Department of Treasury with usc exceptionState Tax LienLien by USA or Dept of JusticeUS Department of StateOther Federal AgenciesFrequent Superior Foreclosure-Liens:HOA or condo feesCode Enforcement for debris removal or mowingDemolition or Environmental Based LiensState child support lienBoard of County Commissioners for special assessmentsUtility LiensWater/Sewer Delinquency (only in selected states)County (and/or School/Township) for unpaid taxesCity for road improvements, maintenanceHere are some of the judgment and liens that will be wiped off from the property (not the borrower who lost the title) if the lien holders were properly notified and "had the right to bid on the property at the auction":2nd and junior position mortgages, such as home equity loans, etc...Credit Card Judgments recorded after the foreclosing mortgagePersonal Judgments recorded after the foreclosing mortgageMechanic's Liens recorded after the foreclosing mortgage

I say spend the $500 and have a reputable licensed environmental company do the soil test around the tank to give you some indication of any potential leak.  

Unless your buyer is quite environmentally conscious i expect that they would want to buy the best looking house they can get which includes a great front yard.

I have a degree in environmental science and was once a certified license wilderness EMT.

Here I thought you found some sort of "environmentally friendly" short term loan!  

Account Closed  and all the land guru's you see on BP buy this stuff at tax sale then do exactly what your talking about.. it just now they charge a bunch of money to teach you how to buy mainly unbuildable landin CA there are probably 1 million parcels like this from one end of the state to the other.watch the Movie Glen Garry Glen Ross.. this was the 50's land game in FLA and very very trueMy dad got started in RE in the early 60s selling land in CA for Boise Cascade.although Boise put in streets and utls and many times a lake golf course and with Pine Mountain lake an airport.the issue was the state and county and the time would let them create 5,000 lots but a water system that would only service 500... and same with sewer.. so as environmental laws got tougher.

You also need a good environmental consultant to perform the asbestos and lead surveys before work is done on the building. 

Getting an environmental study completed and obtaining all of the approvals needed from the local municipality before actually purchasing the property is also a way to reduce a potential disaster. 

Call the local state entity that handles environmental issues for the EPA.

I spoke with a friend who is an environmental engineer who said that it could be the ground water (rare but possible).