Shelby County’s first online-only property tax sale was a success, county Trustee David Lenoir said, reeling in more bidders than previous tax sales with a higher percentage of properties going to buyers.

The sale ran Jan. 19-21 with 438 properties listed; 81 of them, or 18.5 percent, sold. That compares to previous sales where about 10 percent of properties sold, Lenoir said.

Unsold properties are purchased by the county and go into the Land Bank.

The number of bidders more than doubled, from 30 or 40 to about 100, Lenoir said. All but 18 of the 81 properties were purchased by investors within Shelby County.

The sales generated $1.2 million, with $630,000 going to cover unpaid county and city taxes and $580,000 in excess proceeds, which go to the prior owner or lien holder.

The county conducted two informational events before the sale, which helped generate interest, said Brian Danos, chief operating officer with CivicSource, the online sale vendor.

“We had gotten the word out very well and that’s why everybody understood what the online process was,” Danos said.

The county had several computer stations set up at the Vasco A. Smith Jr. Administration Building Downtown, but only about three or four people a day used them, Danos said. Most people bid from remote locations.

The sale officially ended at 8 p.m. Thursday, but sales continued as long as new bids were made every five minutes.

“It finally closed at 10:16 that night,” Danos said. “It was going back and forth that long. That’s the best part of the online sale, you can participate from home and it ensures that nobody is prevented from putting in their highest bid.”

Lenoir anticipates a few tweaks for the next tax sale in April, possibly staggering the bid process so that bidding doesn’t begin and end for all properties at the same time.

“Now that we’ve got one under our belt, what did we learn and how can we improve the process,” Lenoir said.

VIA http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/government/county/online-only-county-tax-sale-draws-more-bids-results-in-more-buys-2a40679a-55f7-18a5-e053-0100007f814-366625661.html

MEMPHIS, Tenn.-The Daily News- When the Shelby County Trustee’s office puts a set of tax delinquent properties up for auction Jan. 19-21, it will be a first in several ways.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Jan. 11, 2016) –Shelby County Government will hold the State of Tennessee’s first ever internet-based real estate tax certificate auction at www.CivicSource.com, beginning Tuesday, January 19th at 8:00 a.m. CST through Thursday, January 21st at 8:00 p.m. CST, subject to a sliding close. By hosting the sale online, bidders who would not normally be able to attend the auction in person are still able to participate.

Over 500 residential, commercial and vacant properties in Shelby County will be included in the January auction on CivicSource.com.

“The County is pleased to introduce this innovation by offering the tax sale in an online format,” said Shelby County Trustee David Lenoir. “Having the auction online opens up the market and can allow increased revenue to Shelby County.”

The tax sale allows investors to purchase the tax title to a property, which grants possession and ownership of the property following the expiration of the redemption period. In order to redeem their property, delinquent owners must are statutorily required to pay investors interest. Current interest is 12% per annum, which will begin to accrue on the date the purchaser pays the purchase price to the clerk and continuing until a motion to redeem is filed. The redemptive period for each property varies based on the number of years of delinquency, viewable on each property’s detail page at CivicSource.com .

The opening bid for a property includes delinquent city and county taxes, accrued interest and penalty charges, court costs, attorney fees, as well as service and title costs. The sale is open to the general public. Free registration and a list of available properties are available now at www.CivicSource.com.

“CivicSource allows citizens to actively better their community by helping to collect delinquent tax debt and offers Shelby County an opportunity to expand revenue potential,” said CivicSource CEO Bryan Barrios. “Participants are able to bid and monitor the auction remotely – offering convenience and efficacy through a sophisticated, yet user-friendly system.”

Additional questions regarding the process can be directed to the Shelby County Trustee, at (901) 432-4829, or the Chancery Court Clerk & Master’s office at (901) 222-3900.

Interested parties can sign up for the tax sale at http://www.civicsource.com. Register now for a free account and familiarize yourself with several investor friendly features such as custom watch-lists, sliding close and proxy biding.

