By Bonnie Culverhouse

During May’s meeting, the Minden City Council voted for an ordinance that establishes the City of Minden Adjudicated Property Program and allows the sale of property, with the aid of E&P Consulting, headquartered in Monroe.

A contract was signed that allows E&P to essentially work as an agent for the City to help rid them of properties that are described as adjudicated –  that which tax sale title is acquired by a political subdivision, in this case, the City of Minden.

E&P Consulting’s website shows 21 parcels in the Minden City limits and owned by the City of Minden.

“This is a complicated subject and a common problem,” Minden Mayor Nick Cox said.

In April, Wesley E. Johnson with E&P Consulting Services LLC of Monroe addressed a Minden City Council workshop concerning adjudicated properties.

“Until the overhaul of the state law in about 2010, there was no process for the property to go back up for tax sale,” Johnson told the council members. “Once it was adjudicated to the political subdivision, it was just on this list – never to be taxed again.”

The tax debtor redeems the property by paying the back taxes. However, according to Johnson, that doesn’t always happen, and the list continues to grow, bringing a hardship to governmental entities that have libraries, properties and roads to fund.

“There would be a problem if the debtor ever decided they wanted to sell that property,” she said. “But otherwise it’s just sitting there. That’s where you are seeing your blight and abandonment.”

The redeemer actually still owns the property, however, the City or Parish (if that’s the case) must maintain it or see that it’s sold.

Johnson is an attorney that works for E&P where she researches adjudicated property to try and clear the title, so it can be sold.

“Many of these instances are ‘heir’ properties,” she said. “One of the residents dies and another continues to live there until they die. Then it goes to multiple heirs and eventually gets lost in the process.”

Johnson will receive no money from the City for working the process.

“The interested purchaser of the property is who comes to us, pays us for a fee for research – like who needs to receive notice, send the notice and do all the bits and pieces from start to finish,” she said.

Johnson said the notices are worded by the statute, and often that alerts the property owner and they will redeem the property.

“If that happens, our fee is $1,000,” she said. “It’s placed on the tax bill. We don’t put it on the tax bill until we’ve actually been hired to do the work, we’ve done the work, we’ve sent the notices. If they redeem it, that kills the sale … I can’t sell it to a third person. That means the notices did their job.”

Research includes finding heirs and an heirship educational program.

Eventually, the City will have a button on its website where Johnson said the City will see, in some cases, redemptions happening before notices are sent.

If you are interested in adjudicated properties in Minden or the 14 parishes listed on E&P’s website, visit https://louisianalandsolutions.com/ .

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