How to find motivated seller leads from code violation properties, here are 19 ways.

by | Real Estate Investing, Indy Anna, Uncategorized

You can download the below graphic in .pdf by clicking HERE.

Here are 19 ways to get a list properties with CODE VIOLATIONS.

First of all, THANK YOU again for making this channel the number one channel for Indiana real estate on YouTube according google analytics and SocialBlade info for BigReia.com.

So getting a list of properties with code violations can be a huge asset for you and a great source of deals…

– Each area will be dramatically different
– We came up with the BEST and most complete checklist that I know of
– We are the only ones in the IN, OH and MI that have are sending a regularly updated list of properties with code violations

Maybe you can just call your county and get the list, but probably not so that’s when you go into overdrive and follow my policies.

So I made a whole post about this and did a video.

I Wanted to Build a List of Code Violation Properties

You can make money with this even if you don’t buy a single property.  That is what some of the Kids are doing.  So the term “code violation” is pretty broad and can include things like litter in the yard and overgrown lawn all the way to open brothels and dead bodies.  You want the latter not the former.

Once they are in violation they will often get an orange or yellow sign in the window or in the yard.  This will have words like “Unsafe to Occupy”, “Public Notice” or “Unlawful”, etc.

How do you get a list of properties in code violation?

I’m sharing this with you so you can do the same thing, in the next video I’ll show you how I’m adding an extra $1,500 a week with this list and that is without doing a single deal just by giving people access to it lol.

I also went over this on the page of 100 FREE ways to find motivated sellers, so you can check that out too.

Here are 19 ways to get a list properties with CODE VIOLATIONS

So in this case that it isn’t as just calling your local city building, here’s what we do.  This is how I’ve been able to build my list of these properties in code violations while it seems nobody else in the Midwest (not just Indiana) has done.

Here’s how we do it…

1.)  Contact your local health department.

Find out if they have a list or a partial list and if they can direct you to somebody else for more.

2.)  Inspectors have or can build this list as well

Treat inspectors like contractors and place a high value on them.  They can have access to many different kinds of deals as well as lists of code violations as well.

3.)  Ask your city/ward councilmen’s office.

They often try to have community redevelopment programs so they can help you get this list of properties as well.

4.) Call your zoning and planning department for you city.

You can learn a lot about what the city is planning, zoning maps, new rules and regulations, etc.  And, of course, they can potentially tell you about all the code violations properties.  Here’s an example of Carmel’s zoning and planning site, there is a lot info there.  Nearby cities include Noblesville and Fishers, those are just a few examples.

5.) Visit your city hall and meet with violations inspectors.

You may only get their staff and sometimes they can immediately hand you a list of all the code violation properties, then you go next door and they say it is illegal lol.

6.)  Contact your City Secretary or Clerk

This may depend on your area, we’ve done this all over, in Houston, Dallas, Carmel, etc.  The results are going to vary because sometimes you just make a request and they can send you over an entire list.  Sometimes a partial list or sometimes they will refer you to somebody else.

7.) City Council Meeting’s Minutes.

In some places the properties that in code violations are recorded in the minutes of the local municipalities’ meetings.  Go search for you city council’s or county boards meetings (or ask to find out who handles the code violations) and then the minutes from their meetings.  Here’s an example of the council’s minutes I’m talking about.

Once you know the section where they discuss this you ask to be sent the meetings minutes as soon as they are available.  Or you can hire a VA or a Tot to go download the list every month and update your excel file.

8.) Search for Records by Document type.

Sometimes an area will not upload or share their entire list.  So there is another way to deal with this.  First take a property that you know has a code violation, then pay attention to what and HOW the city records their code violation.

Now that you know the document type, who it was recorded by and how, now you can search for every filing of that kind of document.  I recently did this where I was told that the “property code violation” list was impossible to get because nobody kept one lol.   Then I came back with a doc request and that got me the entire list lol.  So often the way we are looking at something, or describing it can determine what it is that you get.

Time for opportunity or fear?

9.)  Neighbors

They are usually the first to know about the properties around them that get “marked”.  They’ll usually know EVERYTHING about the owner’s situation and can help everybody.  You can build your network of bird dogs and nosy neighbors and they’ll be like your little spies across the city reporting deals back to you.