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About CivicSource:

CivicSource is the leading auctioneer of tax-distressed real estate. From tax sales to adjudication auctions, CivicSource digitizes due process compliance to ensure legally valid sales. Founded in 2008, New Orleans based CivicSource has been recognized by Inc. Magazine’s 500|5000 as one of “America’s Fastest Growing Companies” and has been recognized as the one of the “Best Places to Work” in New Orleans for the past five years. For more information, visit: CivicSource.com.

Bossier Parish, LA – The Shreveport Times – Bossier Parish Police Jury has taken a historic step in fighting blight.

The parish recently entered into a partnership with CivicSource, a company that makes online auctions of a city’s adjudicated properties possible. Last Friday, in a first for the parish, 31 of its  adjudicated properties became available online to potential buyers..

Cities often take multi-faceted approaches to fighting blight and turning around adjudicated properties. Placing properties online has proven a successful method in cities such as  New Orleans — and since buyers pay the total cost, partnership with CivicSource costs the city and taxpayers nothing.

Patrick Culverhouse, public information officer for the parish, said administrator Bill Altimus knew about CivicSource because the company had been attending Police Jury meetings and working on the online auction process for years.

“There are serious advantages to having an outside source handle these issues for us,” Culverhouse said. “What we want to see are those properties back into commerce, and that is something that CivicSource can do for us.”

CivicSource’s chief legal officer Stephen Morel said online auctions open property sales to a wider audience, generate revenue for cities, speed up the sale of adjudicated properties and actually raise the selling price. CivicSource, based in New Orleans, also provides title insurance on sold properties.

“What governments have been trying to do is sell these properties off one at a time, but without title insurance,” Morel said. “The ability to provide title insurance on adjudicated properties has been a foreign concept to governments. No one wanted to take that risk.”

Without the title to a property, a purchaser technically owns the land but runs into roadblocks when trying to take out a mortgage. City governments in the past also have debated on whether to fund the sale of adjudicated properties. But with platforms such as CivicSource, the buyer initiates the sale and the process costs city governments and taxpayers nothing.

The way it works is the winning bidder at auction picks up all the costs associated with the company’s preparation of a property. Morel said the costs associated with the property — including the initial research, notification process, estimated closing costs and cost of title insurance — all are included in the base starting price at auction.

“Taxpayers pay nothing,” Morel said. “There’s no commission on the sale. There’s absolutely no liability to the governing agency.”

Partnerships with Caddo parish and the Bossier Parish Police Jury district are still too new to have comprehensive data for the cities, Morel said. But data the company collected from its other partnerships indicate online auctions work.

Morel said since launching in July, the online auctions have collected more than $16 million through sales of more than 600 properties across Louisiana. Cities have collected an additional $3 million in redemptions from owners of adjudicated properties slated for sale, according to the company.

Via The Shreveport Times

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Dec. 18, 2015) – Shelby County will host its quarterly tax sale of delinquent properties online on CivicSource.com starting Tuesday, January 19th at 8:00 a.m. CST through Thursday, January 21st at 8:00 p.m. CST. The implementation of an online tax sale is the first of its kind for the state of Tennessee, and it allows people to bid from their computers instead of in-person at the courthouse.

Over 500 residential, commercial and vacant properties included in January’s sale will be posted to CivicSource.com Saturday, Dec. 19 at noon.

“Having the tax sale online makes the process more efficient and streamlined,” said Shelby County Trustee David Lenoir. “Not only is it convenient, it broadens the pool of prospective bidders, potentially increasing revenue for the county.”

Registration is free and open now. The opening bid for a property includes delinquent city and county taxes, accrued interest and penalty charges, court costs, attorney fees, as well as service and title costs. Owners of the property may still pay the amount of taxes governing the sale up until the close of business prior to the day of the sale.

“Delinquent taxes have a significantly negative impact on the potential revenue for country government. We are sincerely grateful to be given the opportunity to assist Shelby County and offer a viable solution to redress the problem through the use of our technology,” said CivicSource CEO Bryan Barrios.

