Facing eviction, New Orleans Resident gets unprecedented offer to save her home

November 9, 2017 (New Orleans) – For local resident Ms. Betty Ann Johnson keeping ownership of her family’s 1969 two-story wood frame home hasn’t been an easy road. The original structure was weak due to shoddy work and contractor fraud, but was exacerbated after Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc with flood waters entering the home. Once retired, there wasn’t spare cash to make the necessary repairs, and she fell behind on her property taxes. “I understand the importance of paying taxes I just ran out of resources because of various challenges, said Ms. Johnson, “Today is a blessing, my home is being saved and repaired.”

For any repairs to begin on the house, Rebuild Together New Orleans required the delinquent property taxes be paid in full.   On October 26th from a most unlikely source, Ms. Betty’s prayers were answered.  The NTLA Foundation, a non-profit who saves elderly or disabled homeowners from property tax foreclosure, paid the delinquent taxes.  Beyond saving Ms. Betty’s homeownership, volunteers from the NTLA Foundation, CivicSource and Rebuild Together New Orleans spent a day of service painting, removing moldy drywall, and prepping the home for a new roof.   Collectively, they raised over $20,000 to make the necessary repairs.

“The NTLA Foundation was formed to help the elderly and disabled avoid property tax foreclosure by paying off their back taxes,” said NTLA’s Executive Director Brad Westover. “We can’t solve all the world’s problems, but it sure feels great to save the homes of some wonderful people in need.”

Recipient applications are available to members of the National Tax Lien Association or through Tax Collectors and Treasurers from the 30 states that sell delinquent taxes to the private sector.

The National Tax Lien Association (NTLA) was founded in 1997 as a nonprofit professional trade organization for the tax lien industry. It is dedicated to representing the interest of local governments, investors, lenders and service providers in regard to tax lien sales, as well as promoting the benefit of those sales as reliable income for municipal, county, and some state budgets. The NTLA also provides networking and training for those in the tax lien industry. More information on the association can be found at www.ntla.org or ntlafoundation.org

Article originally published here: https://globenewswire.com/news-release/2017/11/15/1193609/0/en/Facing-eviction-New-Orleans-Resident-gets-unprecedented-offer-to-save-her-home.html

Baton Rouge properties up for auction Wednesday after owners fail to pay taxes

East Baton Rouge holds auctions the first Wednesday of each month to sell property seized when the owners did not pay their taxes.

Properties are up for auction on Wednesday, Nov. 1, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Click here to see a list of available properties.

The city partnered with CivicSource, a New Orleans-based company that allows prospective buyers to place bids online for tax adjudicated properties, many abandoned and blighted.

By law, the government can hold an auction once someone puts down a deposit, typically $850. The city then advertises the sale, puts it on the block and sells it to the highest bidder.

The winning bid covers the price of the title, closing cost and title insurance. The person who pays the deposit gets the money back if he or she doesn’t win the auction.

More information and a list of adjudicated property for sale is available at civicsource.com.

Article originally published here: http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/article_3dee4b62-bf05-11e7-9bf4-5f8acdcd28fc.html