Online auctions to feature unsold tax-delinquent items

The Commissioner of State Lands Office will open an online auction next month in an effort to rid the state of properties that failed to sell at previous auctions.

“These are properties that were offered at auction but did not sell,” Commissioner Tommy Land said. “The post-auction sales list has always been posted on our website, but those properties could only be purchased by mail. We’re moving that process online.”

The online sales are only for the properties listed on the post-auction sales list at https://auction.cosl.org and properties will be available to view on July 1.

The State Lands office will continue holding live, in-person auctions for newly-available properties.

Bidding on any parcel begins when the first offer is made, and the bidding period for that parcel remains open for 30 days from that date. At the end of the 30 days, the winning bidder will be notified, according to a press release from Land’s office.

Only U.S. residents are eligible to purchase property. “Buyers must have a valid U.S. address and identification to purchase property through these online auctions,” Land said.

“The owner still has 10 business days to redeem the property after bidding ends,” he said. “After the expiration of that time, if the owner has not paid the delinquent amount, we will issue the limited warranty deed to the new buyer.”

Land said his office is posting informational videos on its social media and website to demonstrate

(Continued from Page 1) researching a property and how to bid in the online auctions.

“It’s a simple process, but it’s important that people do some research and understand what they’re bidding on,” Land said. “We’re offering free tutorial videos to help them learn more about this process.”

Post-auction sales are a big part of the office’s business.

In 2020, when the office could not hold public auctions due to the Covid pandemic, “we sold more than 5,400 parcels that had failed to sell at previous years’ auctions,” Land said. In 2019, the last year of auctions, post-auction sales outnumbered auction sales by almost three-toone.

“By far, most parcels that are certified to us for delinquent taxes are redeemed by their owners,” he said. “But for those that are not redeemed, the auction and post-auction sales process gets them back into active tax status, which benefits everyone. We’re excited about the new online auctions, and I’m looking forward to more people getting involved.”