http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/finance/real-estate/tax-auction-etiquette-for-investors.html http://www.articletrader.com/finance/real-estate/tax-auction-etiquette-for-investors.html Tue, 06 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0600 Investors intending on attending their first tax auction should be aware of the etiquette of proper bidding and purchasing of property. You’ll notice before the auction starts its normal to see people mingling with each other and talking about the properties that will be coming up on the auction block. Try to position yourself where it will be easy for the auctioneer to see you when the auction does get started. This will be towards the center of the room or even right up front.

Bidders can get nervous and into a frenzy bidding on certain properties. It’s not unheard of for a bidder to accidentally start bidding against themselves or for a couple at an auction to start bidding against each other without realizing it. Its in your benefit to stay calm at the auction, even if you feel as if the auctioneer isn’t seeing you after your first bid or is ignoring you while more frenzied bidding goes on in another area of the room. Wait patiently until the pace slows down then catch the auctioneer’s eye with your paddle when he scans the room again.

Listen carefully for the auctioneer to say, ‘fair warning’ or ‘going’ because this means he or she is about to bring the gavel down and sell the property. Better get your paddle up quick if you intend to make a bid. Tax auctions can take a long time because there may be a lot of properties up for auction. It’s easy to get bored, and many people will leave before the auction is over. This isn’t so bad, except if you are one of the people who leave early you may end up losing out on the chance to pick up a property cheaply.

Most auctions will use numbered paddles for bidding on the properties. It makes it easier for the auctioneer to see the difference between someone bidding on a property and someone who is just waving at their friend across the room. Nevertheless try to limit your movements with the paddle. The auctioneer may mistake that for a bid. Also it’s good to maintain eye contact with the auctioneer when making a bid.

Know what you are bidding on. If you start bidding randomly in the hopes that you will get something good you could end up with a lot of property that you don’t want. The auctioneer isn’t going to like it if you decide to back out of paying for some properties you picked up, yet wanting to keep other properties that you decided that you liked.
Auctioneers will expect you to have the cash on hand to pay for the property an hour after auction ends. There are no extentions on the deadline and no partial payments. If you don’t have the money the property becomes available to other bidders at the after auction sale.





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TED THOMAS

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/finance/real-estate/checking-out-properties-before-a-tax-auction.html http://www.articletrader.com/finance/real-estate/checking-out-properties-before-a-tax-auction.html Thu, 01 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0600
Summary:
Make sure you really want a property before you bid on it at a tax auction. The best way to be certain is to check out the property beforehand.

Article:
You’ll make it a lot easier on yourself if you take the time before a tax auction to check out each of the available properties on the property list. The property list contains the need to know elements for each property that is scheduled to come up at auction:

• Item number
• Minimum bid
• Parcel number
• Property address
• Assessed value
• Legal description

All of this is important information. It provides the basics to finding the property in order to check it out, plus what its worth and how much you’ll need for the minimum bid at auction. Before you head out to even look at the properties, look at the list critically. Cross off any properties with minimum bids that are out of your range. If a property isn’t of the type you are looking to purchase, say a house, then cross it off too. This will save you from spending a lot of time wandering around to get a look at the property.

County assessor’s offices will usually be very willing to accommodate those looking at properties when they come in. Some offices will even have the maps of the county sitting out for investors when they come in around tax auction time, so there’s no need to go back and forth pulling out a bunch of different maps just to find where each of the properties are. There can be other investors in the office too. Sometimes there is a healthy amount of competition and the occasional investor may try to convince you that the properties going to auction are worthless.

You can also get regular city and county maps and mark out the locations of the properties on the property list. This visual map will help you to plan your route when heading out to look at the properties. It may also save you a little gas too.

Going out to the properties is one of the best ways to see for yourself if the property is worth bidding on. Take pictures of properties you are interested in so you can have a visual of the property when it comes up at auction. This can be done with a Polaroid camera or even taking digital pictures and uploading them to a laptop.

Creating your own property journal can be of great help when at the tax auction. In this journal you’ll have the property list, and pages of notes with pictures of the properties you are planning to bid on. Its best to have a separate page with each property and its picture. Notes are the thoughts and comments you make when you first look at a property. You may find that it’s a real-fixer upper, so you don’t want to bid really high. This is the kind of note you want to put in your property journal.














Driving Around to Check Out Tax Auction Properties

Summary:
The most important part of preparing for a tax auction is checking out the properties on your property list. The best way to do this is to head out for a look at each of the available properties. Here are some tips on just driving around.

Article:
Checking out tax auction properties can be really helpful. You’ll be doing some driving around to see what shape the properties are in. Sometimes properties have fire damage, water damage or have been severely neglected and as an investor you will be in good shape to know these pertinent details on a property you intend to bid on. Most of this is done only a few days before the auction is usually not complicated, think of it as a long Sunday drive.

Very importantly, you must give yourself plenty of time to go out and look at the properties on the property list. There can be unexpected delays in getting to an area, especially if its out of state that can really cut into your research time on a property. Knowing what a property looks like can be all of the basis for your decision to bid.

Before you arrive in a new area make sure you have a good mode of transportation, whether you rent a car or drive one in. Sometimes properties are in the outskirts of a country and you may be driving rough gravel roads, dirt roads, or simply roads with lots of potholes. You’ll want to research the properties that you are planning to bid on, if only to get a better idea of what the places look like. Be aware that many car rental companies won’t rent cars to those under the age of twenty-five. You’ll need a current I.D. and enough money for a security deposit plus the rental fees on the car.

