Hey guys/gals, I've got several decent leads in GA that don't have much meat for sharing with attorneys nd HOA. Thinking about how I can close in house and flip to some builders, (is that wholesale?) .Was thinking that I could just get a title search to verify title without liens, using a quit claim deed in house and record it with the county, flip it to a builder at below market for a fast sale.
The issues here, which I didn't learn till I mailed and got INUNDATED with response in this one neighborhood, is first GA is an attorney close state but I keep hearing others say they have done it without an attorney ($500 savings). Second, the HOA costs are about $1620 to transfer title to my name ($620 HOA fee, $500 Transfer fee, $250 Special Ass. fee, $250 Title clearance= $1620) these are all going to the HOA, not including the $500 to title close. I thought about not recording them with the HOA, and just flipping to a builder quick. Any issues with this?
So if I'm buying lots at $1000 + $1620 HOAs + $500 title= $3120, it doesn't leave much ROI.
What are your thoughts on this? Anyone closed in house in GA with a cash sale? Do I even need to record it with the county if Im doing a quick sale to a builder?
Hey @spencer-anderson - what do you think these properties would reasonably sell for on the back end? That's probably the most important piece of information I didn't catch in your original post above.
There are a TON of junk lots out there with no real meat on the bone, especially when you add in those kinds of HOA transfer fees (that's kinda crazy), and it's probably why you got inundated with responses from that one neighborhood. For me, a lot of red flags go up when I see everyone in one small area desperate to sell their property. It doesn't always mean you should run, but sometimes it does.
As for the Georgia closing issue, I've actually heard from others as well that they have closed plenty of deals in-house, without an attorney. I'm not sure if they were just intentionally breaking the rules, or if you really can legally get away with it through some means. I can't give you much advice on that other than to tread carefully until you really know what the rules are. If you do know of someone who has closed without an attorney there, it might be worth having a conversation with them to verify what happened and how they were able to pull it off.
1 Like
@retipsterseth Properties go for between $4k-$10k and if they border the water and have good topo they can go up to $20k. I have a few leads I'm working that are in the $5k range for a quick flip to a builder and one around $15k (I think, not many good comps at this range). I got one yesterday that I renegotiated from $3577 down to $1200 a week ago and then she calls yesterday and asked if she could just quit claim it to me for $100? Of course I said "yes" but I decided to go to title with it after speaking with the attorney today and was told you cannot sell the lot to anyone until you pay ALL the $1650 fees to the HOA. So, I've decided to take it to title and see what happens on the back end.
I also spoke with a fellow today that agreed to my $2577 offer and after telling him I have to do a major renegotiation with him due to the HOA fees, he stopped me and said if I just pay the back fees, to be determined tomorrow, he would give it to me. Plus I have another parcel that I offered $3577 for and he wanted $10k, borders the Corp. of Engineers land, I gave him the same spiel about having to renegotiate and we are on break until I come up with a better offer.
A few things learned here:
- Just send the mail, don't worry about how close you are on the offers, given you don't mind talking on the phone and have the time to renegotiate. I have renegotiated SO much lower on these lots and people are receptive.
- When a seller wants/ needs to get rid of the land, a simple phone call goes a LONG way in the negotiations.
- Time is your friend in negotiations
I think I can move these parcels within the next few months for a 2x-2.5x return to builders and do pretty good. Not gonna worry about the self closing on this neighborhood. Thanks for the response and willingness to help Seth!
2 Likes
@spencer-anderson - that's a good lesson learned about communication in general. Being a good communicator can cover a multitude of "sins" so to speak, or just helps deals to happen when they otherwise wouldn't (i.e. - being ready to call people back and/or answer the phone can go a long way, much further than cold blind offer with no willingness to get on the phone).