Tax liens gurus and properties and horror stories

Investor · Atlanta · Member since 2019 · 537 posts · 91 votes

Hi,
I see lot of tax lien gurus in social media charging money promising home purchase around 1000-10000 range. I am confused. I never did tax lien purchase in remote states, areas. What are pros and cons. Deed states better compared to tax lien states. My approach is long term buy and hold. What title issue I get if I buy. Gurus charging thousands of dollars for coaching. What kind of shape property interior etc as never saw property to buy. How to know safety? Are bank owned Reia better? Can I buy myself without paying thousands to gurus. I do not know basics so feeling confused. O like to hear horror stories before jumping. Please advise

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Hersh ShahBusiness Member

Realtor · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2016 · 123 posts · 82 votes

@Gp G. For a buy-and-hold investor, treat a tax sale as a legal process first and a property purchase second.

Georgia isn't a pure lien state or a pure deed state. It sells a redeemable tax deed. The owner, and anyone with a recorded interest such as the mortgage lender, can redeem for 12 months by paying your bid plus a 20% premium (10% for each year after). Plenty of good properties get redeemed, so underwrite it as earning the premium, not as getting the house.

If nobody redeems, you still don't have clean title. You serve a barment notice to cut off redemption, then usually file a quiet title action before a title company will insure it. Plan on roughly 18–36 months and several thousand dollars in legal fees before you can finance, refinance or sell normally.

You buy sight unseen. There's no inspection, and you can't remove occupants until the statutory process is complete. The opening bid is just the tax owed. Anything worth owning gets bid up, so be skeptical of "$1,000–$10,000 house" pitches.

You don't need a guru. Sale lists and rules come from the county tax commissioner or sheriff for free. A Georgia attorney who handles tax deeds is a better use of that money.

On your REO question: for a remote buyer, bank-owned homes let you inspect, finance, and get title insurance at closing. That makes them the better fit until you know the tax-sale process well.

Disclosure: I'm not an attorney :)

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Vaibhav PuranikPro Member
Member since 2025 · 93 posts · 52 votes
1w
I think there is some value in learning from the Guru's but it's not mandatory. The value you get is also in the people who met in these classes and it give you a community of sorts. you can go to them with questions and even get a partner or two out of it. Again, you can skip it, but it will be little harder. You can read books and look at podcasts. But more critical point is I think these rules are very county specific and hence you should start from a county or two of your choice. You will need a partner in local real estate attorney or a title company who can tell you the title curing steps. You can use AI, but I wouldn't be fully trusting of AI in these matters.
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Hersh ShahBusiness Member
Realtor · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2016 · 123 posts · 82 votes
2d
@Gp G. For a buy-and-hold investor, treat a tax sale as a legal process first and a property purchase second.
Georgia isn't a pure lien state or a pure deed state. It sells a redeemable tax deed. The owner, and anyone with a recorded interest such as the mortgage lender, can redeem for 12 months by paying your bid plus a 20% premium (10% for each year after). Plenty of good properties get redeemed, so underwrite it as earning the premium, not as getting the house.
If nobody redeems, you still don't have clean title. You serve a barment notice to cut off redemption, then usually file a quiet title action before a title company will insure it. Plan on roughly 18–36 months and several thousand dollars in legal fees before you can finance, refinance or sell normally.
You buy sight unseen. There's no inspection, and you can't remove occupants until the statutory process is complete. The opening bid is just the tax owed. Anything worth owning gets bid up, so be skeptical of "$1,000–$10,000 house" pitches.
You don't need a guru. Sale lists and rules come from the county tax commissioner or sheriff for free. A Georgia attorney who handles tax deeds is a better use of that money.
On your REO question: for a remote buyer, bank-owned homes let you inspect, finance, and get title insurance at closing. That makes them the better fit until you know the tax-sale process well.
Disclosure: I'm not an attorney :)
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Jim SternBusiness Member
Real Estate Agent · ATLANTA Metro and Surrounding Counties · Member since 2025 · 25 posts · 5 votes
1d
Hey Gp, the breakdown above on Georgia's redeemable tax deed is solid. One thing to add from the lending side: until title is quieted and insurable, you're basically cash-only. Most lenders, DSCR included, won't touch it. Getting a decent insurance policy on a house you can't get inside is tough too. So your money sits for a while before you can refi into the next deal. If the goal is long-term buy and hold, REOs and regular MLS deals let you inspect, finance and get title insurance at closing, which keeps your cash moving. Skip the guru. If you still want to try tax sales, spend that money on a Georgia attorney who handles tax deeds, and watch a few county sales before you bid. And to reiterate Hersh's point above, you will be buying site unseen.
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Chris SeveneyBusiness Member
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Investor · VA · Member since 2015 · 21k+ posts · 19k+ votes
1d
If a guru makes it seem that easy, then why would they need to teach it and not just go do it all for themselves and take all the money for themselves?
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