All Forum Posts by: Dallas Hayden

I definitely wouldn't buy vacant land if you aren't able to check on it a couple times a year. Do you have anyone local who can walk it every once in a while? Some problems that happen with unwatched vacant land:

1. Mowing liens. Cities often require property owners to mow land along streets. Tall grass can result in fines. Is the land within a city or an unincorporated area?

2. Illegal dumping. Nefarious folks may try dumping oil, chemicals, etc. on your land and contaminate the soil. You may be responsible for expensive clean-up costs. 

3. Encroachments. The city, utilities, or neighbors may decide to encroach on your land. Look up "prescriptive easements" and "adverse possession". 

4. Trespass. People may decide to trespass on your property on foot, vehicle, etc. If you aren't careful you may be liable for injuries. 

5. Invasive species. Many parts of the country are dealing with major invasive plant and animal problems. If unchecked these can take over your property. Removal can be very expensive. 

6. Condemnation. A government entity may attempt to condemn your property through eminent domain. If you are outside the area and don't have a local representative it can put you in a weak negotiating position. 

7. Taxes. How do you plan to deal with property tax assessments?

Land is incredibly "local". Don't recommend holding long-term if you have no way of monitoring things. Good luck!

Right now if I had to choose I'd put my money on industrial. It seems everyone needs mini storage units and there are still some old empty facilities sitting around. Best part is you don't have to worry about tenants, water or sewage issues. 

Especially if the building is older, I'd hire structural and electrical engineers to perform a thorough inspection. You may be dealing with fairly complex electrical and structural systems. I suppose you have 38 separate split phase services? 100a, 150a, 200a a piece? For structural, I don't even know where to begin. I definitely wouldn't rely on a "home" inspector. 

Do you have natural gas?

I can see the panel being small if you only have electric service. With natural gas 100a may be sufficient if the panel is new enough. YMMV. 

Sounds like great news. What are your expectations for the repairs? Suggest having the seller provide you a copy of the contractor's quote or scope. I'd try to find out if the seller is just "leveling" the house or is actually addressing the cause of the settlement problem. May be undersized/failing piers, rot, etc. The floor settlement may just be a symptom of bigger issues.

Have you measured the pier bases? Are there crawl space shear walls at the corners of the house? If there is no foundation beam, water and rot can be major issues. Just speaking from experience owning a 1913 craftsman home.

Good luck! 

P.S. Feel free to post or send me a redacted copy of the seller's contractor scope for the foundation. When was the house built? If you plan to hold and rent this house for a while, I strongly suggest you personally/safely inspect the crawl space with an experienced foundation contractor or (better yet) an engineer. 

Grayson County. That was 2 years ago though and things may have changed in the meantime. I don't blame the title companies I spoke with since I've narrowly avoided several tax deed title landmines myself. Exhaustive record searches are key. Again, I'm sure YMMV depending on the area.

I bet there are regional differences within the state too. Once I called 6 local title companies and none would offer insurance until the end of the redemption period. My tax assessor will actually void sales weeks or months after auction if certain title or auction defects are discovered. Most tax sales turn out well, don't get me wrong! In my experience though you are much more likely to run into major problems with tax sales vs MLS sales.

I'm just speaking from my tax deed auction experience in TX (no lien experience). Tax deed auctions are incredibly high risk. Tax foreclosures occasionally don't wipe out all liens. Even if title is clear, a defect in the preceding foreclosure or even tax sale itself can cause problems. You often won't have marketable title during the redemption period. Title companies also usually won't insure until after the redemption period. If something goes wrong, you may be taken to court to defend title. 

Perform as much research as possible. Make sure to buy low! If you win the auction, be prepared to pay in cash. Then be prepared to personally defend title to the property during the redemption period. Good luck!

@Jennifer A., How old is the duplex? Can you evict for health and safety reasons if tests reveal lead, asbestos, or mold? 

Letters usually work well for me and I've never gotten a "FU" response. The difference I suppose is I write my own small letter batches that are custom-tailored for a few recipients. I carefully identify properties and hand sign/ stamp all letters. If sellers have any questions, I'm more than happy to talk with them and provide any answers. I am respectful, polite, and do not badger if we cannot agree on a price. I do not send sellers waves of letters. My response rate is typically 2-3% and closing rate about 1%. Not bad for batches of 150-300 letters. The downside is it can take me 15+ hours to purchase one property.