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Frequently Asked Questions
\nOkaloosa County Tax Certificate Sale
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BASICS\n
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What is a tax certificate?\nA tax certificate is a first lien against real estate (not the owner)\nand becomes the basis upon which a tax deed application is filed. The\ntax certificate sale is NOT a sale of real property, nor does a tax\ncertificate give the certificate holder a direct means to acquire a\nproperty. According to Florida Statute 197.432 (13) The holder of a tax\ncertificate may not directly, through an agent, or otherwise initiate\ncontact with the owner of property upon which he or she holds a tax\ncertificate to encourage or demand payment until 2 years after April 1\nof the year of issuance of the tax certificate.
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\nIt is your sole responsibility to research any tax lien certificates\nyou intend to buy. You can see additional property and tax information\nfor any item by clicking on the Account or Parcel Number on the auction\nweb site.
Research\nany advertised items carefully before submitting bids. There are\npotential risks associated with tax certificate purchases. All\npurchases in the tax certificate sale are final.\n
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When does the tax certificate sale\ntake place?\nThe sale opens in early to mid May and starts to close on or before\nJune 1.
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\nIn early to mid-May each year:
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\n- Items for sale are advertised (in a local newspaper and on the\nauction web site)
\n- Bidders can begin to register for the sale (submit W-9 forms, pay\ndeposits, get bidder numbers)
\n- Bidders can begin to submit bids
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\nStarting on, or before, June 1:
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\n- Bid submission ends
\n- Sale results are generated
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\nFor exact dates, please see the
AUCTION SCHEDULE. All activity related to\nregistration, bidding, and certificate awards takes place on the\nauction web site.
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How do I register for the sale?\nAll bidders who wish to participate in the sale must perform the\nfollowing steps
on the auction web\nsite:
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\n- Obtain a User ID and password for the web site by clicking the \"Sign In\" link at the top left of the page, then clicking the \"Create A User\" button and completing the required form
\n- Submit an IRS W-9 form
\n- Submit information necessary to process redemption payments by ACH
\n- Set a budget amount (the most you are willing to spend in the\nsale)
\n- Pay a deposit of at least 10% of your anticipated purchases.\nDeposits will only be accepted via ACH.
\n- Please note that you can only submit or modify your W-9, or make\na security deposit while a sale is open. You will be assigned a bidder\nnumber after you successfully submit your W-9.
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Can I participate as a non-US bidder?\nThe Tax Collector will only accept bids from US persons who are\nqualified to complete an IRS W-9 form and provide a valid US TIN.
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How do I submit my bids?\nYou can submit your bids on the Bid page individually, as a group\n(using a saved list), or via a file upload. You must complete all the\nregistration steps before you are allowed to submit bids.
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How do I pay for certificate purchases?\nPayment must be made by ACH. The balance due for your purchases will be automatically debited from the bank account you designated as your \"Final Payment Account\" at the designated Final Payment Deadline. If you wish to manually make your payment prior to the Final Payment Deadline, please go to the \"Payments and Budget\" page under \"My Account\" and click \"Pay for Certificates\". The button is activated once the last batch in the sale closes and any final data updates are complete. The deadline to pay is listed on the
Auction Schedule. If your final payment is returned as invalid for any reason, you may forfeit your security deposit and certificate purchases.
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What is an ACH debit?\nAn ACH debit is an electronic payment from your checking or savings\naccount. When you enter your bank account information and submit\npayment on the auction web site, you are authorizing the Tax Collector\nto debit your account for the amount you indicated. All payments are\nsent for processing immediately. Additional information is available on\nthe page where you authorize payment.\n
Funds must be drawn from a US financial institution. Some types of\nmoney market, brokerage, and/or trust accounts cannot accept ACH\ndebits. Please check with your financial institution prior to\ninitiating payment on the web site.
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THE TAX CERTIFICATE\nSALE top\n
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What is the auction process?\nCertificates are sold in the order advertised. Bidding begins at 18\npercent (the maximum rate) and bids down in decrements of one quarter\nof one percent. Each certificate is sold individually to the bidder\noffering the lowest interest rate. In the case of a tie at the lowest\nrate, the winner will be selected using a random number generator in\nthe auction software. Items that receive no bids are \"struck\" to the\ncounty and become county-held certificates. Bids are accepted at 0.00%\n(zero), but certificates awarded at this rate WILL NOT accrue interest.\nBids at 0.00% will not be treated as Proxy bids even in sales using\nProxy Bidding.
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Is there a cost to participate?\nRegistration on the web site is free. You only need to make payment for\na refundable security deposit, and to pay the balance due for any\ncertificate purchases.
