Tax Lien Investing - What You Need To Know
Could I, Should I, or a Scam?
The first question that we should address is whether or not Tax Lien Investing is a scam. The simple answer to that is "NO!" However, having said that many of the programs that are sold are. Is there is a lot more to tax lien investing than most tell you? Absolutely!
Watch some of the free videos out there and you will be told how that you can make up to 36% interest and the worse thing that could happen is that you own property for pennies on the dollar. Well, is that true? Partially!
Yes, there is a way to own property through this system, but it's going to cost a lot more than what is told and the process you have to go through in order to get it is beyond the skill set of the average investor. I don't mean this in the since that the average investor is not smart enough, but they are not inclined to really study the legalities of the county and the process of filing, operating within time frames, and establishing the necessary accounts that are required to do this business. And for the second part, yes you can earn up to 36% interest...in Illinois! However, many of the interest rates are bid down. Sometimes to as low as .25% (that's 1/4 of a percent).
What I want to warn people is that before you spend thousands of dollars buying a course or mentor, beware!!! This is a time consuming process and you probably won't recoup the investment you make.
There is another very interesting detail...there is a lot of competition as many BIG investors specialize in this. You will compete with others and the sales pitch that will tell you that there are many "left over" liens is another partial truth. Yes there are left overs, but the liens are very much picked over and the best ones go first. So again, this is a business venture more than it is an investment venture. You will have to learn what to do and you will have to compete for these liens. Once you learn the system you can make well above average returns, but you need to realize that there is a learning curve you need to go through and there are many courses out there, many of which are worthless even though they charge a lot of money for them.
Even though the person who provides the training course can provide evidence that they've bought liens, they are in the education business. You want someone who is going to instruct you in the process not just sell you a program.
If you read nothing more than this first paragraph understand this. There is more to it than what most tell you so proceed with caution. This simple advice can save you thousands of dollars.
Some Tips
First of all you are probably going to want to get someone's course. Why try to learn this on your own. Someone has compiled the necessary information so for a few hundred dollars you can learn from them.
However, you need to do some research on the companies that you are inquiring about. It is very simple these days. Just do a Google search of the company name, the name of the individuals involved, a "complaints about" search, etc. Many people will just go to the BBB, which is an okay resource, but there are so many different divisions you would really need to check them all. Internet complaint sites can compile all the necessary information in one place.
Find out what other customers say. Another thing to watch out for is if the company makes it sound too good to be true, it probably is. This is work! You aren't going to just sit in your home, hit a few keystrokes and earn 36%. While there are some online methods of operating this, they are limited to a handful of counties and there is still a lot of work involved.
While I am not going to recommend anyone or tell you to stay away from any one I will recommend you do one thing. There is one company called Tax Lien Lady and she has several free videos. While I am not recommending her, what I like about her videos is that even though she has products for sale her videos are not just about pushing products. She actually gives both the good and the bad information about tax lien investing.
I would suggest you search out all the companies (they all have videos) watch a bunch of the free stuff (making sure you don't get suckered into a good sales pitch) and try to figure out as much of the upside, work, and downside before you ever spend dime one.
Following my advise will do the following:
- At least 85% of those interested will decide this is not for them.
- 10% will be suckered into a good sales pitch, spend a lot of money, and never buy a tax lien
- 5% will obtain the right help and actually learn the business and make money.
Be smart!
