Meet Chantelle Owens of GA Tax Lien Bootcamp in Perimeter

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chantelle Owens.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Chantelle. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I was blessed to attend Golda Meir School for the Gifted & Talented at seven years old. A school filled with students and teachers from all walks of life, cultures, religious beliefs, financial statuses, educational backgrounds, nationalities, ethnicities, etc. African, Hispanic, Yiddish, Italian, Irish. Wealthy, poor, rich, middle class. Yoruba, Islamic, Jewish, Christian, Kemetic, Catholic. PhD, high-school, college. Privileged, underprivileged. Loving, racist. Gifted, talented. All aspects of life represented. At the very same time, in direct contrast to my school environment, I lived in poverty in Milwaukee, WI. Growing up poor gave me an underlining grit. A spirit to triumph no matter what. A grit I often find myself wishing I could give my five-year-old daughter, Nzuri, without her having to experience the harshness of growing up poor. I learned many valuable lessons growing up in the Housing Authority Projects of Milwaukee.

One of my most vivid childhood memories is of me running in the house crying and scared because I was being chased by our neighborhood bully. I remember my mom asking me, What’s wrong baby girl? My mom made me go back outside and face that bully and let’s just say that bully never bullied me or any of my friends again. That one childhood lesson has carried me through life on numerous occasions. Making me face my worst fears only to realize they were mostly demons in my mind and not solidified in reality. They were only things I thought I couldn’t face.

Traversing these two separate and distinct worlds – home and school at such an early age has gifted me the ability to interact with anyone with both confidence and humility, no matter their station in life… or my own.

Who are you? Hello, my name is Chantelle Owens. The oceanfront is my favorite place in the world. Any ocean will do. I love life and all its experiences. At 46 years old, I’m a proud GenXer. And one day… soon, I would love to be a DJ. It’s definitely on my bucket list. Good vibes, good food, good music, good times with plenty of laughter sums up my vision of myself. To others, I am a mother. A friend. An ally. A leader. A boss. Many people call me Sunshine, others from childhood call me Telley. I am also affectionately called “The Tax Lien Queen” by my real estate colleagues. I think what most people see me as though, is a business owner. A CEO. And although I own a few different businesses, today I am here to share my favorite business of all with you, GA Tax Lien Bootcamp.

I am the founder & CEO of GA Tax Lien Bootcamp, a company I created for the sole purpose of helping 1,000 families do the same exact thing I’ve done… create financial freedom and generational wealth, not only for themselves but for their children and children’s children. All through investing in tax lien properties. Our motto is “Changing Lives & Doing Things”.

What is a tax lien you say?
Tax liens are basically a debt owed to a local taxing authority, such as a county, for unpaid and overdue property taxes. In Georgia, per state law, on January 1st of every year, the county is automatically awarded a default judgment for any property taxes owed and not paid in the previous year. The county can then take that judgment and file it with the Clerk of Court where it becomes a FIFA, a legal instrument allowing for the collection or enforcement of the judgment. The FIFA is then filed in the County Deed Records where it officially becomes a tax lien. And since the county needs money to function, it can now sell the recorded tax lien at public auction to the highest bidder who receives a tax deed.

You’re probably now wondering why the county would take such drastic measures against its own citizens. Isn’t it true that taxes are like water bills, like can’t I just pay it whenever I get the money? No, in Georgia and most other counties in the United States, property taxes comprise a significant portion of the county’s budget. Property tax keeps these local governments functioning and play a significant role in the upkeep of schools, salaries (teachers, police, fireman, judges, lawyers, doctors, sanitation workers, etc.), public utilities, roads, parks, public health facilities, libraries, etc. Without property taxes, most counties would be crippled. And so, for this reason, most state governments have given the county or local taxing authority the right to sell its tax liens at public auction in order to collect the back taxes owed.

In Georgia, when a tax lien is sold at public auction, the winning bidder is issued a tax deed. This tax deed is redeemable by the homeowner or anyone having a legal interest in the property such as a mortgage company or other lien holder. Anyone of these parties can redeem the property up until the tax deed purchaser completes a foreclosure on their right to redeem. The tax deed purchaser cannot start the right of redemption foreclosure for at least 365 days. The tax deed purchaser may begin this process on day 366.

How did you get into a business like this?
Well, I have always known real estate would be the means by which I would create financial independence. It offered everything I needed to get to where I wanted to be. Primarily, it offered a degree of freedom even before reaching financial freedom. The freedom to work and live how I chose. After leaving the military, I quickly realized I didn’t enjoy working for other people, especially those whose values didn’t align with my own.

After being introduced to real estate investing by a co-worker at a major collection agency, I haven’t looked back and that was over 22 years ago that I left my job to pursue real estate full time and over the years, it has treated me well. Now, that is not to say that I haven’t had tremendous adversities along the way. As a matter of fact, I have literally survived two market crashes in 2001 and 2007. Losing everything – homes, cars, credit, money – and even a marriage. Eventually starting over both times and then finally creating a rental portfolio through tax lien investing to help weather the storm of the next cyclical market crash. My story is a rags-to-riches, back to rags-to-riches – and yes, back to rags for the third and final time to eventually create true wealth through assets and residual income. I had a property sold in a tax sale in 2009. A property I’d thought I’d lost to mortgage foreclose already. It was this property that really showed me the power of tax lien investing and how it could benefit the community as a whole and ultimately how I could create financial freedom once and for all. The tax deed purchaser paid $2,100 for my property, which was valued at $99,000.

