OfflineThis year's Maricopa County property-tax-lien auction is shaping up to be the biggest ever and potentially more lucrative for investors than others in recent years.
It's a prime example of how misery so often rubs elbows with opportunity in the Phoenix-area real-estate market.
Rampant home foreclosure and plummeting property values caused a dramatic spike in unpaid property taxes during the 2008 tax year. On Feb. 8, those unpaid taxes will be sold to investors hoping to earn interest on them until the property owners pay up.
Although rare, the investor can end up owning the property outright if no one else pays the overdue tax within three years.
"Given the big chill in the real-estate market, whether from residential foreclosures or an inactive commercial sector, many property owners have not paid their property taxes.
Maricopa County is gearing up for its largest sale of delinquent property-tax liens on record, an estimated $70 million worth of unpaid taxes on about 42,000 homes and other properties.
That's a significant jump from 2009's record-breaking sale involving 33,500 available parcels valued at $47.5 million.
Bidding on property-tax liens occupies a relatively obscure niche in real-estate investing, but experts said the returns are more reliable than with other property-related investments and can be as high as 16 percent annually.
Randy Bailiff
Dean Graziosi Real Estate Investment and Life
Coach
Some other things about AZ.
All of Az sales are going to be held in Jan-March. Most counties will have their sales online at www.grantstreet.com or www.realauction.com.
The state of Az also sells left over properties. So after these online auctions are over and if the county has some liens that never got sold they will sell them Over the Counter.
You can get a list of left over liens from the county and all you have to do is pay for them and they will give you the lien against the property. First come first serve on those liens.
This was a Tax lean certificate I bought about 1 1/2 yrs ago. There was an earlier certificate on the property so the 3 year waiting was only 5 years from the original certificate.
The cost was about $3,500.00 for the certificate. Lawyers fees and title fees were about $3,000.00.
This house was never finished. When I got to see the inside it needs extensive rehab.
Since the property is on a 49 acre private lake, the assesses lot value is $20,000.00.
The sq ft of the house is 2309, an 1.3 stories. The upstairs could be an office overlooking the lake.
What I see for rehab is; full painting inside and out, 3 sinks needed, all lighting fixtures, and more.
There is already installed copper plumbing, heat and air, but I cannot locate where a hot water heater would go.
Also, since it has been empty fr a number of years, full landscaping.
I do not know what I will do with this just yet. I have to get some prices for flipping, rehab and completed values.
Similar houses sell for $130,000.00+ on the lake.
This one is the largest sq ft on the street.
John
Old Dust
Thanks Randy! I will keep that in mind. My husband and i owns 2 properties in Pinal county AZ on Tax Liens we purchased 1 and 1/2 ago.
" Not Having a goal is more feared than not reaching one"
Christa Niven
I have been looking in Az. This would be a good way to look everything I find there are multiple offers.
If you want to see all of the delinquent properties in Maricopa without having to buy a list then all you have to do is get to the Maricopa county Treasurer website and on the site they have a link that says "parcels with overdue taxes" from there they have a GIS mapping system that will allow you to see any properties that have taxes owed on them or also have a tax lient that you can purchase against the property.