You may want to get four wheel drive vehicle. The weather and the countryside can be difficult at times. Many times the properties in a county will be spread out in literally the four corners of the county. So you will be spending time just driving around.

Save yourself some gas money by getting a good map. Plotting the addresses of properties on a map before the trip can save money and time. There are very detailed local maps available in almost every convenience store. A really good map can be of great benefit in the search for properties. If at all possible look for a map with all of the tax assessor’s parcels marked out on it. This kind of map will actually have all the property boundaries in the county drawn out on it. It’s really easy to know where you are, when you are way out in the middle of nowhere. As often happens in the business of researching tax liens.

If you find you’ve got your heart set on a property after looking at it, try not to be disappointed if the owner redeems it before the auction. The owner has the option of paying their arrears taxes and penalties even as late as a couple of hours before the auction. There are always more properties and always another tax auction somewhere that you’ll find the property to set your heart on.




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Ted Thomas

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/finance/dont-forget-to-take-care-of-your-money-when-attending-a-tax-auction.html http://www.articletrader.com/finance/dont-forget-to-take-care-of-your-money-when-attending-a-tax-auction.html Thu, 01 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0600
Summary:
Investors can easily overlook the problem of transporting money when attending a tax auction out of state or even the country. Here are a few quick reminders.

Article:
In the business of tax liens, tax certificates you’ll find that you end up handling large amounts of money. You’ll need the cash to pay for properties picked up at auction, daily expenses and other business related expenses. Sometimes you’ll even end up carrying large amounts of cash with you as you travel to new areas to participate in a tax auction. This can be a hassle and would cause anyone to worry.

One of the easiest ways to save yourself this hassle is to make sure you have a bank account with a bank that exists in the area you are heading to. You can easily research online to find out which banks exist in the area you are heading to. However it’s not always possible to set up a new account for each place.

Having your home bank issue you one or more Cashiers’ Checks can be an easy way to transport money. Usually these are secured checks that can be cashed by you at any bank or business, anywhere, that will accept them. It’s good to know that typically Cashier’s Checks under $5000 won’t have a hold placed on them when you cash them. There have been scams with fake Cashier’s Checks so you may find that you have a little trouble cashing them when you need them. In the business of money there are a lot of variables.

Some investors may even cross the border between Canada and America in their search for tax auctions to attend. Bringing money across the border can be a tricky process. You’ll want to declare any large amounts that you have with you, whether in cash or check or even in the form of gold bars.

Under our new legislation you’ll be glad to know that there is no limit on the amount of money you can bring into and out of Canada, but you must absolutely report it to the Border Services Office when the amount is greater than $10,000. Reporting the amount is done in person at the Canada Border Services Agency Office and you will need to fill out Form E677, Cross-Border Currency or Monetary Instruments Report-Individual. You can print out this form from the Canada Border Services Agency website. Fill out this form, sign it and hand it to the border services agent at the nearest border office where you are crossing. If you don’t declare they could legally seize the money and give you a fine.

This can be equally important whether you are coming or going. Have a bank account set up, so you can put in and take out any money you make or need. Always treat your border crossings with care. As long as you declare the amount you bring with you and cooperate with procedures the border crossings should go smoothly.




Attending a Tax Auction and Winning that Property

Summary:
Don’t get caught up in a bidding frenzy at tax auction. The smart way to pick up property is to stay calm and have a good knowledge of the rules of auctioning.

Article:
When attending a tax auction, you have to have a system, you have to be organized. Once the auction starts they don’t wait for you to get ready. The property is sold to the highest bidder and whoever has their paddle up when bidding. Be prepared. Before the auction research properties on the property list, make notes and take photos. Also it’s a good idea to decide before hand your maximum bid on each property.

Investors should be aware of other people at a tax auction. As soon as they get a hint that you know what you are doing they will try to ask a lot of questions and can distract you at the auction. So it’s possible to miss out on a lot of good bidding. Some people get really confused. They will end up bidding on everything that comes up. Some will even end up bidding against themselves. It really pays to be calm at the auction and not get caught up in the frenzy. You’ll easily be able to see who did their research on a property and who didn’t. Don’t be afraid to give yourself a pat on the back when you see someone in a bidding frenzy over property you researched and realized just wasn’t worth the money.

Many people attending auctions don’t know the rules of auctioning. It is often a requirement that you have the money on hand to pay for the property within an hour of the auctions end. Lots of winning bidders can’t fulfill that requirement and so the property goes back up for auction. Don’t just leave at the end of the auction. Hang around for an hour for the chance to bid on properties that come back up again at the after auction sale.

Once you have your property what do you do with it? Some investors feel like they need to flip their property almost as soon as they buy it. This is great. If you can find a buyer or a realtor that will pick up the property from you for a few thousand more in a couple days then go for it. However there is nothing wrong with holding on to a property for a little while. In a good market will just keep accruing value and you can take your time in putting it up for sale with a good realtor.

The thing to remember with picking up property at tax auction is to get it for less than it’s assessed worth. The assessed worth and minimum bid on each property will be easy to find on the property list. Pick up a property below it’s assessed worth and sell it at its assessed worth or a little bit higher than you won it for and you’ve made a profit. As long as you follow this rule when purchasing a property at auction you have a good chance of selling the property in the long run with a high percentage of profit.





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Ted Thomas

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]>