Biz.MAG – The first adjudicated properties for auction consideration in Bossier Parish were posted toCivicSource.com on Friday, Dec. 11.

Included in the 31 available properties are those that have failed to sell at previous tax sales and will return to commerce as a result, generating significant tax revenues to the parish. The average starting bid is $3,500, which includes all closing costs, as well as the cost of title insurance.

“The Bossier community and its residents are our greatest priority. As part of our continuous efforts to improve and restore our parish, we are thrilled to have a partner that can expedite and streamline the property auction program. CivicSource provides more than an online auction system; they offer a level of service and product that is changing the way we collect these late or unpaid taxes. The end result is a win-win: less blight and more tax revenue,” said Bossier Parish Administrator Bill Altimus.

Monthly auctions occur on CivicSource.com the first Wednesday of each month, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. In order for a property to be included in an auction, a $750 deposit must be placed approximately 120 days prior. Once a deposit places, all presale legal compliance begins, and when finalized, the investor is notified of the appropriate auction date. If the depositor is not the winning bidder at the auction, they are fully refunded the deposit amount.

“Adjudicated property is a leading cause of blight and abandoned property, leading to crime and decreased revenues for communities nationwide. We are grateful to provide a viable solution to those seeking to redress this problem and are excited for Bossier Parish to lead this effort for their residents,” said CivicSource CEO Bryan Barrios.

Since launching in July, the online auctions have collected over $16 million through the sale of over 600 properties across Louisiana. Millions more have been recovered directly from owners of adjudicated properties who redeemed their properties that were slated for sale.

via Biz.Mag 

Memphis, TN – Shelby County Government will host its January 2016 Tax Sale online at CivicSource.com starting Tuesday, January 19^th at 8:00 a.m. CST and ending Thursday, January 21^st at 8:00 p.m., subject to a sliding close. Properties will be available to view starting December 19^th at CivicSource.com. Register now for a free account and familiarize yourself with several investor friendly features such as custom watch-lists, sliding close and proxy biding.

When registering, be sure to opt-in to our email newsletter. We will send an update with additional information on the Shelby County Tax Sale and provide a link to the available properties on December 19th.

Enjoy the sale!

VIA http://nola.gov/mayor/press-releases/2015/20150903-pr-adj-property-wrapup/

NEW ORLEANS – On Aug. 5, the second in a series of innovative online monthly auctions for adjudicated properties brought in over $4 million after 417 people placed more than 14,600 bids to buy all 170 properties that were for sale. In addition, 15 delinquent accounts of $525,657.11 were paid in full in the weeks leading up to the auction. Altogether, the adjudicated property auction process has so far brought in more than $8.3 million for the City of New Orleans through two auctions and is helping to revive economic activity and create a fairer tax system. The next auction, which will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015, currently includes 165 properties scheduled for sale.

The City also reminded residents that there are over 1,000 properties still available for deposit to begin the research and notification processes before an auction may be scheduled. A list of these properties is available at CivicSource.com, which is also where the online auctions take place.

“Our second auction successfully helped bring 185 properties back into commerce,” said First Deputy Mayor & CAO Andy Kopplin. “These innovative auctions are operating tremendously well and the energy and excitement in the revitalization of New Orleans is apparent. We look forward to continuing these monthly auctions until the City has exhausted its backlog of adjudicated properties. We still have about 1,000 properties awaiting deposits across the city, so I encourage residents to go to CivicSource.com to check them out. All it takes is one depositor to start the research and notification processes so that we may schedule the property for auction.

Councilmember-At-Large Stacy Head said, “The great success of these first two auctions should give confidence to neighboring property owners, first-time homebuyers, investors and others that the adjudicated property auction is an excellent way to acquire property in New Orleans. With thousands of properties available, it’s possible to find one in almost any neighborhood. I urge everyone to visit CivicSource.com to view the available properties.”

A property is adjudicated to the City when its property taxes have not been paid – becoming delinquent – and the City is unable sell the property at a tax sale. The City only auctions properties where five years have elapsed from the tax sale certificate filing date.

