How to Claim an Abandoned Piece of Land in Alabama
Abandoned properties in the state of Alabama will go into a property tax sale the first year the taxes are delinquent. Property taxes become due and payable Oct. 1 of each year and will be delinquent if not paid on or before Dec. 31. The tax sale will be held in May or June of the year following the delinquency. At the sale, either the highest bidder will purchase the property, or it will become the property of the state of Alabama.
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Instructions
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Find out the tax parcel identification number for the property. This number will be needed to identify the property in the tax records. If you have the name of the last owner of record, you might be able to look up the ID number with either an online or courthouse records search. If you do not have the name and are not familiar with mapping property, you might need the assistance of an attorney, title examiner or surveyor.
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Find out the date of the tax sale. This information should be provided either online or with a call to the Revenue Commissioner's Office for your county in April or early May. A list of area offices is available through the Alabama Department of Revenue's website, www.ador.state.al.us/. The information will also be published in local newspapers three weeks prior to the sale, along with a brief description of properties up for auction. You might have to register as a bidder prior to the sale. Your taxing official will be able provide you with registration information for your county.
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Attend the tax sale, and successfully bid on the property. You may bid in excess of the amount of taxes due. Any amount up to 15 percent over the appraised value of the property will earn interest at 12 percent if the owner redeems or takes back the property. Upon a successful bid, you should receive a tax certificate for the property.
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Wait three years from the date you purchased the tax interest in the property at the tax sale. If the owner of the property has not redeemed by this time, you will then be able to apply for a tax deed to be issued by the probate judge in the county where the property is located.
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Contact an attorney to file a quiet title action. A quiet title action is a lawsuit to determine legal title to property. The mere possession of a tax deed does not guarantee that your ownership will go unchallenged, and it may be difficult or impossible to resell or mortgage the property without a court order granting you legal title. The attorney may advise you to wait at least three years after acquiring your tax deed to bring suit, as the Code of Alabama seems to favor the rights of the previous title holder to reclaim the property during the first three years after a tax deed is issued.
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Tips & Warnings
Check the property tax records to make sure someone hasn't been paying current taxes on the property. A property that appears abandoned might not be.
The Alabama Department of Revenue website lists properties that were acquired by the state at the tax sale and whose tax interest is up for purchase by individuals.
By the time a property appears abandoned, it might already have been purchased in a prior year's tax sale.
The legal owner of the property who lost it for non-payment of taxes will have the ability to redeem or at least to attempt to redeem the property until the court terminates his rights.
It is unlikely that you will be able to get a title insurance policy for either yourself or a lender until the court awards legal title to you.
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