There are some people who argue and believe that this process is unethical and that tax lien investors rob families of their homes, but I always like to lead that conversation with asking them how much do you really know about the tax lien process? In many cases, people only understand surface level information. Like one time, I tried explaining to a person that some families benefit from the sale of a property at auction. The person was so flabbergasted that they would not even let me explain that any proceeds collected over and above the amount owed to the county belong to the homeowner or any other person with a legal interest in the property. This fact can be significant for families looking to rebuild their lives.

The county gets the money owed to it so it can continue to function, as well as continued tax revenue and the community in which the property is located is saved from a house that could easily become dilapidated and cause blight. Or as in many cases, reverse a blight situation as the majority of tax lien properties are vacant and abandoned causing a decline in neighborhood values. At GA Tax Lien Bootcamp, although we primarily educate students on how to properly invest in tax liens, we also often advise families through consultation on their next steps after losing a property in a tax lien sale. This could be anything from how to reclaim the funds owed to them by the county, finding stable housing, resources to rebuild financially or even in a few cases, like my own, how to buy tax lien properties for pennies on the dollar.

What’s so great about tax lien investing compared to other forms of real estate investing?
Tax lien investing affords the purchaser the opportunity to buy properties at a cost that is usually tremendously below its actual value after all the properties are being sold for the amount of the back taxes owed. I’ve bought many houses for $700-$12,000 ranging in as-is value from $40,000 – $120,000. Many of which greatly increased in value after being renovated. Tax lien investing is the lowest entry point into real estate investing that I know.

So enough about tax liens. Why is this business your favorite?
Well, for a few reasons. One, as an educator and coach I get to see the impact my work has on people’s lives almost immediately. When students take our courses, many actually buy properties while they are still in class. They start building towards financial freedom right there in class. Their lives are immediately and forever impacted through the purchase of real estate they would otherwise not be able to afford. Secondly, this is the first business I’ve decided to scale and build as a brand. I am truly loving the process of building a business with systems, processes and procedures. I am enjoying building a solid infrastructure. I am truly enjoying building a team, I am enjoying learning how to manage a team – coaching and mentoring people to be great leaders. Most of all I am loving learning how to be a CEO, with on the job training. Every day teaches me a new thing.

So, what about a personal life?
For me, my personal life is currently this business because this particular business was born from a passion to help others and not from a need to secure myself financially. I’d already done that through tax lien investing. Creating this business and growing this business is very personal. And because I didn’t go to “CEO School”, it requires my complete focus and dedication. Outside of my five-year-old daughter, and mother, I don’t have much time for anything else these days. I do enjoy going out to eat with family and friends and I love a great get together or cook out. I love spending time at the beach as well. It’s where I feel most relaxed and most rejuvenated. For me, these small pleasures are perfectly fine for the next two years, after which I plan to hand the CEO reigns over to someone else to run the business while I return to my love of travel and being at my oceanfront condo. I imagine myself learning to DJ as well. I’ve always wanted to be on the ones and twos. I can see it now, DJ Sunshine in the house!

What core beliefs do you live by?
I have many values and beliefs that I live by and depending on what I’m experiencing in life because I do believe life is really all about the experiences, the values that rise to the surface may change. Currently, my guiding values are – Always be my most authentic self because after all, that’s who I really am, right? And I never know who I might inspire or free up to be their true authentic self – Leave people feeling as though they are better off versus worse off from having known me and – Live life on my own terms. Any parting words? If I’ve inspired even one soul in the world to get out here on the playing field of life and live their dreams, start a business or become financially free then I have done what I came to do. If I can do it, then surely, you can too.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I’ve been through two market crashes, both times losing everything in the process. Being in a male-dominated industry, I had to go above and beyond what is expected of my counterparts. Building a business and a team without having a formal education in either aspect.

GA Tax Lien Bootcamp – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We are most proud of our mission and core values. Our mission is to help one thousand families achieve financial freedom, generational wealth, and residual income through tax lien investing. Our core values are: Exceptional Client Experiences by giving more value than what is expected by our clients. Transparency through open and honest communication with both our customers and team members. Give Forward/Pay Back through free community educational programs, volunteer service and financial donations to community organizations, Disciplined processes, and systems to deliver the same exceptional client experience each and every time.

Entrepreneurial Freedom to encourage our team members to run their positions as if it were their own business thereby empowering them to make stronger well-thought-out decisions, and finally. Profitably – making decisions that lead to profitability.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
In our State Of The Company meeting this year, we unveiled our 10 Year Road Map which was very exciting and including a fully digital platform, expansion into other states, a book, merchandise, and many other requested boot camps on various real estate topics, such as rooming houses, real estate math, property management, advanced credit, etc. We are most excited to plan and develop a tax lien investment fund, which we hope will lead to other real estate investment funds for veteran housing, affordable housing, etc.

Contact Info:

• Address: 303 Perimeter Center N
  Suite 300 Atlanta, GA 30346
• Website: introwebinar.gataxlienbootcamp.com
• Phone: 678-408-0595
• Email: [email protected]

Image Credit:
Photography by our in-house photographer: Charlie Parks, Visions By Legit

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