Where to find out if rentals are free and clear

Question

Hello,

Is there anyway where for free I can find out if rental property is free and clear or how much they still own on the property?

Thanks,

Kyle J. · Answer

Property Radar covers the entire state of California. You can get the owner’s name and address for any property in the county/state. They offer a free trial so you can try out their service and see if it’s what you’re looking for. It’s a lot easier than going down to the Recorder’s Office every time you want to look up a property owner since no Recorder’s Office in California publishes property owner’s info online.

Kyle J. · Answer

@Horacio Gutierrez You can use a service like Property Radar to search by amount of equity. For example, you could search for properties with 100% equity to find properties owned free & clear.

Horacio Gutierrez · Answer

Is it free?

Horacio Gutierrez · Answer

How those it work for los angeles county?

Caleb Heimsoth · Answer

@Horacio Gutierrez. Go to the county website and look if a mortgage was recorded against the property

Kevin Sobilo · Answer

@Michael Gefvert, some areas like mine will not send the tax bills to the lender. I believe its because loans get sold and the loan servicer changes sometimes. So, they put the onus on the owner to make sure the lender has the tax bill.

@Horacio Gutierrez, you can find that there is still an outstanding promissory note/lien on the property, but you're not going to find the outstanding balance in the public record. Check what it last sold for and also have an agent check the MLS for any old listing on the property. Many times the MLS will record the type of financing used. If it was an FHA loan for example you can presume a 30 year loan with 3.5% down and use an amortization schedule to make a reasonable estimate.

Michael Gefvert · Answer

The recorder should have mortgages that are filed against real property.  When I go to check this, the first place I go is the auditor website (ours is easier to search than the recorder) to see whether the tax bill mailing address is to a bank.  If it is, there's almost certainly a mortgage on the property.  If the mailing address is not a bank, I go to the recorder to dig deeper.

Dennis M. · Answer

@Horacio Gutierrez

Call the recorder of deeds in the county the property is located .

Where to find out if rentals are free and clear

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