You Received an Offer to Buy Your Land – is it a Scam?

Hi, I’m Beth with TB Properties Buys Land. Today I’m going to talk about the scam factor. So you got a letter in the mail and it’s addressed to you. It says that you’ve got 20 acres out in Timbuktu county and they’re offering you X number of dollars for that property. Is this a scam? How do you know that the letter that you received in the mail isn’t a scam? I mean, today you have to consider that everything out there is a scam it seems like. Almost every day I get some kind of crazy phone call. Have you gotten a phone call where they say, they’re the IRS? I had one where they said they were from the IRS and they needed gift cards for me to pay my supposed back taxes. So… the IRS is taking gift cards now…? Scam!

In today’s age you need to be concerned about scams and how to protect yourself. Maybe you’re actually interested in selling your rural vacant land, but you don’t know whether this is a scam, this letter that you’ve got in the mail, and you’re trying to figure out how do I work through this? And is it legitimate? Let’s discuss the different ways that you can sell your land. There’s different ways that a real estate investor will buy land. One way is trying to do a self close.

It can be a legitimate a way in which a real estate investor tries to save money. In this scenario they will do their own title searches on your property to make sure that you have proper chain of title, that there’s no liens against the property. By doing so, they put some risk on themselves, but they save money by not going through a title company. One important thing for you to know as a land seller is that your property is not going to be conveyed to anyone else until you sign the actual deed in front of a notary and the it is recorded. Okay?

So you’re not losing your land, you’re not losing your property, it’s not being conveyed to somebody else until you have signed the deed and it has been notarized before being recorded with the county. So when people do a self close, when investor does a self close, oftentimes they will hire a third-party notary. That notary will show up at your door and you will sign the deed in front of the notary. They will notarize it and they give you the funds at that time. One important thing to ask is what kind of money are you getting?

Is it a cashier’s check? Is it a money order? Or are they just giving you a personal check that could possibly bounce? These are questions for you to consider if you’re selling your land and someone is doing a self close that way. Are there possibilities for fraud in a scenario like this? Absolutely. Not always, but it can happen, especially if you are not clear on their process or if something unexpectedly changes. If you’re not really savvy on real estate and working with real estate sales, do you feel comfortable going with something like this?

I know for me, when I am doing something new and potentially risky, I like to work with professionals I can count on. So who are these professionals? They’re Title Companies. When you’ve bought or sold your home, most likely you went through a title company. Title Companies are third party intermediaries. They have no vested interest in your particular transaction. This is why that we at TB Properties Buys Land like to work with a title company on every transaction because we know that we’re offering protection for our land sellers. They can feel comfortable that they’re working with professionals, who do transactions like this all day long, every day. That is the prime function of a Title Company.

Safety and protection are important when you are trying to sell your land.

Do you feel safer closing your vacant land sale through a Title company?

Now for us, we feel like it’s safer as well, because we know that the paperwork that they’re doing, the title search, they’re not going to miss anything, such as if there are any liens or any chain of title issues. If there is a chain of title issue, that might be something the title company can take care of so that you can still sell your land to us and everything can go through well. Safety and protection are important when you are trying to sell your land.

If you’re worried whether the offer you received is a scam or not, look online, check reviews, that kind of thing, but find out how they’re going to try to buy the property. How is the transaction being conveyed? Are you working through a title company? Is it possible for you to call that title company and work with them directly so that you can ask questions directly of the title company, the one that’s issuing you the funds? Are you going to receive your funding through a wire transfer or cashier’s check? How are you protected? These are questions that you should be able to talk to the title company directly. If someone is trying to stop you from calling them directly for any questions about your transaction, then that should be an immediate red flag. You should always feel in control of the sale of your land.

If someone is trying to stop you from calling the Title Company directly for any questions about your transaction, then that should be an immediate red flag.

Do you believe transparency is key in the sale of your vacant land?

Hopefully this has answered some questions for you when it comes to selling your land and finding out if something’s a scam. If you have any questions about working with TB Properties Buys Land, please reach out to us. This is precisely why we have very simple purchase agreements. They’re simply one page. They’re easy enough to understand. This is why TB Properties Buys Land works with title companies, reputable title companies in the area.

And this is why we encourage you as a land seller to contact title companies directly and ask them any questions that you might have. We’re here for you throughout the process. We’re happy to answer those questions but we want to make sure that there’s transparency throughout the process so that you, as a land seller, feel comfortable. We want you feel comfortable and for you to fully understand what’s going on. You understand that you’re getting paid exactly the amount of money that is listed on that purchase agreement and that you are reassured that everything is going to be fine and legitimate. This is extremely important to us, your comfort level.

If you have any direct questions for us, please feel free to reach out to us, give us a call at 214-699-4455, shoot us an email, or find us on our website. We’re happy to answer any questions that you might have, and we look forward to working with you. Thanks again.

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