Want to know how to do a quitclaim deed in Georgia? Let’s talk about quitclaim deeds and how they work. Note that it’s not a quick claim deed; it’s a quitclaim deed.
Today, I’ll cover how to do a quitclaim deed in Georgia. You’ll also learn about tax lien certificates, tax-defaulted property, and Georgia’s redeemable tax deeds.
I’m Ted Thomas, and for over 25 years, I’ve been teaching and guiding others in the arena of tax liens and tax deeds. Most of that time, I’ve been an investor. My experience is from working in the trenches and actually buying and selling.
I’m not an attorney, real estate broker, or certified public accountant. My experience comes from doing this business of tax liens and tax-defaulted real estate.
Let’s dive right in and figure out this business of a quitclaim deed in Georgia.
Table of Contents:
- Get Exceptional Returns on Tax Lien Certificates
- Georgia Sells Redeemable Tax Deeds
- Selling Property With a Quitclaim Deed in Georgia
- Why Use a Georgia Quitclaim Deed?
- Alternatives to Using a Quitclaim Deed
- Conclusion
Get Exceptional Returns on Tax Lien Certificates
Most investors are attracted to the tax-delinquent property business because the income returns are exceptional.
Tax lien certificates pay outrageous interest rates. I have seen rates as low as 8% in Oklahoma, However, today, I believe the lowest rate currently on a tax lien certificate is in Long Island, New York, Suffolk, and Nassau counties. Each pays 12% annualized interest.
For the record, annualized is 1% a month for the 12 months.
The highest interest I’ve experienced was a few years ago in Michigan, which paid 50% on a tax lien at the time.
Georgia Sells Redeemable Tax Deeds
Georgia is a redeemable tax deed state. This simply means the county will auction a tax deed at a public auction to the highest bidder.
Georgia’s Tax Delinquent Property Auctions
Georgia has 159 counties, listed here. Each county is authorized by the state legislature to auction tax-defaulted properties.
The winner at the tax-defaulted auction receives a redeemable tax deed. However, that does not mean the winner gets possession of the property.
Redeemable means the property owner has 1 year to come forward and redeem the tax deed that was sold at the auction.
Georgia’s Redeemable Tax Deed Penalty Rate
In order to redeem the tax deed, the property owner must pay 100% of the taxes that were paid at the auction, plus a penalty of 20%. The investor who purchased the redeemable tax deed at the auction receives that payment from the property owner and gets all of their money back, plus a 20% return on investment.
The 20% penalty is due and payable to the property owner. Whether they pay the taxes one day late or 365 days late, it doesn’t matter. The property owner must pay the delinquent taxes plus a 20% penalty.
This is a unique process. Redeemable tax deeds generate penalty returns in 5 different states.
The new investor is buying a redeemable tax deed at auction. After 365 days, the investor may initiate a foreclosure process.
Selling Property With a Quitclaim Deed in Georgia
The county or the property owner always has the option to sell the property with a deed, or they could sell with a quitclaim deed in Georgia. A quitclaim deed disclaims any responsibility for structural defects or title defects.
A quitclaim deed transfers a property from seller to buyer. The seller is referred to as a grantor, and the buyer is referred to as the grantee.
Why Use a Georgia Quitclaim Deed?
Why would the seller be interested in using a quitclaim deed in Georgia? The answer lies in the protection from lawsuits and relief from any property burdens.
A quitclaim deed usually disclaims any responsibility for the property or to the title. Just fill out a quit claim deed form to complete the whole process if you plan on transferring property to another person.
The burden becomes directly on the new owner.
Title companies and title insurance companies will struggle when they see quitclaim deeds. The way to avoid that challenge is to “become the banker” by providing seller financing and bypassing title insurance.
Alternatives to Using a Quitclaim Deed
Buyers and sellers have alternatives. The new buyer’s alternative is simple.
Hire an attorney and ask them to perform a quiet title process. This will clear the title. It’s a time-consuming process, maybe months, plus it’s costly and could be $3,000 or $4,000.
Another alternative to filling out a Georgia quit claim deed is to utilize owner financing, create a contract for the deed, and sell the property in installments.
The tile company may be more receptive to a contract for a deed used in an installment sale.
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed Ted’s lesson, “How to Do a Quitclaim Deed in Georgia.”
A quitclaim deed is a way to transfer ownership of a property while disclaiming responsibility for the state of the property or the title. The new owner takes on all the responsibility.
Transferring a property in this manner may present a challenge if you want to use a title company or title insurance company. A way to bypass the title companies is to do seller financing and sell the property on an installment plan.
Another alternative is to quiet the title. The quiet title process can be costly and time-consuming, but it clears the title. Once the legal process of quieting the title is complete, title companies and title insurance companies will be satisfied.
Quitclaim deeds and quiet titles are used by tax-defaulted property investors.
Georgia is a redeemable deed state that pays a 20% return if the property is redeemed at any time within the first year.
When you purchase a tax deed in Georgia, you don’t get immediate ownership of the property. The owner has one year to redeem it by paying the back property taxes owed plus a 20% penalty.
If they don’t pay after 365 days, then you can foreclose on the property. So you either get a 20% return on your investment, or you get the property.
If you’d like to learn more about investing in tax-delinquent property, how to transfer property, quitclaim deeds, and real estate ownership, there’s no one more qualified to teach you than Ted Thomas, America’s leading authority on tax lien certificates and tax-defaulted property investing.
Ted Thomas is the only one who provides full support and complete training with home study courses, Q&A webinars, live tutorials, workshops & web classes, and personal one-on-one coaching.
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