Posted by Jackie in Dallas on December 26, 1998 at 11:10:29:
Duane,
Since most sales require CASH within 1 hour of the bid, you definitely want to get the houses BEFORE the sale. Don’t forget to add an escape clause to the contract.
To narrow the search further, you should only be going after the houses with about 50% LTV (or equity). Probably 95% of what you see in the legal paper are houses with little or no equity.
You’ll need to do some research at your courthouse to find out how you can quickly spot a property with potential equity. In our area the the deed or other recorded instruments are in order by volume and page. The first two numbers of the volume are the year the document were recorded. If you see a Volume 970315 - that’s 1997 and chances are it won’t have enough equity to waste your time on it for a flip.
If you see a Volume 770315 on the other hand, you need to gather the info quickly and RUSH over to the house.
Some courthouses have a day a month that they offer FREE training on researching properties - it’s well worth your time.