Hello Premium Members. Welcome to Internet tax lien auctions in Florida.

Florida is an amazing tax lien state. Here you get to experience the full range of tax liens, tax deeds, over-the counter tax liens and over-the-counter tax deeds.

Tax Sale Dates: Florida statutes require tax lien certificate sales on or before June 1 of each year. Therefore, most sales are in May and some are actually on June 1. With the recent Internet auctions, many sales start in May and end on June 1.

Interest Rate: Interest on a tax lien certificate starts at 18% and is bid down during the auction in 1/4% increments to as low as 1/4% or even 0%. Any bid between 1/4% and 18% is guaranteed a 5% fee regardless of when the certificate is redeemed. When I used to attend live events in Florida, bidders would yell "one-quarter" or just "quarter" meaning they were willing to bid all the way down to 1/4% interest knowing they would be guaranteed at least 5%. This works well if the lien is redeemed in a month or two, but not as well if it is redeemed right before the end of the redemption period 23 months later. If the bidder chooses to bid down to zero percent interest, the bidder will not earn the minimum 5%.

Tax Lien Sales: To find information on tax lien sales, you will need to contact the Tax Collector's Office.

Redemption Period: 2 years.

Minimum Bid: The amount of taxes, fees and penalties owed.

Subsequent Taxes: During the period between the tax sale date and the expiration of the redemption period and prior to the issuance of a deed, the certificate holder may pay all taxes, assessments, penalties and costs due for the property. Immediately upon paying for any of these additional costs, the certificate holder should report the payments to the Tax Collector's Office with the receipts to record them. The certificate holder can be reimbursed for those taxes.

Over-the-Counter Tax Lien Sales: Certificates not sold at the tax lien sale are “struck off” to the county. After the tax sale is closed and balanced, these county-held certificates can be purchased in the Tax Collector’s Office. Certificates may be purchased by mail or in person, on a first-come, first-serve basis, at the maximum interest rate of 18 percent. The best time to purchase is in early to mid June, right after the sales.

Tax Deed Sales: If the tax certificate is not redeemed, the certificate holder cannot institute foreclosure and receive the deed; rather, a public deed sale must occur. The tax deed is sold to the highest bidder. If the tax lien holder is not the highest bidder at the tax deed sale, he/she will receive their investment back with interest.

Tax deed sales are handled by the Clerk of Circuit Court in most counties. Application for a tax deed sale is made at the Tax Collector’s Office. There is no extended right of redemption following the tax deed sale. Tax deed sales are held throughout the year. Some counties hold tax deed sales every week. Homestead properties are sold for a minimum bid of one half of their assessed value. 

Over-the-Counter Tax Deed Sales: A property that does not sell at the tax deed sale is placed on the "List of Lands Available for Taxes." After 90 days from the sale date, anyone can purchase property off the "List of Lands Available for Taxes." These sales are handled by the Clerk of Circuit Court in most counties.

Other Restrictions: Florida also has some restrictions regarding the number of lots an individual investor can own without being registered as a developer. An individual who is not a developer is allowed to buy a tax deed for only one lot in a planned subdivision for the purpose of resale (section 498.025[1a], Florida Statutes). A seller of lots in property subdivided or proposed to be subdivided into 50 lots or more is required to be registered with the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Florida Land Sales, Condominiums, and Mobile Homes. Also, if a certificate holder purchases 5 certificates in subdivision that contains 25 or more lots, and eventually obtains 5 tax deeds, he would be subject to the provisions of section 498.022, Florida Statutes, regarding standards for transacting land sales. Therefore, it is recommended that when purchasing certificates on lots or parcels in a subdivision, the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Florida Land Sales, Condominiums, and Mobile Homes be contacted at (850) 488-1631.

A listing of Florida tax collectors by county is available on the Florida Tax Collectors website: http://floridataxcollectors.com.

Internet Auctions: Real Auction operates Internet auctions for over 25 counties in Florida.

Step 3: Rules of the Sale

Important! Due diligence is done after you have screened your list down to a manageable level.

First, let's look at the results of our list. One thing to note is the asterisk on line two of the above image. If you click on this symbol you will see that an existing tax lien is on the property. 

HX - This means a homestead property or the property owner's primary residence.

Property ID - This will take you to the property appraiser information, including pictures. This property is located in Cape Coral, which is a nice location. The house looks well maintained.




ADV number - This will show you the current number of bidders and more property information, as well as open taxes owed (see below).



What about IRS liens or other problems?

Visit the county recorder's office or clerk's office and look for recorded documents. Mortgages, deeds, liens, etc. have to be recorded. To find the recorded documents for Lee County, visit the link provided on the main LeeTaxSale.com website.

This type of search is done through what is called the "Grantor/Grantee" index. When you search this index, you need to search by property owner name and if more than one owner is listed, search all owners' names. 

What about environmental problems?

A great resource for searching for major environmental concerns (e.g., hazardous waste sites), is located at http://www.epa.gov/enviro. This site allows you to search for Superfund sites, hazardous waste sites, petroleum or gas stations, toxic or hazardous handlers, etc.

Florida's State environmental agency is known as the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Its website is at http://www.dep.state.fl.us.

Some important things to know about Florida. Much of the state is underlain by a limestone aquifer, which has partially dissolved in places resulting in caves, caverns, and solution or sink holes. Occasionally, you will hear of a house or street that has been engulfed by a sink hole. While traveling in Florida, I have even seen billboards for attorneys representing sink hole victims. This same aquifer is extremely shallow and has been contaminated in a number of places. A common problem is overuse of pesticides and herbicides.

Florida has a number of sensitive or protected species, such as mangroves and manatees.

What about flooding?

One of the amazing things about Florida is that a great deal of the State is a flood zone. It is literally only a few feet above sea level, so storm surges and intense rainfall can cause flooding. On the other hand, the soil is very permeable and rainwater quickly dissipates.

Again, visit your favorite search engine, type in "FEMA Map Store" and go to www.FEMA.gov. 

For Lee County flood zones, visit this link:

http://www3.leegov.com/dcd/pdfs/HowToUseLeeSpInS.pdf

What about bankruptcy?

 

Bankruptcies are often recorded with the county government; however, bankruptcy is a federal process so it is best to check with the federal district court. There are three U.S. bankruptcy courts in Florida:

 

Florida Middle District Court: http://www.flmb.uscourts.gov
Court Locations: Fort Meyers, Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa
Counties of Jurisdiction: Baker, Bradford, Brevard, Charlotte, Citrus, Clay, Collier, Columbia, De Soto, Duval, Flagler, Glades, Hamilton, Hardee, Hendry, Hernando, Hillsborough, Lake, Lee, Manatee, Marion, Nassau, Osceola, Orange, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Sarasota, Seminole, St. John’s, Sumter, Suwannee, Union, Volusia

 

Florida Northern District Court:: http://www.flnb.uscourts.gov
Court Locations: Gainesville, Panama City, Pensacola, Tallahassee
Counties of Jurisdiction: Alachua, Bay, Calhoun, Dixie, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Madison, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Taylor, Wakulla, Walton, Washington

 

Florida Southern District Court: http://www.flsb.uscourts.gov
Court Locations: Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, West Palm Beach
Counties of Jurisdiction: Broward, Dade, Highlands, Indian River, Martin, Monroe, Okeechobee, Palm Beach County, St. LuciePalm Beach County, St. Lucie