10.) Realtors

A good realtor can make a big difference.  They know the areas, they know the inspectors, buyers, rehabbers, etc.  You want to have best realtors in those areas staying on top of this for you, as long as you follow our training they will because you will be making them money.

11.)  Title companies

They have a lot of access like realtors and they are the first to know if/when a deal falls apart especially if it is because of something like a code violation or even a potential one.

12.) Search the MLS

Look for your local board of realtors and see how you can do a public search of the MLS for free.  Indy Mibor looks like this this here.  If you can find that then you search for code violations that way under the search criteria.

13.) Investors and Wholesalers

This can be your “We Buy Homes” guys or the landlords or anybody else.  Wholesalers often have a good idea about code violations or condemned properties and so I work with them a lot.  Sometimes I help them by letting them to things on this list and other times I find the investors for their deals.

14.) Newspaper Carriers and Delivery People

I used to be a paperboy, I noticed the smallest changes in my delivery areas.  I knew when people were home and what they were like.  I knew who was in trouble and why.  I had a LOT of powerful knowledge and NOBODY tapped into that.

Your local Sunday paper is the biggest, find out where it is being printed.  This is usually the main HQ or maybe it is at a few different places.  You can also look up your local jobs ads and every week the newspaper prints the “Need Carriers” ads, they might as well run the ad it is their newspaper HA.

This is where the deliver people pick up the newspapers for routes.

Go there, WAY early in the morning around 4 A.M. or so, and talk with them.  They can be your bird dogs and scouts feeding you info on properties and neighborhoods.  They do one deal a year they can triple their income.

15.) Local Police and Code Enforcement Officers

The call to the local police is usually one of my first one because they can tell you the local hierarchy and who to call if the list is not readily available.  The CE (Code Enforcement) may be involved or combined with another group or have a different name.

16.) Fire Departments

I love working with firemen.  As I explained earlier we do a lot of deals with local fire fighting departments and groups and they can help us code violations as well.  They can get you a full list, a complete up to the minute list of all properties that you need, a partial list or maybe they can just point you in the right direction.

17.) Landscapers

Often cities or munis will have a few landscapers that they prefer to work with and to send business and jobs.  Finding out who they are is as easy asking or calling around.  They can be your eyes in the neighborhoods and give you updates on condemn orders or notices.

They can also tell you when the city is hiring for work and which properties are the worst headaches for the city and property owners.

18.) Pest/Vector/Animal Control AND Animal Rescue 

The most serious of these is vector control but the other ones can also be a real problem.  These guys are often the first to know and to be contacted about severe animal hoarding, property decay, insect/pest infestations, etc.

Usually the city will let a property deteriorate but in many cases the city must step in as to avoid a public safety risk.  Their hope is to bill the owner later or even to take the property back and resell it.  These are headache properties and you can be the first to know about these code violations.

19.) The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

This is can be tricky.  You can learn more about how this request process works HERE.  You can also see the FOIA process outlined here.  An example of a local (Illinois) FOIA request page and online request option is HERE.  There are several examples of FOIA letters HERE.

You can download a free version of a FOIA request for a list of code violation properties in a .pdf version HERE.  If you want to be able to edit that FOIA Request Form you can download the Word version HERE.

There have been MANY FOIA requests that have won and made a big difference in all of our lives.

Sure there are FOIA wins, but the real question is how will you win?  This process is just too tricky to tell for sure what result you’ll have.  Sometimes this request has to be made by certain people and only TO certain people, other times it will cost money and other times.

I’ve seen people quote me over $4,000 to make a FOIC request and others have done it free.  Sometimes both lol, I was told it would be $4,000 to make the offical FOIA request but after I got to know them they totally waived it.

Don’t underestimate how important the relationships are to all of this.

They are what creates Income Immunity.

The single HARDEST thing for any of your competitors to ever replicate will be the number and quality of your relationships.

That is what will give you monopoly-like and unstoppable power.

It’s All About the Benjamins Baby
(Benjamins = RELATIONSHIPS)

The better you develop relationships with people like neighbors, paperboys or even obvious relationships like with realtors – the more uncommonly well you do those common things (like Rockefeller said) the more immune your income is from these resources.

