The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. Add to that more than 3,000 tipsheets from our national conferences on how to cover specific beats or do specific stories and you have a resource that no reporter or editor should be without. These stories and tipsheets are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Logged-in members can view the tipsheets free online:
Search results for "recorder of deeds" ...
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What's next in housing? CAR for real estate
Grotto explores the potential for CAR stories in the midst of the current housing crisis. Suggests looking at the redevelopment of public and low income housing. He talks about the new strategy of mixed-income developments in Chicago. Grotto details where to go for housing data. Grotto lists key documents when doing housing stories: master ground lease; restrictive covenants; leasehold mortgages; quick claim deeds; regulatory and operating agreements.
Tags: public housing; low-income housting tax credit; LIHTC; HOME block grants; recorder of deeds;
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A Neighborhood Built to Fail
Mellnik discusses how to identify foreclosures, starter homes and lenders from various public records. He explains how to use the register of deeds, county property records, FHA data, building permits, bankruptcy filings, and consultant reports to find data for a story about property records. He also includes some tips about mapping foreclosures.
Tags: property; foreclosure; mapping; data analysis; public records; real estate; beat reporting
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Using property tax/appraisal records in stories: avoiding pitfalls
Lavigne shares general and specific advise for utilizing property and tax records in investigative stories. She explains how to deal with challenges and irregularities that occur when working with land records, and lists types of records that are frequently overlooked.
Tags: land records; real estate; property taxes; titles; deeds; contracts
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Backgrounding the Individual On Deadline
Don Ray offers tips on what not to overlook when backgrounding a person. There is a long list of public records that are available at city hall or the county clerk, including deeds, building permits, birth, marriage and death certificates. Professional licenses, degrees, and awards are available, including verification of graduation and even copies of dissertations or theses. Lawsuits, criminal activity, campaign contributions - Ray suggests a mountain of information that you can check out.
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Investigating Property Scams
First, this tipsheet explains some of the most important documents for any investigation involving property taxes. It includes tax filings, mortgage records, financial disclosure forms, liens, and corporate records. Next, the tipsheet suggests some things to look for in the data that usually signal something fishy. Finally, it offers a list of helpful websites for backgrounding those sorts of investigations.
Tags: property; real estate; mortgage; property tax; deeds; inspections
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Reporting on Property and Housing Issues
This tipsheet is a guide to using property and housing documents in your reporting. It discusses the information found in various documents, such as deeds of trust, delinquent property records, and business licenses. It also offers advice on how to use the HUD database to aid in your reporting.
Tags: housing; urban development; property tax; tax records; real estate
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Local property investigations
This is a detailed outline of how the Courier Journal did an investigation into one particularly negligent property owner. Schaver also includes links to help reporters out on a similar story.
Tags: property records; tax records; landlords; slum lords; deeds; mortgages
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Records
Ever wondered what kinds of records exist? This tipsheet is a massive list of township, school, municipality and county records. For example, under the municipal records/certificates list: birth, death, stillborn, certificate of publication, affidavit and Certificate of Correction, Certificate of Indebtedness, Birth Registration, Death Registration Certificate of Amputation, Certificate of Burial of U.S. War Veterans, Certificate of Cremation. This is a must-have tipsheet!
Tags: records; backgrounding; FOIA; permits; licenses; oaths; revenues; deeds; bonds; notices; real estate; tax; utilities; urban development
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God's Little Acre: Understanding Land Records
"Land is the most common form of wealth. It is also far easier to trace than stocks, bonds, or other more glamorous types of property. That makes land records vital for investigative reporters."
Tags: property; building standards; ownership; taxes; utilities; claims; mortgages; tax assessor; quitclaim deeds; grant deeds; land-use laws; land survey system