Pasco County Tax Lien Auction: Instructions

LienAuction User Instructions

USER INSTRUCTIONS

Please read these User Instructions carefully. These instructions are by no means exhaustive and Users are advised to carefully read all other instructions, warnings and advice provided on the Web Site (and elsewhere as indicated), all of which are essential to understand the sale process and how to use the Web Site. Bidder Support representatives are available at 866-247-4370 between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on business days to assist Users with instruction and answers to questions.

Capitalized terms not defined in these User Instructions shall have the meaning set forth in the User Agreement, or if not defined therein, the terms will have their plain English meaning based on their context.

Accessing the Web Site

In order to access the Web Site pages listed below, a user must create an account on LienHub or any other tax certificate, tax deed or foreclosure auction web site hosted by Grant Street Group and accept the terms of the User Agreement.

In order to submit bids in any auction, a user must complete all registration steps linked to from the Auction Summary page prior to any applicable registration deadlines. Registration and deposit requirements are determined by Seller.

Web Site Pages, Details and Functionality

Auction Summary Page

The Auction Summary page provides:

  1. Confirmation of your name, User ID, and Bidder Number, if assigned.
  2. A registration status indicator that includes a link to the list of steps that must be taken before Bids can be submitted with links to complete the steps.
  3. Important information about Seller's next upcoming or most recently completed tax certificate sale.
  4. The order and schedule of Batch closings in upcoming and recently completed sales of selected tax certificates.
  5. Contact information for Seller and Grant Street.
  6. A list of steps that must be taken before Bids can be submitted and links to complete the steps.
  7. A summary of your bidding activity.

My Account

The following pages are available under the My Account:

  1. Payments and Budget
    1. In an auction where Seller requires a deposit and is accepting payments, once you submit an initial deposit you can make additional deposits using the Add Deposit button.
    2. After you submit a Budget amount as part of the registration process, you can adjust your Budget using the Budget Input. Your Submitted Budget limits the maximum value of certificates you can be awarded, as described in the Awards section below.
  2. W-9 / Manage Bidding Group
    1. In an auction where Seller chooses not to allow Bidding Groups, after you select a bidder to use in the auction as part of the registration process, you can confirm your selected bidders on the Confirm Bidder page. You can change your selected bidder during the registration process or on the LienHub Manage Bidders page.
    2. In an auction where Seller chooses to allow users to use Bidding Groups, after you have selected a bidder or bidders to use in the auction as part of the registration process, you can confirm your selected bidders on the Manage Bidding Group page. You can change your selected bidders on the LienHub Manage Bidders page. The deadline to change the bidders included in a Bidding Group will be listed under the Bidding Group Guidelines and on schedules posted in LienHub.
  3. Auto-Debit Payment Account
    1. As part of the registration process, you must designate an account to be debited for your balance due at the end of the auction.
    2. You can view the account you designated, or designate a different account prior to the final payment deadline on the Auto-Debit Payment Account page.
  4. If Seller requires additional registration steps such as the submission of bank account information to be used in electronic redemption payment processing, links to pages which can be used to view or edit this information may also be listed under My Account.

Note: Users are responsible for keeping their bidder information current and accurate. User and bidder information can be maintained through links in LienHub sidebar on the left-hand side of the page.

Search Page

  1. The Search page allows Users to search the underlying property and tax information to create custom Certificate Lists. Saved Certificate Lists can be accessed from the Search, Reports, Bid and Results pages.
  2. The "Search Criteria" table is where Users select the data field(s) for the search and enter their constraints.
  3. Once data fields and constraints have been entered, Users can search all of the certificates in the Certificate List and Batch specified at the top of the page by clicking on the "Run Search" button.
  4. Search results will appear at the bottom of the screen. Certificates can be removed from the results by un-checking the "Select" box to the left of the certificate.
  5. Search results can be saved to a custom Certificate List by clicking on the "Save List As..." button and entering a name for the list. The saved Certificate List will then appear in the Certificate Lists drop-down menu on the Search, Reports, Bid and Results pages.
  6. Search criteria can be saved by clicking on the "Save Criteria As..." Saved search criteria can be recalled by selecting the criteria from the "Saved Search Criteria" drop-down menu.
  7. Please note that when you move from "Search" to the "Bid" page, the list of certificates displayed in "Certificate Lists" is maintained. You should always check the Certificate List and Batch you are viewing before submitting rates or when viewing results.

