ADJUDICATED PROPERTY PROGRAM FAQs
Yes. However, the adjudicated property program is not the correct way for a tax debtor to reacquire his or her property. A tax debtor should redeem the property by contacting the tax collector in the parish where the property is located. If the tax debtor has received a notification from our offices regarding a property that is being sold through our adjudicated property program, you can request assistance in determining where to redeem the property or ask other questions by contacting our offices at 318-807-0924. In situations involving a prior owner who is not the tax debtor (perhaps a family member lost the property in a tax sale years ago), that individual or family members may be eligible to reaquire adjudicated property through the adjudication sales process. A notification letter only suggests that the recipient may have an interest in the property so take care to ask whose name the property will be redeemed back to prior to redemption.
No. Property that has been adjudicated to the Parish will not come up for another tax sale.
It is possible. However, our program schedules a specific auction for the specific property. Anyone who is interested in bidding for that property must also submit an offer with $1,000 prior to the auction. Therefore, you will know exactly how many other bidders will be bidding against you prior to the auction, if any. If you are not the high bidder, then your entire $1,000 is refunded.
No, you cannot pay the back taxes and associated fees in order to become the vested owner of adjudicated property. Once back taxes and associated fees are paid, the property will be viewed as redeemed and placed back in the tax debtor’s name.
No, the Police Jury will reserve any and all of the oil, gas and other mineral rights. This requirement comes from the Louisiana state constitution.
State statute allows a parish to determine the minimum bid. It can be the total amount of the taxes owed on the property or two-thirds of the total value of the property or the parish can decide to not require a minimum bid. Even if a parish decides to have no minimum bid, the state constitution prohibits it from giving away property without receiving appropriate value for it. We generally determine an appropriate minimum bid by selecting the lesser of the total value and the total amount of taxes owed. This dollar figure can fluctuate up or down depending on the value of the property.
Louisiana law now authorizes a Parish to sell adjudicated property. ACT 819 in the Regular Session of the 2008 Legislature was enacted to allow for sale of adjudicated property. La. RS 47:2201-2208 went into effect on January 1, 2009. A property purchaser acquires full ownership of the property.
Please allow 2 months for all of the documentation to be completed once the statutory waiting period has expired as explained above. This is not a quick way to purchase property; however, we will communicate with you during this time to keep you informed.
The minimum requirement is three years. State statute allows any adjudicated property to be sold. However, because a tax debtor has a statutory right to redeem his or her property for 3 years, our program sells properties that have been adjudicated for at least three years.
Yes. Many Parishes run their own adjudicated property programs and other private companies also run programs. While our service is a full service program, there are different aspects to different programs. Some programs require the purchaser to handle many aspects of the property purchase on their own. Our program is a full service program in which we handle all aspects of the sale from start to finish for one set price. If you are purchasing adjudicated property through a parish that uses a different program, but would like assistance with aspect(s) of the process, such as notification, contact us to discuss your needs and receive a quote.
A full refund may be given the following instances:
a. You can receive a full refund at any time before you sign the purchase agreement.
Even after you sign a purchase agreement, you will receive a full refund if one of the following situations occurs:
b. If the property is redeemed by the tax debtor during the adjudicated property purchase.
c. If you are not the successful bidder.
We get many questions about the closing date. After the required statutorily waiting periods and required notifications that we handle have passed, we draft ordinances that are presented to the police jury to approve the specific sale of the property at issue. After the passage of the final ordinance, we work with the property purchaser to schedule the closing at a date and time that is convenient for the property purchaser. The property purchase can take place in the parish where the property purchased is located or in our Monroe office. We handle all notary services and the only money that must be brought to the closing is the remaining balance for the property. We will also provide you with the estimated dollar figure for the filing fee for the Clerk of Court.
Redeeming the property is the act of paying the back taxes and associated fees. The tax debtor can redeem the property or another individual can redeem the property on behalf of the tax debtor, but redeeming the property does not transfer ownership.
Property that is purchased by a third party through a tax sale is not adjudicated to the Parish and is not eligible to the sold in this program. The purchaser holds a tax deed to that property.
The sale of any property under this program is the prospective buyer’s legal and financial risk. Parish shall be selling the property subject to a non-warranty deed. This means that the Parish and its agent, E&P Consulting Services, LLC, make no warranties of any kind whatsoever, express or implied.The implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for any purpose are hereby disclaimed and excluded.The Parish and its Agent shall not be liable to any applicant, purchaser, owner or any third party for any special, punitive, incidental or consequential damages resulting from the sale of the property. If title insurance is desired, purchasers will likely need to pursue curative title work at their own expense after the act of sale. If you plan to resell the property or use it as collateral for a loan, then purchasing adjudicated property may not be a good route to take. However, you can order a title opinion from a title agent prior to the purchased if you want to know what defects must be cured for merchantability prior to purchasing or bidding on property. The cost of a title opinion is not refundable and is not a required part of the adjudicated property sales process.
Adjudicated property is real or immovable property that meets both of the following criteria:
The property taxes were not paid and the property was not purchased at a subsequent tax sale.
The fee to start the purchase of adjudicated property is $1,000 made payable in certified funds (cashier’s check or money order). This fee is fully refundable until you, as the property purchaser, are informed of the minimum bid on the property AND make a formal offer to purchase by signing the Offer to Purchase agreeing to the minimum bid. They are administrative costs for the adjudicated property sale.
The word “adjudicated” means pronounced or declared. If the property taxes have not been paid, and the property is not sold at the tax sale, the property is adjudicated to the Parish and can be sold by the Parish, but only if specific conditions are met.
Either six (6) months or sixty (60) days depending on long the property has been adjudicated:
6 months:
If the subject property has been adjudicated for less than 5 years.
60 days:
If the subject property has been adjudicated for five (5) years or more.
Our company is a full service company that provides all of the services from start to finish in the adjudicated property program. We begin the sales process by identifying the appropriate minimum bid and communicating that amount to the interested purchaser who makes an offer to purchase or rejects the offer. If the offer is rejected, the full administrative fee is refunded to the individual. If an offer to purchase is made, title research and statutory notifications will all be handled by E & P Consulting. We handle the drafting of all required ordinances, drafting the non-warranty deed and executing the sale. Notary services and filing in the local courthouse are also included. The only additional costs to the purchaser are: purchase price of the property and filing fee at the courthouse (actual costs to file the final deed). Curative work may be desired, but is not required.
If a parish uses our adjudicated property program, you can click on the Search Property link to access the different parish properties. If a parish uses a different program, you can go to their website to learn of their adjudicated property program.
The recording fee of the final closing package is not included in the deposit because the amount if determined by the number of pages within the final package and is calculated by the Clerk of Court. It must be paid separately at the time of closing. This is the only mandatory additional fee that you will be charged beyond the actual purchase price of the property. You may also file the closing package with the Clerk of Court yourself after the closing although this is offered as a part of our full services. NOTE: ACT 173 from the 2017 Legislative Session amended state law and effective August 1, 2017, the filing fees for conveyance and mortgage record filings are consistent throughout the state.