Code Violations: Your Hidden Goldmine

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Code violations and city liens serve as distress signals from property owners who are often burned out or facing financial difficulties, creating perfect opportunities for off-market real estate deals. By positioning yourself as the solution to these problems, you can access discounted properties that most investors overlook.

• Call or visit your city's code enforcement office to request open code violations lists
• Search for properties with municipal or tax liens at your city/county clerk's office
• Consider paid services like PropStream that compile public records of violations
• Market directly to distressed owners with empathetic, solution-focused messaging
• Real-world success story: purchasing a four-unit building at 50% discount from an owner facing multiple code violations
• Approach owners with humanity, recognizing they're dealing with stress or financial problems

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Episode Transcript

Ed Mathews (00:00):
Code violations and city liens are more than just
fines and paperwork.
They're cries for help, and ifyou position yourself as the
solution, you'll unlock dealsthat no one else sees coming.
Ever sat in your car scrollingthrough Zillow and thought, man,
if I just knew where to start,I could flip one of these.
Yeah, I've been there too.
Most people who want to fliphouses never even start, not

(00:22):
because they're lazy, butbecause they don't have the
blueprint.
Well, that changes today.
If you give me five minutes,I'll give you real world
flipping strategies thatactually work.
No fluff, no theories, nogatekeeping, just real how-to
information for you to applytoday.
Welcome back to Demo to Dollars,the show where we turn

(00:42):
distressed real estate into cold, hard cash.
I'm your host, ed Matthews, andtoday's episode is for those of
you hunting for hidden gold inyour local market.
Lots of people ask me how Ifind off-market deals.
One of my most reliablestrategies is by searching the
code violations and city liensin my target city.
Most people overlook these, butthat's exactly why they're a

(01:05):
goldmine.
All right, let's break thisdown.
Cities and towns across thecountry keep public records of
properties that are in violationof local codes.
We're talking tall grass,broken windows, junk in the yard
or structures deemed unsafe.
Now why does that matter to you?
Because code violations aredistress signals.

(01:25):
They're often the first visiblesign that a property is
neglected and more often thannot, that owner is either burned
out, broke or both.
Same goes for city liens.
When a city issues fines forthings like unpaid property
taxes, utility bills orunresolved code violations, they
slap liens on the property.
That's public info and it'syour on-ramp to off-market deals

(01:46):
.
So how do you get these lists?
And here are threebattle-tested strategies.
Number one call or visit yourcity's code enforcement office.
Ask for the open codeviolations list or the nuisance
property list.
Some cities give it up freely,others you might need to file a
public records request.
Don't be shy.
You're a taxpayer, you have aright to that data.

(02:06):
Number two go after the lienslist.
Head to your city or countyclerk's office, either online or
in person, and search forproperties with municipal liens
or tax liens.
Filter for residentialproperties, if you can.
Number three leveragetechnology.
There are paid services thatscrape public records for code
violations, utility shutoffs andliens Tools like PropStream,

(02:30):
propertyradar or even ReGrid.
It's an investment, but if onedeal hits, it pays for itself a
hundred times over.
Okay, now that you have the list, what do you do?
Simple, you market to theseowners directly, send them a
letter that acknowledges theirpain, something like hey, I
noticed the city flagged yourproperty.
If you're tired of dealing withit, I'd love to make you a cash

(02:50):
offer and take it off yourhands.
No commissions, no repairs,just a fair offer and a clean
break.
Keep it human, not corporate,dealing with a whole lot of
stress, debt or both.
Empathy goes a long way.
Here's a quick real-worldexample.
I once bought a four-unitbuilding from a landlord who was
cited for a broken-down frontstep, overgrown grass and an

(03:14):
unregistered vehicle in the yard.
The city was breathing down hisneck.
He just wanted out.
I ended up getting thatproperty for 50 cents on the
dollar.
He got peace of mind, thetenant's got a better property
owner, the city got a problemproperty back on track and I got
a great deal.
Everybody won.
So remember code violations andcity liens are more than just

(03:35):
fines and paperwork.
They're cries for help and ifyou position yourself as the
solution, you'll unlock dealsthat no one else sees coming.
That's the power of thinkingdifferently.
If you got value from today'sepisode, make sure you hit that
subscribe button, leave a reviewand share this with your
investor buddies.
Until next time, happy hunting.
Thanks for listening to Demo toDollars.

(03:56):
If today's episode helped youmove one step closer to your
first or next deal, do me afavor follow us wherever you get
your podcasts so you never missa show.
I'm grateful to be part of yourjourney.
Now get out there and getcracking Bye.
For now.