THE SECRET OF SEDONA TAX LIEN SALES
** Arizona Tax Lien Sales **
Arizona tax lien sales are conducted by the County Treasurer and governed by Arizona Revised Statutes, title 42, chapter 18, articles 3-6. You can find the statutes at http://www.azleg.gov/ArizonaRevisedStatutes.asp?Title=42. Sales must occur during the month of February, and they are held by both public auction and on the Internet. Realauction (www.Realauction.com) and Grant Street Group (http://www.grantstreet.com/revenue_collection/lienauction) are two private companies that hold Arizona tax certificate online sales for several Arizona counties. For some sales, you can start bidding in January, with the sale ending in February.
The tax sale list is published at least two weeks, but not more than three weeks, before the date of the sale. You can find the list posted near the outer door of the County Treasurer’s office, in a newspaper of general circulation in the county, on the County Treasurer’s website (for most counties), and on the website where the internet sale will be held, if applicable (e.g., Realauction or Grant Street Group).
To find the county’s website, you can either use your favorite search engine (type, for example, “Maricopa county Arizona”) or you can visit www.naco.org and:
- mouse over "About Counties"
- click on “Find a County”
- click on Arizona on the state map
- click on your county of interest
- click on the county’s website.
Once you are on the county’s website, look for a link to “Treasurer” (it may be under a header such as “Departments,” “Government,” “County Offices” or “County Administration”).
Before participating in a sale, be sure to read through and understand all the information provided by the County Treasurer and/or private administrator regarding the tax lien sale. Realauction hosts live training classes via the Internet every Friday while the Arizona auctions are live. Site Guided Tours are available at their practice site at www.arizonataxsale.com, and a new practice auction runs every day. Visit https://www.arizonataxsale.com/training for more information.
The maximum interest rate on a tax lien certificate is 16 percent per annum (simple interest accrues on a monthly basis). The winning bidder at a sale is the person who bids the lowest rate of interest on the amount paid to redeem the property, and who pays the whole amount of delinquent taxes, interest, penalties and charges due on the property. Most counties require bidders to make a good faith deposit equal to a percentage of the total dollar amount of liens he/she anticipates winning.
The minimum bid is equal to the unpaid real estate taxes, assessments, penalties, advertising costs and fees. The purchaser of a tax lien must pay the purchase price in cash at the time of sale. Payment methods vary for each county, but generally deposits and payments may be made via ACH (electronic check), wire transfer, cash, cashier’s check, or money order. The purchaser also must pay a processing fee of not more than $10 per tax lien.
The winning bidder will receive a certificate of purchase at the sale for delinquent taxes, or the certificate will be kept as an electronic file at the Treasurer’s office. The purchaser must pay a fee of $10 per certificate.
The tax lien may be redeemed at any time within three years after the date of sale, or after three years but before the delivery of a Treasurer's deed to the purchaser or the purchaser's heirs or assigns.
Unsold liens are assigned (“struck off”) by the County Treasurer to the State of Arizona for the amount of the taxes, interest, penalties and charges, and a certificate of purchase is issued for each such lien. These certificates are available for purchase by visiting the County Treasurer's office or website once the auction is closed and balanced. These certificates bear an interest rate of 16 percent per year simple.
On or after June 1, if a person who holds a certificate of purchase wants to pay subsequent taxes, accrued interest and related fees due on the property, the person must present the certificate or receipt of registered certificate to the County Treasurer, who will enter the amount of the payment on the certificate and on the record of tax lien sales for a fee of $5. The amount of subsequent taxes bears interest at the rate stated in the certificate of purchase from the first day of the month following the purchase of the subsequent tax lien.
If the subsequent taxes, accrued interest and related fees due on the property are not paid by the certificate holder, the County Treasurer may require a person who wants to purchase a subsequent certificate of purchase on the property to acquire by assignment all currently outstanding certificates of purchase previously issued on the property. The County Treasurer will process the sale as an assignment on behalf of the previous certificate holder. This assignment vests in the person all the right and title of the original purchaser with the lien date effective from the original lien sale date.
When the property owner redeems the certificate, he/she will pay the delinquent taxes, interest, fees and costs, and a check is sent out by the County Treasurer with a letter to the certificate holder. I will discuss the process of foreclosing the right of redemption on the property if the certificate is not redeemed, in an upcoming newsletter.
The certificate of purchase, whether registered or paper, is assignable by endorsement. An assignment, when noted on the record of tax lien sales in the County Treasurer’s office, vests in the assignee all the right and title of the original purchaser.
If the tax lien is not redeemed and the purchaser does not begin an action to foreclose the right of redemption within 10 years after the last day of the month in which the lien was acquired, the certificate of purchase expires and the lien is void.
2011 Arizona Tax Lien Sale Links for the Largest Counties
(1) Apache County
http://www.bidapachecounty.com (Grant Street Group online sale)http://www.co.apache.az.us/Departments/Treasurer/Treasurer.htm: see header “Informational Links”
(2) Cochise County
http://cochise.az.gov/cochise_treasurer.aspx?id=52 (public auction)
(3) Coconino County
www.coconinotaxsale.com (Realauction online sale)
http://coconino.az.gov/treasurer.aspx?id=548: mouse over “Tax Liens”
(4) Maricopa County
https://www.bidmaricopa.com (Grant Street Group online sale)
http://treasurer.maricopa.gov: see header “Liens & Research”
(5) Mohave County
http://www.mohavetaxsale.com (Realauction online sale)
http://www.co.mohave.az.us/ContentPage.aspx?id=132&cid=223
(6) Pima County
http://www.to.pima.gov/tax_lien_sale.html (public auction)
(7) Pinal County
http://pinalcountyaz.gov/Departments/Treasurer/Pages/TaxLienSale.aspx (online sale via the Treasurer’s website)
(8) Yavapai County
http://www.yavapaitaxsale.com (Realauction online sale)
http://www.co.yavapai.az.us/BackTaxSale.aspx
(9) Yuma County
http://www.co.yuma.az.us/index.aspx?page=86 (public auction)
Very best,
Michael Williams
Rogue Investor, LLC
5427 Johnson Drive, # 106
Mission, KS 66205
816-673-1874
info@rogueinvestor.com`
