How to Check Public Records for a Property Lien
- 1). Some municipal tax assessor offices and counties now make property records available online, while others require you to travel to the office to search in person. Determine if your local city or town makes property records available through their Web site. To do this, start on the city or county home page. Look for a listing of departments, which may be across the top or side of the page. Scroll down until you reach the tax assessor or property record section. Once there, look to see if there is an option to search for property records. If so, type the name of the property owner or the exact address of the property into the online search function. If not, you will need to go to the office in person or call on the phone.
Some states have a central Web site location to search for property records. For example, in New Hampshire, users can go to www.nhdeeds.com and then click on the map to the area of the state or specific county where they want to search for a property lien. - 2). Find the address and hours of operation for your local tax assessor's office and/or registry of deeds office if they do not have an online property search option.
- 3). Travel to the local tax assessor's office or county registry of deeds in person. Explain to the representative of either office that you are looking for any outstanding liens on a property. Provide them with the name of the owner and the address of the property.
- 4). Obtain a copy of the property lien if needed for your records.
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