Help & Support

What's a tax deed?

When a property owner stops paying property taxes, the county eventually auctions the property to recover the unpaid taxes. The winning bidder receives a tax deed — a legal title to the property, free of the prior mortgage in most states. Tax deeds are different from foreclosure auctions; they're typically conducted by the county tax collector, not a court.

Deed state vs lien state — what's the difference?

Tax-deed states (FL, CA, AR, MI, OH, PA, etc.) sell the actual property at auction. The winning bidder owns the property after the sale.

Tax-lien states (AZ, CO, NJ, MD, IL, SC, etc.) sell a lien certificate — the right to collect the delinquent taxes plus interest. If the owner doesn't redeem within a statutory window (6 months to 3 years depending on state), the lien holder can apply for the deed.

Every state page on DeedFlex shows which type applies and the exact statute, with caveats for special property types like homestead or agricultural.

What's an OTC sale?

Over-the-Counter sales are properties that didn't sell at the initial county auction. The county lists them at a fixed price (usually back taxes + fees) and any qualified buyer can purchase them without competing bids. OTC inventory is typically less competitive but also less curated — DeedFlex flags OTC listings with a badge and surfaces them in the Fresh OTC stream.

What survives the sale? (Liens that don't get wiped out)

Most surviving liens fall into four buckets:

• IRS federal tax liens — 120-day post-sale redemption window (IRS can buy you out at your cost + interest).
• Municipal / code enforcement liens — water bills, demolition fees, blight fines often survive in jurisdictions like Florida, Detroit, Baltimore.
• HOA super-priority liens — Nevada and a few others give HOAs priority over even mortgages.
• Environmental cleanup liens — California's biggest hidden risk (Superfund / Mello-Roos).

DeedFlex flags these on the deal-detail page when our county-data shows a match. Every state page lists the typical survivor liens for that state.

Can I actually lose money on a tax deed?

Yes. Common ways: (1) winning bid exceeds the property's actual value because you missed a comp; (2) surviving liens you didn't catch wipe out your margin; (3) property is condemned, contaminated, or land-locked; (4) the owner redeems and your capital is locked for the redemption period earning only statutory interest. Tax-deed investing is high-yield because it's higher-risk than retail. DeedFlex's job is to surface the risk — yours is to verify it on every parcel.

I have $10K. Where do I start?

Most beginners do well with three filters on day one:

1. Use the Beginner-Safe stream — single-family / condo, strong verdict, low risk score, no major flagged liens, bid ≤ $25K.
2. Stick to deed states first (FL, AR, MI, PA, NY) — no capital lock-up after the sale.
3. Bid only on properties you've physically driven by (or where DeedFlex shows a recent street-view image and county photos line up with the listed condition).

Avoid: out-of-state homestead properties (long redemption), commercial parcels (different rules), and any property where the assessed value is suspiciously below the comp average — that's usually a condition issue you can't see from the auction listing.

I forgot my password.

Click Forgot password on the login page. We'll email a reset link that's good for one hour.

Why was I logged out unexpectedly?

DeedFlex allows one active session per account. Logging in on a new device automatically signs you out everywhere else. This is intentional — it keeps your account secure and prevents unauthorized access.

How do I change my email?

Email hello@deedflex.com from your current address with the new email. We'll switch it within one business day.

What plans are available?

Pro — $89/month: Nationwide coverage, unlimited property views, deal scoring, state playbooks, auction calendar, watchlist, email deal alerts, CSV export.

Pro Plus — $200/month: Everything in Pro plus deeper enrichment, bulk CSV export, custom alert rules, API access, 3 team seats, priority support, and Loom walkthroughs.

See the full pricing page for details.

How does the 5-day free trial work?

Sign up via the free trial form. You get full Pro access for 5 days — no credit card required. After 5 days, your trial ends automatically and you'll be prompted to upgrade.

What payment methods do you accept?

All major credit and debit cards via Authorize.Net. Enterprise plans support invoicing.

