted properties where the owners live out of state...some owners may be heirs but the down side is that there may be liens and most likely will not have a clean title...This is why I like REO's So if you go this route I suggest you have a real estate attourney on your team to help you close these deals, it makes life so much easier when messy titles are involved.