These days, winning a tax deed auction may not be as easy as before as more and more people attend this exciting event.

As more and more people realize the great opportunities that lie behind buying tax deeds, the competition proves to be fairly difficult.

Here are some tips to winning a tax deed auction:

1.) Attend live tax deed auctions instead of online tax deed auctions. Most people prefer to bid in online auctions as it is more convenient.

2.) Choose a county that has a worth-it property that is not in a metropolitan area. There are chances that institutional investors prefer populated areas than rural.

3.) Choose to sit in front and in the center or near the isle so auctioneers can see you quickly.

4.) Attend live tax deed auctions even if the weather is bad. A lot of people are not really that serious that when the auction day turns out to be a bad-weather day, they prefer to not go and just stay home instead. This heightens the chances of you getting good deals.

Any more tips you might want to add?

A lot of people who are interested in buying tax deeds may wonder how do tax deed sales function. Here is a short but detailed walkthrough:

Before a scheduled tax deed auction takes place, the state or the county posts a list of all the properties that will be auctioned. Usually you can find it in newspapers but these days, posting a list in the internet has also become rampant. So if you are resourceful enough, you will be able to get a copy of  the list online (commonly in the county’s webpage). If you want the easy way, you can just contact the county and ask for a list that may come in CDs,  however, this usually comes with fee.

After posting, the public gets at least four weeks to decide and research about the the properties to be auctioned.

During bidding, the interested person will fill out a required form and will  have to claim a bidder number. There may be counties that will allocate these requirements few days before the auction while other counties prefer them during the actual auction day.

Some cases also require a proof of funds while there are also others that require bidders to have at least $2500 cash on hand or a cashier’s check that are to be submitted to the county. The money will then be refunded by the county if somehow the bidder does not win.

There are also some counties which are a less strict wherein they require you to have cash on hand during the auction. Note that counties have specific requirements so it’s always best to contact them and ask about these vital information.

During the auction, the bidding often begins at the amount that is being owed in taxes and goes higher from there. The highest bidder wins and will then receive a Treasurer’s Deed or a Sheriff’s Deed within a couple of weeks from the county.

It is then that the winning bidder becomes the official owner of that property and has the right to take possession of it or sell it.

What is a tax deed sale? A tax deed sale is not similar to a foreclosure wherein it is held by a financial institution because of unpaid mortgages. With the tax deed sale, the sale is being held by the government agency as it takes a real estate as a possession due to the non-payment of the owner of his back taxes. So the house will be sold in an auction wherein its minimum bid is calculated based on the amount of tax that is owed to the government, the interest that is accrued on back taxes, and of course, the cost of the sale.

Now a tax deed is nothing like a tax lien since a tax lien certificate is issued for the amount with interest while the owner’s tax refund checks can be garnished so as to collect the back taxes. There are states wherein the owners can get arrested or can get fines for failure of payment of the property’s taxes. If these tactics won’t work, the government will then ask permission to have the property on sale at an auction.

Take note, each state is different as some states are tax lien states while the others are tax deed states. There are even states that are a mix of both. So if you are indeed interested in purchasing properties at auctions, always conduct research into the procedures and rules of the specific state or county.