Most wholesalers have never heard of Affidavit of Heirship leads - here's why they're worth knowing about
Been working Texas markets for a while and wanted to share something most wholesalers completely overlook.
When someone dies in Texas and leaves behind real property, heirs can establish ownership by filing an Affidavit of Heirship directly at the county clerk's office - no probate court required. This happens both when there's no will and when a title company requires it as part of a transaction to satisfy underwriting. The document lists the decedent, the subject property, and the heirs by name.
Why this matters for wholesalers:
These filings appear in the public record the day they're filed. The heirs just inherited property they may or may not want to keep. Some will already be working with an agent to list - those you move past quickly. But a meaningful portion are not, haven't decided what to do yet, and are exactly the kind of motivated seller wholesalers are looking for.
I started working this lead type in Bexar County. Roughly 5 out of 100 filings I worked produced someone open to talking about selling - that is including the ones who never picked up or had a dead number. Bexar county produces roughly 40 filings per week.
A few things worth knowing if you want to work this lead type:
The filings are public record - accessible free through your county clerk's office, although tedious to pull manually.
The optimal contact window is soon after filing - the families may be still figuring out what to do with the property and you want to be the first conversation they have to build solid rapport.
The families are grieving - this is an inherited property lead, empathy first always
On rare occasion not every heir is identified - I have seen a deal blow up because not every heir was listed in the affidavit, do your due diligence on whether or not every heir was listed in the form.
Has anyone else worked AOH leads in Texas? Curious about what conversion rates others are seeing.