Reports Page

  1. The Reports page allows Users to view and/or download underlying property and tax information to an Excel or comma-separated values (CSV) file.
  2. Users can select which data fields should be included in the report by clicking on the "Choose Columns" button and moving the desired fields from the "Available Columns" box to the "Selected Columns" box. This can be done by highlighting the field name and clicking the "Add ->" button. Columns can be removed from the report by selecting them and clicking the "Remove ->" button.
  3. The order of the columns in the report will match the order that they are listed in the "Selected Columns" box. To change the position of a column in the report, simply highlight the column name and click the "Move Up" or "Move Down" buttons.
  4. Once the User clicks the "Save" button, the report will be generated. The report will contain only those certificates in the Certificate List and Batch specified in the drop-down menus.
  5. The format of the report can be saved and reused by clicking the "Save Format As..." button and entering a name for the report format.  Saved report formats can be recalled by selecting the appropriate format from the "Saved Report Formats" drop-down menu.
  6. The report can be downloaded into a Microsoft Excel or CSV file by clicking the Excel or CSV icon in the top right-hand corner of the report results.

Bid Page

  1. Information displayed on the Bid page is current as of the "Last Update" time displayed on the Bid page.
  2. Certificates displayed on the Bid page correspond to the Certificate List and Batches displayed in the drop-down boxes near the top of the Bid page. The Bid page can display up to 100 Certificates at any one time. Users can choose the number of certificates to display per page by selecting a value from the 'Number of Certificates to Display' drop-down box at the bottom of the Bid page.
  3. Any selected Certificate List and Batch combination with more Certificates than the number selected in the 'Number of Certificates to Display' drop-down box will result in the display of one or more page number links (e.g., Page: 1 2 3 4 ...). Clicking any page number link enables Users to access additional Certificates on those pages.
  4. Users may see additional property and tax information for any particular certificate by clicking on the Account or Parcel Number.
  5. Bidders establish bids by first inputting a rate in the 'Min. Rate' input boxes available for every certificate on the Bid page, and then clicking either the "Submit" button for the corresponding Certificate or, to submit all entered rates simultaneously, clicking the "Submit All" Button near the top of the Bid page. By clicking the "Submit All" button, Bidders submit all inputs that then appear in the 'Min. Rate' input cells related to the Certificate List and Batch displayed in the drop-down boxes at the top of the Bid page at the time of submission. Correspondingly, rates may be submitted for certificates that are not displayed on the page being viewed by the Bidder if the list of certificates receiving rate submissions is longer than one page.
  6. Bidders must resolve Error message(s), if any, before erroneous submissions can be successfully re-transmitted. Even when error messages are generated with respect to some submissions in a group (resulting from use of the Submit All feature, for example) and are consequently not transmitted, the portion of the submissions without errors are transmitted.

Information submitted on the Web Site is subject to the terms of Grant Street's Privacy Policy.

Upload Page

  1. The Upload page allows Users to upload bids from a comma-separated values (CSV) file. These rates are not considered to be submitted until the User clicks the appropriate "Submit" or "Submit All" button on the Bid page. Please see the section titled "Bids" for more information.
  2. Users must create a file in the required format for it to be uploaded and processed successfully. Users may create a file on their own, or use the Bid File provided.  A User may click the "Download Bid File" button to download a formatted CSV file containing five columns: Adv No., Batch No., Account No., Face Amount, and Bid. Each certificate in the auction will be listed in this file.
  3. Bids must be entered in the Bid column. The completed file must be saved to the User's computer or local network in CSV format.
  4. To upload the completed Bid File, a User must click on the "Select File to Upload" button, locate the completed Bid File, then click the "Upload and Save" button.
  5. The Software will process the completed Bid File and transfer the User to the Bid page, where the User's successfully processed rates will be entered in the appropriate "Min. Rate" cells. As noted previously, rates will not be considered submitted until the appropriate "Submit" or "Submit All" buttons have been clicked on the Bid page.

Results Page

  1. Results for auctions conducted on the Web Site can be viewed on the Results page after each Batch closes.
  2. Bidders can filter the certificates shown on the Results page by making selections from the following drop-down lists:
    1. Certificate Lists
    2. Batches
    3. Bidder
    4. Results
  3. The Bidder's winning bids will be highlighted in green.
  4. All bids submitted for a particular certificate can be viewed in a separate window by clicking on the rate in the "Winning Bid" column.
  5. Results can be downloaded in an Excel or CSV file by clicking the Excel or CSV icons located on the page.

All results displayed on the Web Site are unofficial until certified by Seller.

General Information

Batches

  1. A Batch is a group of two or more tax certificates to be auctioned that are grouped together and displayed in sequential order and that share the same bid submission deadline.
  2. Batches are a means of organizing tax certificates in a tax certificate sale. Each tax certificate in a Batch is auctioned off independently of every other tax certificate.
  3. The number of Batches and bid submission deadline for each Batch are listed on the Auction Summary page, and can also be found in the Batch drop-down on the Bid page.

The number of certificates in each Batch and the interval between Batches are determined by Seller.

