All Forum Posts by: Jerel Ehlert

The question of "who pays the back taxes" is always a negotiation point.  @Anna Brent, not exactly sure what you mean by "re-assigned".  Property sold at auction has a right of redemption.  

@Gavin Snyder If someone pays the taxes that are due, then that taxing authority who was paid cannot sue for taxes because none are due.  However, when new taxes are due, they can sue for that new amount.  They can also sell the property for court costs and attorney's fees incurred, so it is not "just" the taxes that need to be paid - all the costs billed to the account.

I am a Texas lawyer, just not *your* lawyer.  That said, QCD is worthless to you as the buyer.  I won't go into a lengthy discussion, only say that QCD doesn't "convey" title, merely disclaims interest.  It does nothing for "after acquired title", as in, seller later gets an ownership interest (divorce or inheritance, or from the party *they* bought from).

Ideally, you want to buy on a General Warranty Deed and sell on a Special Warranty Deed.  If you don't know what those are, Google is your friend.  But, like was mentioned before, most seller that close at a kitchen table don't know the difference.  If it matters to them, try a Deed without Warranty (google).

I have a fair number of cases in tax court at different levels.  Not every taxing authority files suit or joins every time.  That means you may have the County suing, School and MUD may not, but can later.  Title company tax certificates will cover all the bases.

L/Os are still legal, but practically impossible to comply with the requirements under the Tx Property Code. Tenant-Buyer can record the L/O as a deed the next day after signing without your permission. Easier, and safer, to do a wrap.

Usually, the title just distinguishes the type of probate (with will, without a will).  It makes almost no difference to you - you are addressing the person with the power of sale for the estate.

Anyone can represent anyone else in JP court eviction. in Texas.  As of last legislative session, same goes for appeal to County Court, but I haven't seen that yet.

If this is in Texas, it violates the Tx Property Code.  Landlord, not PM, is liable for up to 3 times the amount wrongfully withheld.  LL cannot deduct for usual wear and tear, but only damage in excess of that.  Could be a DTPA claim in there too, kicking it up to District Court instead of JP court.

Sounds like an expensive lawsuit they are selling.

File your notice of protest by 5/31.  You can hire a company to protest all for a % of what they save you.

But don't be too quick to "damn the man".  Higher property taxes save Texas from the brunt of the real estate bubble.  Lenders look at a borrower's income to determine how much loan they can afford to service (total monthly payment).  Property taxes took out a chunk, so they could only afford to borrower less in Texas than in a lower property tax jurisdiction.  That meant we had fewer dollars bidding up the price of property.  When the bubble burst, ours happened to be smaller.

Get the contract and open title.  This is where "investor friendly" really means something in deciding which title company to use.  Some escrow officers are not as familiar with handling un-probated estates as others.  A new escrow officer without backup will likely reject the file or freeze up.  Good ones, who know what to do, can do a lot without having you or the seller hire one of us lawyers - in other words, there are a number of curative instruments to get you marketable title.  Most commonly used is an affidavit of heirship (AH).

If it gets too dicey for the underwriter to feel comfortable issuing a policy, you will need to help the seller locate an attorney to open a probate case (because if the seller could have done it on her own, she would have by now).  The goal is to get an order determining heirship (PDH) from the Husband's estate.  Based on that, any title company will be able to close escrow and issue policy.  You will have to assist the seller to get what the attorney needs, and it looks very similar to an AH.  If the estate isn't worth much (<$50K), and no debts, small estate affidavit (SEA) might suffice.  A PDH and SEA are court orders based on documents and hearing testimony.  There are other ways to probate an estate, but these are the most common in trying to sell a house out of an estate.

Each attorney will be different, but the cost will be driven by how good your facts are (how long ago H died, # of kids from marriage, kids from outside marriage, # and availability of witnesses to family matters, etc.).  The law is fairly straight forward, if you are used to working with genealogy.  If someone comes out and contests the sale, that will drive up costs significantly.

The attorney works for the seller/heir.  When I've taken cases like this, the investor-buyer usually refers the client to me.  I can take payment from (almost) any party who isn't adverse to the client, with the understanding that the client is ultimately responsible.  I have taken payment from the sale of the house.  Sometimes the client covers expenses and my fees are paid at close.  It just depends on how good the case is (i.e., likely that the client is named heir and can close).

Court costs to start is about $300, ad litem (court appoints attorney to represent unknown heirs) is $500-1000, serving parties is $75-100 per party.  On top of that, attorney's fees run the gambit, but SEA is $500-1500, PDH is $2000-5000.  Contested probate cases are almost universally at the attorney's hourly rate.

Lastly, going to probate isn't fast.  Everything depends on the county and court's docket size.  SEA can be 4-8 weeks.  PDH is 4 months to 18 months, or more (contested).  Your facts will be a driver here, too.

I just wouldn't.  The pitfalls are everywhere if done incorrectly or doesn't include necessary items.  A note has "magical phrases" to make it enforceable.  All docs have to be signed in the proper capacity. The deed can include language to make it enforceable to foreclose (judicially) if there are defects in the DoT (and we don't use mortgages in Texas).

A set of closing docs usually isn't that expensive to have drafted by an attorney.  I'm only licensed in TX (all of Texas), and my Note, Deed, Deed of Trust, and closing instructions is only $500.  That falls pretty much in line for a one-off set of docs.  

As an IRA account holder, it is questionable if you can draft them for your IRA because a) might be practicing law, or b) more likely, providing services to your IRA (violation of the rules). It is odd that the custodian is asking for all that extra, and may be stepping over the line to providing legal advice. Finally, your custodian will need to have "read and approved" signed by you on at least some of the docs. Certain docs will need to be recorded. Your custodian MUST have the wet-ink signature of the note (and you ought to know why).

This all skips the part where you did your underwriting.  Get a copy of the borrower's TXDL. Credit check. Business references. Comps. Inspection. Appraisal. Scope of rehab. etc.

Just hire a lawyer, licensed in TX, and familiar with the process.  You will thank yourself later.

If you have a legal description (full-legal-description, including plat # or survey), I can assist on getting an abstractor's report, which pulls all instruments filed in the real property records on that parcel.  Once you get the list of parties in interest, the real investigative work begins.  Tracking down all the heirs, getting affidavits of heirship, etc.  Don't use quit claim deeds.  Once you get a deed from one heir, you can file a partition suit to clean up the rest.  You just have to make a business decision on whether you can turn a profit after tracking down people and getting title.