In the Aug. 5 auction, 126 people bought 170 properties for a cumulative total of $4,079,600 (nearly 90 percent of the winning bidders were from Louisiana). The highest bid in the auction was $237,000 for a commercial building at 13000 Chef Menteur Highway. There were about 24,400 due process notifications mailed for the August sale and yard signs were placed on each property before the auction as part of the extensive efforts to contact and alert property owners. The revenue will be used to cover the cost of the sale and pay back the taxes owed to the appropriate entities, such as the City of New Orleans, Board of Liquidation, Orleans Parish School Board and Sewerage & Water Board. All remaining revenue will go to the City of New Orleans, where it can be used to invest in key resident priorities, such as community revitalization, public safety, street repairs and parks and recreation.

According to State law, the original property owner(s) have until the closing of the real estate transaction to pay the taxes owed and retain the property. If they do so, the winning bidder and depositors would be fully refunded their money. Once the property is successfully sold to the winning bidder, all adjudicated property owners, as well as those who have a recorded interest in a delinquent property, forfeit all rights to the property.

The City will hold the online auctions for adjudicated properties on the first Wednesday of every month, from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., subject to a rolling close in the case of last-minute competitive bidding. The City is scheduled to sell about 165 properties on Sept. 2. The number of properties could change as delinquent property owners pay the taxes and fees due.

Earlier this year, the City made 1,786 adjudicated properties available for sale through auction, more than 90 percent of which were vacant lots and more than 80 percent had been adjudicated to the City for longer than 10 years. Once a deposit is placed and properties clear the research and notification phase – and after they have been certified for insurability – they are scheduled for auction on a monthly basis.

Any interested party may bid on the property, whether or not they placed the initial deposit on the property (depositors who lose at auction will have their deposit refunded within a few days). The minimum starting price will include the cost of the research and legal notifications, closing costs and the cost of the title insurance, which can range from $3,000 to $7,000 depending on the property. Unlike tax sales, the successful purchaser at an adjudicated property auction will own the property free and clear with title insurance underwritten by WFG National Title Insurance Company. A list of the properties for auction is available at CivicSource.com, which is also where the online auctions take place.

A key goal of the adjudicated property auction is to provide title insurance to the winning bidder through WFG National Title Insurance Company. In order to undertake the legal research to be able to offer an Owner’s Title Insurance Policy, each property has undergone a two-step process:

STEP ONE: THE PRE-SALE RESEARCH & NOTICE PROCESS

When an investor chooses to initiate the auction process on one or more properties, he or she will place a deposit of $650 on each property, which starts the prerequisite legal research and notification process that is required before the auction takes place. The pre-sale process takes approximately 120 days to complete. If, during pre-sale period, the current property owner pays all delinquent taxes and fees, the depositor is refunded the deposit and the sale is halted.

STEP TWO: THE AUCTION

If the property is not redeemed by the conclusion of the research and notification period, a WFG National Title Insurance Company authorized agent reviews the file for total compliance with WFG’s prescribed underwriting guidelines. Properties that do not meet the guidelines remain in the research and notification processing stage until it is deemed either insurable or uninsurable within those guidelines. In the case of the latter, the property is excluded and the depositor is refunded; for properties that meet the guidelines, the auction date is set and the depositors are notified. When the auction goes live, the depositors and other interest parties place their bids and a regular online auction takes place (bidders do not have to place a deposit in order to bid, but a deposit is required to initiate the research and notification process that must occur before an auction can take place). The minimum starting price for each property includes the cost of the research and legal notifications, closing costs and the cost of the title insurance. Unlike online tax sales, the successful purchaser will own the property free and clear with title insurance guaranteed through WFG National Title Insurance Company. Losing depositors will be refunded their $650 deposit.

Questions about delinquent taxes and the adjudicated property sale process should be directed to Department of Finance’s Bureau of Treasury by calling toll free 1-888-387-8027.

via nola.gov