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What is a batch?\nA batch is a subgroup of the list of auction items. The list is divided\ninto batches to make the bidding process more efficient, and enable\nparticipants to manage their bids and budgets.
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Do I have to bid on all the items in a\nbatch?\nNO. Each tax certificate in each batch is auctioned independently of\nevery other tax certificate.
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What happens to my security deposit if\nI don't win any certificates?\nThe Tax Collector will issue refunds approximately two weeks after the\nclose of the sale. Refunds of ACH payments will be made electronically\nto the account you used to submit the deposit. Refunds of offline\npayments will be made by ACH to the account you designated for\nredemption payments
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Will the Tax Collector send me a paper\ncertificate or list of certificates after the sale?\nNo, the Tax Collector does not issue paper certificates or lists of\npurchases after the sale. To review and download a list of your winning\nbids:
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\n- Log in to the auction web site
\n \n- Enter the relevant tax certificate sale
\n- Click on the Results tab
\n- Select \"All Certificates\" from the Certificate Lists menu
\n- Select \"All Batches\" from the Batches menu
\n- Select your buyer number from the Bidder menu
\n- Select \"Winning Bids\" from the Results menu
\n- Check \"Hide Removed Certificates\"
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\nAfter completing these steps you will see a list of your purchases. You\ncan download the list in Excel, or comma-separated values format (CSV),\nby clicking the icons on the right-hand side of the page above the list\nof certificates.
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USING THE AUCTION SITE top\n
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I forgot my password. What should I do?\nClick Forgot your password on the home page. Answer a few questions and\nthe system will send you a temporary password via email.
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I forgot my User ID. What should I do?\nClick \"Forgot your User ID?\" on the Sign In page. Answer a few\nquestions and the system will send your User ID via email.
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What is Proxy Bidding?\nIn a live auction, bidders lower their bids by quarter percent\ndecrements until they are the only bidder left or until the interest\ngoes below their acceptable minimum level, at which point they would\ndrop out.
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\nProxy bidding is a form of competitive sale in which bidders enter the\nminimum interest rate that they are willing to accept for each\ncertificate. The auction system acts as an electronic agent, submitting\nbids on behalf of each bidder until their minimum bid rate is met.\nUsing the proxy system the electronic agent keeps lowering your bid by\nquarter percent decrements until you are either the only bidder left,\n(in which case you get the certificate at a quarter percent lower than\nthe previous bid) or until you reach the floor you have set. Note:
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\n- Zero percent bids (0%) will not be treated as proxy bids. They\nwill be awarded at zero.
\n- If you are the only bidder on a given certificate and your\nminimum rate is greater than zero percent, the electronic agent will\nsubmit a bid of 18 percent on your behalf.
\n- In the case of a tie at the winning bid rate, the system awards\nthe certificate to one of the tied bidders through a random selection\nprocess using a random number generator.
\n- In no case will a bidder be awarded a certificate at a rate lower\nthan their specified minimum acceptable rate.
\n- Certificates that receive no bids after all batches are closed\nwill be struck to the County at 18 percent.
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Does my budget amount limit the number\nof bids I can submit?\nNo. You can submit an unlimited number of bids regardless of your\nbudget amount. However, you will not be awarded an item if the award\nwould cause the value of your purchases to exceed your budget amount.
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Is my budget amount automatically 10x\nmy deposit amount?\nNo. The maximum allowable budget you can set is 10x your deposit\namount, but you have to enter what you want your budget to be. You can\nmodify your budget any time before the end of the sale, as long as you\nhave at least 10% of that amount submitted as your deposit.
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Where can I find sale results?\nYou can see results by logging in to the auction web site, entering the\nauction, and clicking on the Results tab in the upper right-hand part\nof the page. Clicking on the winning bid for any certificate will\ndisplay a list of all submitted bids in a new window.
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What equipment or software do I need\nto be able to participate?\nIn order to use the auction web site you need an Internet connection\nand modern web browser with JavaScript and cookies enabled.
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\nMany people choose one of the following freely available browsers:
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If I have a question about how to use\nthe web site, who do I contact?\nContact Grant Street Group by email at
LienHub@GrantStreet.com,\nor by phone at (866) 247-4370, between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. EST on\nbusiness days.
