COVINGTON, LA (February 10, 2016) –St. Tammany Parish is taking the necessary steps to sell thousands of adjudicated properties through a new online auction process. The properties are those that previously went unsold in a tax sale, and as a result, became adjudicated to the parish. Only properties that have been adjudicated for more than five years will available. The sale will provide winning bidders with full ownership of each property along with title insurance. This is the parish’s first adjudicated property sale in a few years, and it is the parish’s first time using an online auction to sell adjudicated properties.
St. Tammany Parish is collaborating with CivicSource to auction the tax delinquent properties. The sales will place these properties back on the tax rolls, return them to commerce and generate significant, recurring annual tax revenues to the parish. Since buyers pay the total cost of bringing these properties to sale, the parish and taxpayers pay nothing. St. Tammany parish will post a complete listing of qualified adjudicated properties to CivicSource.com and allow investors to nominate properties for an auction through a sale initiating deposit.
The online auction replaces the traditional adjudication sale held at the Courthouse where participants were required to be present during the auction process. By hosting the sale online, bidders who would not normally be able to attend the auction in person are still able to participate from their homes or places of business.
CivicSource has already proven successful in other communities across the state. Since launching in July, the auctions have collected over $16 million in unbudgeted revenue through the sale of over 600 properties. New Orleans’ first-ever online auction of adjudicated properties was a tremendous success with bidding wars springing up on several properties. Anyone interested in participating in St. Tammany’s auction may register online prior to the auction at CivicSource.com.
St. Tammany parish officials are hopeful these auctions will help spur new development, reduce blight and strengthen neighborhoods across parish.