It is to a point where I can make a post like this and explain to you exactly what Anna is doing with NO FEAR that this will impact business.  These relationships have deep roots that most are unwilling to plant and nurture.  We build our Nobody Mountain, this is how you “Create the Standard”.

Easy Breezy.

So I made a whole post about this and did a video.  Also make sure to check out the follow up post I did on how I make $1,500 a week by giving investors access to my list of code violation properties.

Thanks so much!

~ Indy Anna

Want more (brilliantly) EPIC posts of real estate investing and bidness badasssery...?

There is a great post and class on the 38 Ways to Buy Apartment Buildings Zero Down with Pet Policies, and here are some other helpful and EPIC posts... for starters as a real estate investor if you ever want to build a business that makes you 30 grand a month then you MUST do this...

Wanna Create Generational Passive Income Buying Real Estate and Small Businesses?

Here's a class on exactly how to make $30,000 in passive income as an out of state Indy landlord.  Exactly how many Indiana rental properties do you need to make 30 grand a month.  Anna can you help me invest in Indianapolis turnkey real estate investment properties?

There's also a great class Azam did on how anybody can retire in the next 1-2 years with $30,000 a month in passive income by buying and selling businesses zero down.  What about Micro Flipping?  We have a great class on how to start micro-flipping real estate zero down from your house and make $500/day, speed wholesaling 101.

There’s also another great class on how to buy apartment buildings zero down that you can check out as well.  This relates directly to growing income on rental properties.  Speaking of which make sure to check out our epic page on 14 ways to avoid tenants from hell.  Also we have a great post on how to make build a "six figure a month" real estate wholesaling business.

Also here is a post on how I did this and I flipped a house off Zillow for 30.  Also you can check out the post on five steps to flip a house right off Zillow for 40 grand.  You can also check out our other epic post on 57 ways to make money with vacant land.

Here’s another post on how a Hero flipped a house off Zillow and made 40k in a few weeks while he was learning to read.  Also you want to check our post on the EPIC $25 million letter and the copy writing lessons for real estate investors, you'll love it.  Also you can see how ONE letter is making me $9,000 a month.  Also you can check out the post on 101 FREE places to advertise your houses.

Also check out the "SA" class and your REAL chances of create social mobility and income ascension with your real estate business.  Brilliant stuff.  Also there is a great post on the ONLY way you'll ever make 30 grand a month as a real estate investor and/or business builder.  Another brilliant class with a free downloadable Investor Guide is about 19 Ways to Make $10,000 a Month by Helping Tired Landlords.

Plus make sure you check out Azam's post on how to hire a realtor that makes you $10,000 a month... while you sit back with your shoes kicked up on your desk and fingers folded behind your head.  Also there is a great post on how to make five grand a week from putting out signs.

Also we have some great posts on 30 ways to buy real estate with no money down.  That is a two part series so make sure to watch the second part on the 30 ways to buy real estate zero down and with no loans or credit.  I also get questions about our "Epic Flipping" and how to turn $1 into over $25,000 by flipping ordinary items for exponentially high ROI.

And don’t forget our EPIC page on 100 FREE ways to find motivated sellers, we are making the number one page in the world on FREE ways of finding motivated sellers.  Also check out how I find motivated sellers from code violation properties, and also how I make over $1,500 a week giving investors access to that list. 

Speaking of lists, for a list of the "Good People" and My Indy Anna Homeys - this is a FREE list of EVERY possible contact that you'll ever need to build a real estate business in the Indianapolis or the Midwest.

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When I first go started I thought wouldn't it be great if somebody put together ONE list of every possible contact that I would ever need to build a passive income with Indiana real estate - or any Midwest real estate?  Well that's exaclty what I did with our “People Page” here it is:

A totally FREE list of every possible real estate professional contact you’ll ever need to do unlimited deals, start and scale your real estate business and create generational passive income with real estate anywhere Indiana or the Midwest.

Stay here at BigReia.com and you’ll become allergic to being an LC and addicted to improving the world and creating Income Ascension and Social Mobility for you and yours… 

Thanks so much!  = )

Make the Universe Smile.

~ Indy Anna
Love (at) BigReia.com
(YES that's my actual Direct Line and I really do answer lol, so please text me first Thx!)

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100 FREE ways to find motivated sellers.