All Forum Posts by: Tim L.

Great thread guys. A lot of good info here.

Thanks for the info guys. I agree that 5% doesn't really seem worth it to me when I can invest that cash elsewhere for a higher return. I'll probably just throw some bids around 10% and see what happens.

@Michael Lemieux Apparently the state mandates a minimum 5% interest, regardless of the result of the auction. But I need to double check that.

Regarding your approach, in Florida you can only force a foreclosure auction of the property if the cert is not redeemed, so you don't actually get the title (unless you also win the foreclosure auction).

I think our state is one that you would primarily be focused on the interest rates, not the chance of acquiring a property at a huge discount. But again, I could be wrong.

I'm thinking of getting in on the tax certificate auction in Pinellas county. This would be my first crack at tax certs, and I had a few quick questions for the veterans here.

My criteria will be as follows:

- Type of property: SFR

- Location: beach side communities I am familiar with

- Improvements representing at least 75% of the total value

I plan to do my research and make sure that the properties I bid on have a high probability of being redeemed, since I would prefer not having to go through the foreclosure process down the road. However, judging from previous auctions, it appears that the majority of these are going for a piddly 0.25% interest. I did notice that there were some higher interest rates sprinkled in, but then upon researching the properties, those places wouldn't really meet my criteria.

What would be a good bid to place? Is 0.25% the norm now? I was hoping to get much higher than that, so I'm thinking about just placing higher bids on a lot of properties and seeing what happens. If I don't win any, then I'm right back where I started.

Thoughts?

@Eric Haury Welcome to the site. I live in the Jupiter / Palm Beach Gardens area, and just starting out as well. Looking to work on my first deal very soon.

If you haven't done so already, make sure to check out the podcasts. There are a ton of them, and each one is full of great information to help you determine your own niche/strategy.

See you around the site!

Thanks for the info Jerry.

Looks like I just missed this first meeting. I live in northern Palm Beach county and work until 7pm the night of the next meeting, but I would love to make it to the next one, even if I'm a little late. I think it would be very beneficial for me at this stage to hear what some other local investors are up to.

Hope to meet you all soon!

Congrats! As another newbie investor I can't wait for the day that I I get that first check. Here's to many more!

Thanks again guys. I'm in the planning/learning/formative stages right now, but I'm sure I'll be asking to pick the brains of all the seasoned investors very soon.

The latest thing I've been doing is listening to the podcasts. To any other new members, those are very informative and entertaining. I would definitely suggest to spend some time there.

I'm in a very similar boat at Ali Dawood, but I'm 2 years out already. Graduated with 250k debt, making roughly 125k. Not a fun place to be by any means, and while I'm still nowhere near knocking these loans out, at least I have some momentum going now.

Keep us posted on your progress, and best of luck to you.