Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-05-11

Statutes in Various States Operate to Aid Householder
Retain Possession of His Property.

clerk, offers for sale all properties upon
which the taxes are delinquent at that
date. Tax buyers make their money by
adding to the sums due the county
and which they pay for the delinquent
owner additional penalties which must
be paid to them by the property owner
for release. The penalties exacted by
the tax buyers are regulated in all
States.
For example. the State of Illinois
permits tax buyer to ask a maximum
penalty of IL per cent every six months
for a period of two years from the
owner whose tax bills he has paid.
However. there is competition among
the tax buyers and sometimes 1t Is not
possible for them to secure the maxi
mum rates. At the tax sale there Is
competitive bidding among the tax buy
ers; If a property up for sale for delin-
may bid under the maximum rate in
order to try to get the property away
from a competing tax buyer. The
statute rate may be IL per cent and
one buyer may bid II per cent, an
other bid 10 per cent and another bid
per cent. The property goes at tax
sale to the tax buyer making the lowest
bid. In the illustration used above.
the tax buyer bidding 7 per cent would
effort of the local governments to pro-
tect the property owner by giving a
lien on his property to the tax buyer
who will exact the least from him.
THE statement that the property
goes to the tax buyer at a tax sale
does not mean that the tax buyer gains
possession Of the property through this
process, or that he can take 1t over
and move out the owners. 1t means
that the proper authorities will issue
the tax buyer tax certificate which
clouds the title to the property, there
by hindering resale until this lien Is
removed, and makes it impossible to put
a mortgage on 1t or borrow money on
it from any reputable bank or broker.
If the property has not been re-
deemed in the tWo-year period (this
period varying in length in the different
States, the tax purchaser is entitled
to tax deed, upon complying with
certain provisions in the statutes, these
provisions having to do with giving
sufhcient notice, ETC., and varying In
the different States.
Now the tax buyer adds new penal
ties to the bill he holds against the
property owner, which must be paid
before he will release his lien on the
property Represented by the tax deed).
In some States there Is no limit to the
amount the tax buyer can ask for re-
lease at this period; other States regu-
late this figure.
In some States. after certain pc
Rod, the tax buyer holding a tax deed
can gain possession of the property if
he has complied with the provisions
covering this subject in the statute. But
every effort is eXerted on the part of
officials in such States, through the
statutes, to protect owners in such a
position by making it difficult for this
to happen. However, it does happen.
Tax buyers are not INSCRIPTIONS
Shylocks. They conduct a legitimate
business and are an aid to local gov
ernments, because without them thou
sands upon thousands Of taxes never
would be collected, and revenues would |
be consequently curtailed. It was re-
ported many years ago that a group of |
of1cials, including members Of the |
bench, in Cook County, Ill, went to a
group of tax buyers and asked them to |
make as many purchases as they could I
in order to fill the Golfers of the county, I
50 their salaries might be paid" /