All Forum Posts by: Shawn Hyde

 You have completely misread my post.  Go back and try again.

I don't own the land locked parcel.  The 5 acres I own is one of the adjoining parcels that could get embroiled in a lawsuit to provide an easement to the landlocked parcel if someone came along and wanted to stir trouble.  I want to buy or otherwise acquire the landlocked parcel to eliminate that possibility.  This has not been an issue in 50 years so far, so it's unlikely.  I just want to get my hands on that little slice and add it to my 5 acres.

Not sure if my state allows this, but in some states, I could put up a cheap fence and adjoin it to my property... pay the taxes for a few years... then file a quiet title suit claiming possession.  Not sure how expensive this approach would be and whether people have success in attempting this.

I'm not trying to "steal" this property, but if the guy is dead or can't be found... ???

Quiet Title suits aren't expensive if no one comes forward with a claim.

If I can find them!

I'm only into this for $300.  And as tax certificates, worst case it's a low interest loan.

It's assessed at $100 in the property appraiser web site!  So, paying the taxes is under $20/yr.  (The $50/yr I mentioned in my original post included fees, interest, and other items that occur when you let your taxes go delinquent).  I just fear it's one of those parcels a bottom feeder might buy to stir up trouble with the neighbors -- you know -- demand an easement and then go away for a ridiculous sale price on the parcel.  Unlikely scenario, but possible.

I have a situation that I have not run into before and I'm looking for some opinions.

I just purchased a 5 acre parcel, and during my due diligence I found a tiny slice of land-locked land along one edge of the property (40x100 land locked - in an area that requires 1 acre minimum to build).  The owner has no access whatsoever without forcing me or one the other adjacent property owners to provide an easement.  That possibility is precisely what I want to mitigate.

So, upon further research, I found a palatable amount of unpaid taxes -- and the county owned all of the certificates -- no one had bought them.  So, I bought the tax certificates as a first step.  The county doesn't have a good address for the owners and thus far I cannot find them.  I have not skip traced them yet, and I'm not sure I want to.  With some luck, they're in the wind and have abandoned this useless little parcel.

Questions:  If I own all the tax certificates that are sufficiently aged to force a sale, and I choose not to force a sale, is my only risk that the owner will come back into the picture?  Can the county force the sale without the tax certificate holder's consent (or at least notification)?  And as just a tax certificate holder, would I be notified of that sale or could it happen without my knowledge and I just get paid off?  (That would be a bummer).

So, the next thought is to force the sale.  My concern is that while it is unlikely anyone would bid against me on this parcel, it could happen.  And there's only one other person on earth I'd want to see owning this land -- and that's the other adjoining neighbor.  So, if someone shows up and bids, I might have to spend a bunch of money to buy this wasted slice of earth.

So... My thought is to either (a) hold on to the tax certificates that are old enough to force a sale, thereby giving me a lien and just pay the taxes going forward since it's just $50/yr.  or (b) force the sale of the property since I already own certificates that are old enough to get the property on the calendar.

The certificates are "low key".  The forced sale could stir a hornets nest that may have never been stirred.

What would you do?

Actually, we ended up staying in Florida. I need to fix my profile on here!  

Thank you Mark!  I am in the process of opening a Solo 401k through your company and will be setting up a Checkbook Fidelity account.  I appreciate your assistance.

I am strongly considering opening a Self Administered, Self Directed i401k so that one of the investment vehicles can be - you guessed it - real estate notes and mortgages.

With that said, I don't want to preclude myself from having a brokerage account to hold cash and hopefully earn some money in the stock market when I don't have the money lent in real estate.

My question is this:  Do the brokerages (IE: Fidelity, etc), understand this arrangement?  It seems to me I would first open the i401k, get an EIN number for it, and then open a REGULAR brokerage account in the name of the i401k.  Sounds simple to me, but am I going to run into roadblocks trying to get this done?   

Second question: Who do you recommend for initial setup of the i401k?  I found SunWest Trust and while I don't mind the initial $500 setup fee, I'm not thrilled with their $200 annual fee for doing basically nothing.  Is there another option that is more cost effective?  Heck, can I do the whole thing myself?

Thanks!