Driving for Dollars Chicago collected addresses now what’s next??

Question

Hello to everyone who views and replies to this post. I've recently been very active in my newly real estate investing journey, and I've came across a bump... I drove around neighborhoods (driving for dollars) and collected a good amount of addresses. the problem i am having is finding the owner of these properties. What source/site is best used for finding owners of properties ? I have heard of skip tracing and some good sites for that but when going to those sites, they need you to upload list with the owners name and information already on it, i need to find a good source to find who is ever has ownership of a certain property.. any suggestions would be great, thank you. Chicago

Tom Shallcross · Answer

@Pat Baggett - For Chicago and all of Cook County can type the address into http://ccrecorder.org which will show you recorded docs like mortgage, foreclosure and title info.  This will inform you of who owns the house.  It will also be a gut check if there even enough equity in the home to make a deal that works for your numbers.  For example, if someone took out a mortgage for 200k 4 years ago and you know that you need to buy homes in that area for 150k-200k, there's likely no deal to be made.

You can then use TruePeopleSearch.com to search the person (which you found in ccrecorder.org) by name and see if you can get a phone number.  At the very least you'll get an address and know if the owner lives in the house or if they are absentee.  If they are absentee you'll have their address and can mail them there.   If it's a common name you can do reverse address and use your address to see who shows up as an occupant for the home.

Hope this helps!

Jeff Burdick · Answer

Hey Pat.  What neighborhoods have you found distressed properties in?

Joseph Konney · Answer

@Pat Baggett You could always try knocking on the door, and the neighbor's doors, to see what info you can gather. Especially if it is boarded up, I'm sure the neighbors would be more than happy to share information in hopes of getting rid of blight. Leaving a flyer on the same doors or at the mailboxes (not in the mailboxes) might generate some leads.

Garrett Pearson · Answer

@Pat Baggett Hey Pat. Congrats! on getting up, getting out and for finding some properties. I need to follow suit. Of course, check the Cook County Property Tax website though you won't find phone numbers but it is a good place to see if the taxes are paid up and that some investor is not waiting for the redemption period to end so they can take possession. Also, I am sure if you have a budget to get the information needed. have read here and on other mediums that investors have found some success using people found on Fiverr to do skip tracing. Make sure to read their reviews. There is also a site (program) that I am reviewing called PropStream. It's a bit costly but it has a 7 day free trial and it list owner, mailing address (no phone number), mortgage info and estimated equity. I have checked a couple of properties and know the information was correct on those properties. If you signup for the trial, you can check out the properties that you have addresses for and if you find it helpful, maybe it will be worth it to you to buy it. This is not an endorsement as I am still checking out the program. Hopefully that helps. Best of luck to you.

Pat Baggett · Answer

@Jeff Burdick so far calumet city il

Pat Baggett · Answer

@Joseph Konney Hey thanks for the positive feedback. I’m a newbie to REI business here in Chicago IL any more good advice?

Joseph Konney · Answer

After you look at the CCR as @Tom Shallcross suggested, you may find the owner is an LLC or company name. You may be able to pierce the veil by going to the IL secretary of state website and looking it up which may reveal a person and forwarding address.

Also, another free people finder is called myfamilytreenow.com

Pat Baggett · Answer

@Tom Shallcross Thanks for the valuable information I really needed that. I’m a newbie to wholesale real estate but I’m interested in learning everything from fix flips to buy and holds. Motivated Investor just need some good guys to network with and learn from on my journey to becoming a successful investor.

Pat Baggett · Answer

@Tyler Bushey

Appreciate the help any other advice you have please share I’m eager to learn and share everything.

Tyler Bushey · Answer

My city has ownership records on the assessors website and the county has a registry of deeds website where you can enter a name and it gives all the information you need. I'd recommend looking for those sites, or going to your city office in person.

Driving for Dollars Chicago collected addresses now what’s next??

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