FIVE WAYS TO MAKE MONEY WITH FLORIDA TAX SALES By David A. Chodack Tax sales are an excellent way to make money and in Florida they start June 1st. But buying tax certificates at the public auction is only one way to make money with Florida tax sales. The tax sale process in Florida offers five different ways you can make money. Are you aware of them? There are five stages to the Florida tax sales process and you can make money at every stage, not just at the auctions. Stage One began in May, when the delinquent property tax lists came out and were published for three consecutive weeks. Smart investors began contacting delinquent tax payers before the public auction to see if any of them might be interested in selling their property. No, this won't work for you if you just want to be a passive investor, collecting interest without owning or dealing with real estate. If that's what you want, you have to wait until Stage Two of the tax sales process and go to the tax certificate auction. But, if you're an active investor seeking good deals, then why pass up an opportunity like this? Stage Two, the public tax certificate auction is also an excellent chance to make money and believe me, I intend to be there bidding in both Dade and Broward Counties. The bidding starts at 18% a year interest and goes down from there. The bidder who agrees to accept the lowest rate of interest gets the tax certificate and first priority lien on the delinquent property. After that, the delinquent tax payer has two years to pay up, with interest, or you can apply to have the property sold to the highest bidder at public auction. Either way, you get your money Stage Three of the tax sale process offers you the opportunity to go to the county tax collector's office after the auction and ask to see their list of tax certificates that did not sell at the auction. You can then offer to buy any of these certificates that interest you, with no competitive bidding to drive down the interest rate. It also gives you a chance to buy the tax certificate after the two year redemption period has started running, so you have less time to wait for your money. Some people think that all the good tax certificates get grabbed up at the auction and only the garbage is left over, but with more than 29,000 tax certificates to be auctioned in Broward County alone, there are a lot of gems to be found among the garbage and a lot of money to be made. Stage Four begins two years after the tax certificate auction, once the redemption period has run out. If the delinquent tax payer does not redeem the tax certificate, then the investor who owns the3 tax certificate can apply to have the property put up for public auction and sale to the highest bidder. The minimum bid is the taxes owed, plus penalties, sale costs and interest, PLUS, half the assessed value - still a lot less than the fair market value in most cases - if the property is homesteaded. Once the deed is recorded, there is no right of redemption and the property is yours. Most liens are wiped out. You get title, but it's not absolute title and you're advised to consult a real estate attorney and file a "Quiet Title" action, but even after attorney's fees, you should get the property for a fraction of the fair market value. In Broward County they auction these properties once a month, so there's always opportunity. In Florida, you even have a fifth stage and a sixth stage to the tax sales process, in case the first four stages don't give you enough chances to make money. Stage Five occurs if the redemption period has run out and the property doesn't sell at public auction. It will be auctioned again in 30 days. And finally, if a property still does not sell, after two public auctions, it becomes Land Owned by the state and can be purchased directly, without competitive bidding. Yes, most of this is raw land and some of it is even worthless land - today - but the way Florida is growing, you know it will be worth money soon. Whether you are an active investor or a passive investor, if you're not taking advantage of tax sales, or if you're only bidding at the tax certificate auctions and not learning about the other opportunities available, then you're passing up a world of profits. BACK TO PROPERTY TAX ARTICLES TAX SALE RICHES HOME PAGE CONTRACT WIZARD HOME PAGE MORTGAGE MAGIC HOME PAGE |