Slides and the Green River

In the days after Helene, county officials reported that mudslides outside Tryon and Saluda had damaged or destroyed at least 27 homes or structures. US 176 between the two towns was closed by slides, flooding near the Lake Adger dam badly damaged the Highway 9 bridge, and large sections of Green River Cove Road were isolated and needed helicopter rescues.

A house damaged by a slide raises a question a lender will not answer: is the ground stable? We buy with that question open. If you have a geotechnical report or an engineer's letter, send it. If you don't, that's fine.

Buyouts and repairs

FEMA approved four Polk County buyouts in April 2026, letting the county begin making offers at pre-storm value. Other owners are repairing on their own, or waiting on road work before they can even reach the house with a contractor.

If your house is still hard to reach, or the road in front of it is part of an NCDOT repair project, we can still look at it and make an offer.

The 2025 revaluation and rural land

Polk County reappraised effective January 1, 2025, and the next revaluation is scheduled for 2031. Much of the land outside the three towns is pasture, farm, and woodland, and some of it is enrolled in present-use value. A sale to a buyer who will not keep it in qualifying use makes three years of deferred taxes plus interest due, and we account for that in the offer.

Most rural houses here run on a private well and septic. A failed septic inspection or a well test that comes back bad does not have to be fixed before we buy.

Polk County property we buy

  • Houses damaged by Helene slides near Saluda and Tryon
  • Properties along the Green River with flood or access damage
  • Farm and pasture parcels with a house, including present-use value land
  • Rural houses with failed wells or septic systems
  • Older houses in Tryon, Saluda, and Columbus
  • Manufactured homes on owned land
  • Inherited houses and second homes

Records, courts, and closing in Polk County

Columbus is the county seat. Deeds are recorded with the Polk County Register of Deeds, the clerk of superior court in Columbus holds foreclosure hearings and estate files, and the county tax office sets values. Well and septic permits are kept by environmental health.

A licensed North Carolina attorney handles the closing, and recording generally happens before funds are disbursed.

Frequently asked questions

My house was damaged by a landslide. Can you buy it?

Yes. Slope stability is a question lenders will not take on, and we buy with it unresolved.

Do you buy houses along Green River Cove Road?

Yes, including ones that are still hard to reach while road repairs continue.

My farm land is in present-use value. What happens if I sell?

Unless the buyer keeps it in qualifying use, three years of deferred taxes plus interest come due. We include that in the offer.

Do you buy in Saluda and Tryon?

Yes, along with Columbus, Mill Spring, Green Creek, and the rest of the county.

When is Polk County's next revaluation?

It is scheduled for 2031. The current values took effect January 1, 2025.

Polk County property and court resources