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TAX CERTIFICATES top\n
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How do I receive redemption funds?\nWhen a certificate has been redeemed, the certificate holder is\nentitled to the face value plus whatever interest the certificate has\nearned. Certificates are redeemed when the owner, title company or\nmortgage company pays the outstanding taxes, or when the holder of a\ncertificate on the same parcel (from a different tax year) redeems it\nas part of a tax deed application. Redemption proceeds are remitted to\ncertificate holders by the Tax Collector. The certificate holder is\nnever paid directly unless it is from a Bankruptcy Trustee. If that\nhappens, you must notify the Tax Collector when you are paid in full\nand request that the certificate be canceled.
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Can I pay the taxes and own the\nproperty?
\nNO. You have not purchased property. A tax certificate purchase\ndoes not convey any property rights or ownership to the certificate\nholder.
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Can an interest rate be changed after\nthe sale?\nThe following may affect the interest rate:
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\n- No interest is earned on certificates issued and then redeemed in\nthe month of May.
\n- For all certificates, except those bid at 0% or issued and\nredeemed in May, the minimum interest you will get at the time of\nredemption will be 5%, even if the interest earned to date is less.
\n- If a certificate gets canceled or reduced, the interest earned\nwill be 8% per year, simple interest, or the rate of interest bid at\nthe tax certificate sale, whichever is less, on the canceled or\nreduced amount.
\n- Bankruptcy and other court rulings
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Why would a certificate be canceled or\nreduced?\nA certificate could be canceled or reduced for various reasons such as\nto correct errors, omissions, or double assessments, or when ordered by\na court.
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Are tax certificates transferable?\nCertificates can be transferred by completing an endorsement form and\npaying the applicable fees through the Tax Collector's office.
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When are county-held certificates\navailable for purchase?\nCounty-held tax certificates, other than those with homestead real\nestate under $250.00, may be purchased after the close of the tax sale.\nThe Okaloosa County Tax Collector uses
LienHub\nto facilitate sales of county-held certificates.
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What is the life of a tax certificate?\nThe statute of limitation on a tax certificate is seven years from the\ndate of issuance. If a tax deed has not been applied for and no other\nadministrative or legal proceeding exists, the tax certificate is null\nand void.
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TAX DEED APPLICATIONS\n
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What is the Florida tax deed process?\n
The holder of a tax certificate at any time after 2 years have elapsed\nsince April 1 of the year of issuance of the tax certificate and before\nthe cancelation of the certificate, may file the certificate and an\napplication for a tax deed with the Tax Collector of the county where\nthe property described in the certificate is located.\n
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A certificate holder who makes application for a tax deed shall pay\nthe Tax Collector at the time of application all amounts required for\nredemption or purchase of all other outstanding tax certificates, plus\ninterest, any omitted taxes, plus interest, any delinquent taxes, plus\ninterest, and current taxes, if due, covering the property. In\naddition, the certificate holder shall pay the costs of resale, if\napplicable, and failure to pay such costs within 30 days after notice\nfrom the clerk shall result in the clerks entering the land on a list\nentitled lands available for taxes.
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The Tax Collector will certify to the Clerk of the Circuit Court a\nlist of all persons required by law to be notified prior to the sale of\nthe property and a certification of monies involved in the application.\nThe tax deed applicant will then be notified of the additional funds\nneeded for advertising and other costs. After all necessary advertising\nand noticing, the Clerk's office will schedule a tax deed sale date.\nThe tax deed applicant receives 18% per annum interest on the\napplication, beginning the month after application through the month of\nredemption or tax deed sale date. If the property is purchased by a\nperson other than the certificate holder, the certificate holder will\nbe reimbursed all of the sums paid, including the above referenced 18%\ninterest. For complete rules please see Florida Statute 197.502.
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Can I apply for a tax deed online?
\nOkaloosa County and other Florida tax collectors use LienHub for\nonline tax deed applications. For more information, go to the LienHub site\nand select Okaloosa County from the menu on the home page.
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\nCan a homestead property be sold by\ntax deed?
\nYes, but the opening bid on property assessed on the latest tax roll as\nhomestead property shall include, in addition to the amount of money\npaid to the Tax Collector by the certificate holder at the time of\napplication, the amount required to redeem the applicants tax\ncertificate, and an amount equal to one-half of the assessed value of\nthe homestead property as listed on the current years tax roll.
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\nWho conducts the tax deed sale?
\nThe Clerk of the Circuit Court. The tax deed is issued to the highest\nbidder. The opening bid must include all the costs paid by the tax deed\napplicant plus all other costs for conducting the sale. The\ntitle-holder of record has the right to redeem the property by paying\nthe Tax Collector all previously described costs at any time before\nfull payment for a tax deed is made to the Clerk of the Circuit Court.
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Ben\nAnderson
\nTax Collector, Okaloosa County
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