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Lake Charles signs with company to help with adjudicated property

Friday, April 22, 2016 2:46 PM

By Justin Phillips / American Press

The city of Lake Charles will now have some needed assistance in getting rid of adjudicated lots after the City Council approved an ordinance Wednesday allowing the city to work with a company focused on selling the properties.

Lake Charles will enter into an agreement with Archon Information Systems, which operates the CivicSource auction platform. CivicSource is a marketplace for different types of properties, including tax lien sale and adjudicated parcels.

Mayor Randy Roach amended the ordinance before it was approved by the council.

“If you recall several years ago, we entered into an agreement with these other taxing jurisdictions and the Lake Charles North Redevelopment Authority for the disposition of adjudicated properties,” Roach said.

“The agreement was signed by the taxing jurisdictions to allow us to contract with Lake Charles North Redevelopment Authority for the sale of the property. They need to be included in this ordinance in order for CivicSource to be able to do what we’re asking them to do.”

Brian Barrios with CivicSource said the company implemented its program in New Orleans in March 2015 and that since then 15 other jurisdictions have begun using the program.

“In a nutshell, what he have is a market-driven process where we take whatever properties you give to us, we post them up on our site at CivicSource, and an investor will initiate the sale prices by placing a deposit,” Barrios said. “It costs the governing body absolutely nothing.”

Barrios said that since the program began, CivicSource has dealt with roughly 1,000 properties and has brought in $17.4 million in “unbudgeted revenue for the various jurisdictions that have signed up.”

Roach said the city will ultimately be in control of what and how many properties are sold through CivicSource.

“So if we select one property to be sold, then they deal with one property. If we select 10, then they do 10,” he said. “We will refer to them the properties we want them to sell.”

http://www.americanpress.com/20160422-City-Adjudicated-Properties

 

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City of New Orleans to Hold Online Tax Certificate Sale

APRIL 07, 2016

City of New Orleans Mayor’s Office Press Release

NEW ORLEANS – The City announced that it will hold an online tax certificate sale as part of its continuing efforts to collect delinquent real estate taxes. The online auction will take place beginning Tuesday, April 12 and ending Thursday, April 14, 2016.

Over 3,900 properties are scheduled to go to sale in the auction, which is open to the general public. Free registration and a list of available properties are available at www.CivicSource.comexternal link.

“As we continue our aggressive tax collection, we are working to recover taxpayer dollars through every means available to us,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu. “We’re committed to collecting the revenues that we are owed and getting these properties back on the tax rolls. The success of previous annual sales should attract even more investors and give potential bidders confidence in the process.”

A tax certificate sale is the sale of properties that have delinquent taxes due. Investors purchase the tax sale certificate by paying the amount of outstanding delinquent taxes and other statutory impositions. Property owners have a 3-year redemptive window in which to pay the investor the delinquent amount, an immediate five percent penalty plus an additional one percent for every month since the filing of the tax certificate.

Winning bidders of the tax sale are expected to pay for their purchases within 48 hours of the close of the auction. Payments must be made in one installment and all sales are final. However, winning bidders do not immediately own the property. The property owner can redeem the property by repaying the purchaser plus penalties and interest. If the property is not redeemed within three years (or 18 months for blighted properties), the tax title holder can pursue the property’s title.

This auction can be viewed on CivicSource.com. Using the search options, prospective bidders can set the parameters for any property that falls within their interests and budget.

Individuals without immediate access to a computer can participate in the auction via kiosks that will be set up on the first floor of City Hall during normal business hours on auction days.

For property owners who would like to make a payment to remove their property from the sale, please visit the Treasury Bureau on the first floor of City Hall on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. before or during the tax sale period. Only cash, cashier’s checks or official checks will be accepted.

For questions or assistance, prospective bidders should call CivicSource at 1-888-387-8033 or email support@civicsource.com.

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http://www.nola.gov/mayor/press-releases/2016/20160407-pr-tax-certificate-sale/