All Forum Posts by: Gregory Stanley

Norwood has a few inexpensive, large houses still not renovated.  All of greater Birmingham is rising, but I would stay within a block or two of the current renovations in East lake.  Forestdale has Birmingham Southern College and lots of low-cost houses that would be good rentals. Depending on price point there are deals in Crestwood, but a deal will cost 150k.

Look at Simple Funding.  They are small and growing.  On the web they are asimplefund.  Make sure to use an attorney to close your hard money loan.

What state are you in?

Gene, Generally less than $250.   We use a redemption deed which makes it so you don't have to pay the clerk recording tax.

Alabama redemptions allow for an investor to recover the value of the improvements they made while in possession of tax lien property.  Some Alabama Courts had been using cost, or other strict criteria to determine the amount, today the Alabama Appeals Court ruled that the Value of improvements, not cost, is to be paid to redeem.  The Court further held that the recent strict interpretation that "preservation improvements" only applied to work that prevented waste was incorrect.   Preservation improvements for tax sales is similar to foreclosure redemptions by code, and the Appeals Court directed the lower court to apply the historically used meaning and award the value of improvements made to the residential property within reason. 

I see this a lot in Alabama: We call it Heir property, pronounced "Air property" for a reason.  The son doesn't own it and no one can convey it without the court getting involved.   In Alabama, all real property automatically passes upon death, but all real property must go through a probated estate to confirm who is the legal heir.  Even small estates that qualify under Sections 43-2-690 through 696 must go through probate to convey real property.  Heirship affidavits DO NOT convey the property, but they can establish a claim of right to quit the title on.  Tax deeds, adverse possession, wills, and heirship affidavits all provide a claim, but all require an order by the court to convey marketable title.

Only real property that was conveyed (e.g. right of survivorship) before death can avoid probate.   Here the will is obsolete because the estate waited too long, so probate will be more complicated and expensive because the Court will treat this as a "intestate" estate and all potential heirs must be notified because they all have a claim.  

There are legal tactics that an investor can use in these cases that may bypass the probate process but there is no easy way for any heir to sell the property.

My firm does a lot of closings for investors each week for property in and around Birmingham Alabama.  For the last several years the demand for rentals has been so high that even C and D neighborhoods are good rental investments.  with eth world games coming the demand has only increased.  Bars on the windows don't really mean much I think.

Josh,  LOTS of owner financing going on, but there are also lots of laws in Alabama Code 5-19 et seq. that must be followed.  Don't try this on your own.