Seminole tax official chided over land deals
Rival: Valdes profits on system he runs
Since his election in 1988, Seminole County Tax Collector Ray Valdes and relatives have pocketed thousands of dollars on real-estate transactions involving his office.
Valdes, personally and through a company he controls, has successfully bid on numerous delinquent properties put up for auction after owners failed to pay taxes on them for years. He recently sold a 5-acre parcel near Oviedo for $100,000; he purchased it for $20,000 in 1994 at a tax deed auction, according to county records.
His cousin, who lives in Georgia, made $131,014 in interest between 2003 and 2015 for picking up the tab for the delinquent taxes of property owners through the
purchase of tax certificates from Valdes’ office.
Though not illegal, these practices are drawing renewed scrutiny as Valdes runs for an eighth term as tax collector. Joel Greenberg, 31, his opponent in the Aug. 30 primary, said the transactions involving Valdes and his relatives creates the appearance of impropriety.
“It’s just not right for him to do this,” Greenberg said. “Other counties have policies against this . ... It’s disgusting because he’s using his position to get rich.”
Valdes, 78, who is facing his first challenge since 2004, said he has done nothing improper and called Greenberg’s accusations “pitiful.” He said he uses the same information available to residents in researching tax-delinquent properties.
“I don’t have any extra knowledge that is not available to the public,” he said.
Dominic Calabro, president and CEO of Florida TaxWatch, a nonpartisan watchdog group, said government officials should refrain from activities that make it seem they are using their public offices for gain.
“Though it’s legal, I understand how this raises questions,” he said. “When you’re in public office, you have to be careful. … I think if I was in that office, I would hold myself to a much higher standard.”
Several tax collectors’ offices, including Orange, Sumter and Brevard counties, have rules either forbidding or discouraging employees from taking part in transactions involving delinquent properties.
“It’s to prevent the appearance of a conflict of interest,” said David McCormick, Brevard’s chief deputy tax collector.
The Florida Ethics Commission has found no problem with Valdes buying taxdelinquent properties. His side interest in delinquent properties also was an issue in his 2004 race, two years after the Sentinel first reported on the topic. He narrowly won the primary, 51 percent to 49 percent, over then-Seminole County Commissioner Grant Maloy before easily defeating a Libertarian in the general election.
Valdes said his office has a policy that prohibits either him or his employees from doing personal business with his office, including covering unpaid property taxes for a profit by purchasing tax certificates at annual auctions.
However, records show his family members have invested more than $660,000 over nearly three decades for tax certificates that earn as much as 18 percent interest on other people’s delinquent taxes.
If a property owner doesn’t settle the tax bill within two years, the taxcertificate holder can request that the land be auctioned to recoup money paid to settle the delinquent tax bill.
Since Valdes purchased the 5-acre site 22 years ago, he has successfully bid on 14 other properties in Seminole, spending a total of $197,065. He has since sold six of those properties for a total of $327,600, according to county records.
Also, through a company he controls called Bravados Enterprises, Valdes has spent $162,500 purchasing six properties at tax-deed auctions. Bravados sold one of those properties, an Altamonte Springs condo, in 2013 for $43,000. It was purchased in 2011 for $11,000, according to county records.
In addition, Conservation Enterprises Trust LLC, which is listed under his cousin Helen Theile Hernandez’s name but uses Valdes’ home address, spent $146,752 to purchase five properties. The company sold only one property for $11,000 the same day it was purchased for $4,000, according to records.
Greenberg, co-founder of an advertising company that was sold last year, is bringing attention to the transactions in hopes of denying Valdes another four years in office. “This is why people have a distrust of government,” he said.
Valdes said he isn’t worried about Greenberg’s attacks because he isn’t doing anything improper.
“I’ve got nothing to hide,” he said.
The primary winner will face only a write-in candidate in November, and is virtually assured of taking the seat.