Will my card be charged automatically each month?

Yes — your subscription auto-renews monthly until you cancel. We email a receipt every cycle, and you can cancel anytime from your account page.

How do I cancel?

Open your account page, scroll to "Cancel Subscription," and click Cancel. You keep access until the end of your current billing period. Your watchlist and saved deals stay exactly where they are if you come back.

Do you offer refunds?

All sales are final once the billing cycle starts. We offer a 5-day free trial so you can try Pro before paying anything. If you have a billing dispute (charged twice, charged after cancelling, etc.), email hello@deedflex.com with your account email and we'll resolve it within one business day.

What if Authorize.Net charged me after I cancelled?

This shouldn't happen — cancellation flips your subscription off immediately. If it did, email hello@deedflex.com with the transaction date and amount. We'll refund the charge and confirm via email.

How fresh is your data?

Our scrapers pull from county auction sites and aggregator platforms (RealAuction, GovEase, Bid4Assets, ArcGIS) on rolling schedules — most counties refresh every 4–24 hours. Listings show a "freshness dot" (green/yellow/red) and the last-verified timestamp.

Do you cover every county in the US?

We cover every state. County-level coverage is expanding monthly — see the state directory for current listing counts. If a specific county is missing, email us and we'll prioritize the adapter.

Why does a property I expected to see not appear?

Three common reasons: (1) the auction hasn't been published by the county yet — they typically post 30–60 days before sale; (2) it's between sale cycles and last sale's inventory has rolled off; (3) the county's site changed structure and our adapter is in repair. If you're sure it should be there, email a link to the county listing and we'll check.

Always verify with the county before bidding

DeedFlex is a research and analytics tool, not legal advice. Auction dates, opening bids, and parcel details can change between scrapes. Always verify directly with the county clerk's office before placing a deposit or bid.

How is the 0–100 deal score calculated?

Four components: price (opening bid vs assessed/market value), risk (lien stack, flood zone, title complexity, owner-occupancy), location (neighborhood income, comps, vacancy rate), title (clearance time, quiet-title cost, redemption window). Click any deal to see the full score breakdown.

What do the risk flags mean?

Each parcel is flagged for known landmines: IRS lien, HOA arrears, flood zone, code violations, mobile-home titling. Flags are pulled from public county records and our scoring engine. Always confirm with a title abstract before bidding on high-stakes parcels.

The score on a parcel feels wrong. How do I report it?

Email hello@deedflex.com with the parcel ID and what looks off. We log feedback against the scoring model and tune monthly.

How do I save deals to my watchlist?

Click the Save button on any deal card. Saved deals appear under Watchlist in the dashboard sidebar.

How do I set up email or SMS alerts?

Visit your alerts settings. Pro tier supports basic alerts (new deals in your states); Pro Plus tier adds custom rules (score thresholds, county filters, max-bid caps).

I'm not getting alert emails.

Check your spam folder first. If they're not there, confirm your email is verified in your account page. If it's verified and they're still missing, email hello@deedflex.com.

How do I export deals to a CSV?

Apply your filters in the dashboard, then click Export CSV in the toolbar. You can pick which fields to include (parcel, address, opening bid, score, lien flags, etc.) before exporting.

What's the difference between Pro and Pro Plus exports?

Pro exports up to 500 rows per request. Pro Plus exports up to 10,000 rows and includes deeper enrichment columns (sqft, year built, ARV estimate).

Is my payment information stored on DeedFlex?

No. All payment processing happens on Authorize.Net's hosted page (PCI-DSS Level 1). DeedFlex never sees or stores your card number, expiration, or CVV.

What information do you collect about me?

Email, name, optional phone (for SMS alerts), and your usage of the dashboard. See the privacy policy for full details. We never sell or rent your data.

How do I delete my account?

Open your account page, scroll to "Delete Account," and follow the confirmation flow. Your data is removed within 30 days.