So, you have spotted a home that you would love to purchase and you want to reach out to the current owner. Or, maybe you are looking to open a business and need a space to rent; you’ll need to know who the property owner is in order to share your interest in opening up shop in their building. Either way, learning who owns a property can be important information.
Finding the property could also about the land. A city representative may be interested in building a commercial facility in a rural area, or a developer may have their sights set on an up and coming area. In this article, we will discuss how to find out who owns a property in a residential area, as well as how to find a commercial property owner.
How To Check Who Owns A Property
There are resources online that house public records and databases with all of the information you are looking for. The following section will focus primarily on how to find out who owns a residential property with the help of online records.
Assessor’s Office To Find a Property Owner
There is a County Assessor in every county who is in charge of determining the market value of the properties in their jurisdiction. The County Assesor’s Office typically has a website feature that allows anyone to search for tax records and property information, as long as you have the address of the property. Typically, you will want to look for the Property Record Card Search if you have a property address or parcel number. You can also use the Public Access Tax Information research feature if you have a name, address, parcel number, or duplicate number for the property.
Or, simply type your county + “Assessor’s Office property search” into your search engine. Keep in mind, the County Assessor is also called the County’s Property Appraiser in some areas.
Using the Registry of Deeds To Find Out Who Owns A Property
Look up the Registry of Deeds for your county and locate the feature that says “property search” and enter the address of the property. The latest deed will tell you who owns the house now, and who owned it prior to the current owner.
Lookup Property Owners Online
In addition to searching public records from the Assesor’s Office and Registry of Deeds, there are multiple online databases you can use to find out who owns a property. Google search “property owner records” and you’ll see links to Reonomy, NETR Online, and Property Shark. All you need is the address of the property, and you can usually find out basic information about the current owner. Some of these websites may charge a fee to search through their database.
How To Find Out Who Owns A House For Free
If you are unable to find out who owns a property with the resources mentioned above, there are a few more old-school methods you can try. If you know the address of the property, you can always send them a letter or postcard in the mail. Introduce yourself and explain to the property owner why you are interested in knowing more about the building or plot of land. Leave your contact information (email and phone number) so they have a way of replying.
If you know someone in the neighborhood, you could also talk to neighbors of the property and see if anyone can introduce you to the property owner.
As a last resort, you might consider hiring a private investigator (PI). Private investigators often have an expensive hourly rate, so this method is much more expensive than doing a simple online search. However, you will be able to find out much more information with the assistance of a PI.
What If The Property Doesn’t Have An Address?
If a property doesn’t have an address, you should use something called a parcel number to find the property owner. Both an address and a parcel number are kept on file by the Assessor’s Office for all properties.
So, how do you find a property’s parcel number? The Assessor’s Office has Parcel Maps that map out every lot in a city or township. You can usually view these maps online on the Assessor’s Office website. Parcel numbers can be formatted differently in different jurisdictions, so be sure to ask the Assessor’s Office how to read the parcel map if you are confused.
How To Find A Commercial Property Owner
The most common reason people will look for a property owner is to find out more information about a residential space or lot. However, there are reasons you might want to search for the owner of a commercial property, too. For instance, commercial real estate agents are always on the lookout for commercial properties to show their clients. They need to have a constant stream of available spaces that are ready to be leased or bought out. So, they may have to do some digging to see if a property owner is willing to sell or rent their space.
Business owners may also want to find property owners if they are looking for a home for their business. Or, maybe they are curious about the cost to rent or buy in a certain area and want to chat with a nearby property owner to get a better idea of the price. Regardless of your goals, the steps are the same: reach out to the Assessor’s Office, look through an online database, or simply visit send a message to the business if they are still open.