Bids

Many BUT NOT ALL Sellers use a sale format called Proxy Bidding. If this is the case, it will be indicated under Auction Details on the Auction Summary page.

Bid submission details for sales with Proxy Bidding:

  1. In order for Minimum Acceptable Rates (MARs) to be recorded, and used as the basis for bid submissions, rates must be entered by Users and received by the auction server on or before related and published Batch closing deadlines.
  2. Bidders' most recent MAR transmissions are displayed in the Submitted column.
  3. As explained above, Bidders may submit rates to purchase certificates with an aggregate face amount in excess of Bidders' Submitted Budget. However, at the point in time when the aggregate face amount of a Bidder's bids exceeds such Bidder's Submitted Budget, the remaining bids in excess of the Submitted Budget will be disregarded for purposes of determining a winning bidder.
  4. The Web Site includes a Proxy Bidding feature that permits users to enter the minimum interest rates they are willing to accept (which is entered in the 'Min. Rate' column of the Bid page) for tax certificates they are bidding to purchase. The Web Site software (the "Software") will serve as Users' agent, or proxy, for submitting their bids. When bidding for a particular certificate ends (i.e. a Batch closes), the Software compares Bidder's MAR for a particular certificate with the best bid for that same certificate made on behalf of all other bidders. If a given Bidder's MAR is lower than the best bid submitted on behalf of all other bidders for the same certificate, the Software will automatically generate a bid on such Bidder's behalf that is .25% less than the next best bid. Zero percent bids, however, will not be treated as proxy bids.  They will be awarded at zero.  If there is a tie at the winning bid rate, the certificate will be awarded by the Software to one of the tie bidders through a random selection process using commercially available random number generation software.
  5. As it relates to Proxy Bidding requirements:
    1. Bidders may increase or decrease rates at any time prior to related Batch bid submission deadlines.
    2. Bidders may withdraw rates at any time prior to related Batch closing times by clicking the related "Withdraw" Button(s) on the Bid page.
    3. Bidders may withdraw all Rates any time prior to the end of an auction by clicking the "Withdraw All" Button on the Bid page and then clicking on the subsequent pop-up page to confirm the withdrawal of all bids.
    4. At no time before a Batch closing time will Bidders be permitted to see any other Bidder's bid. After Batches close, Bidders may view bidding results as explained above.

If Seller does not enable Proxy Bidding the sale format will be noted as Direct Bidding under Auction Details on the Auction Summary page.

Bid submission details for sales with Direct Bidding:

  1. In order for bids to be recorded, and used as the basis for awards, rates must be entered by Users and received by the auction server on or before related and published Batch closing deadlines.
  2. Bidders' most recent bid transmissions are displayed in the Submitted column.
  3. As explained above, Bidders may submit rates to purchase certificates with an aggregate face amount in excess of Bidders' Submitted Budget. However, at the point in time when the aggregate face amount of a Bidder's bids exceeds such Bidder's Submitted Budget, the remaining bids in excess of the Submitted Budget will be disregarded for purposes of determining a winning bidder.
  4. If there is a tie at the winning bid rate, the certificate will be awarded by the Software to one of the tie bidders through a random selection process using commercially available random number generation software.
  5. As it relates to bidding requirements:
    1. Bidders may increase or decrease rates at any time prior to related Batch bid submission deadlines.
    2. Bidders may withdraw bids at any time prior to related Batch closing times by clicking the related "Withdraw" Button(s) on the Bid page.
    3. Bidders may withdraw all bids any time prior to the end of an auction by clicking the "Withdraw All" Button on the Bid page and then clicking on the subsequent pop-up page to confirm the withdrawal of all bids.
    4. At no time before a Batch closing time will Bidders be permitted to see any other Bidder's bid. After Batches close, Bidders may view bidding results as explained above.

Errors and Messages

  1. Any time the Software detects a Bidder error, the Bidder will receive:
    1. a brief description of the error in a highlighted box, and
    2. if applicable, an identifier in the cell or area of the page in which the error occurred
  2. In order to remove an error description and, if applicable, identifier, the Bidder must either:
    1. correct the error and click the appropriate button on the page, or
    2. delete the error and click the appropriate button on the page, as applicable.

Erroneous entries and results are not successfully transmitted. Errors must be corrected before transmissions associated with such corrected error can be successfully completed. When a submission or transmission by a User contains errors, the portion of the transmission or submission, if any, that is unassociated with the error may be successfully transmitted or submitted.

Awards

Bids are processed in sequential order by Advertising Number instantly after each Batch closes and unofficial awards are made to Users with the lowest bid, provided the face amount of the certificate next to be awarded would not cause that User's cumulative award amount for all winning bids to exceed that same User's Submitted Budget. If a User's Submitted Budget would be exceeded by the award of a given certificate, the bid entered by User will not qualify as a valid bid on that certificate and hence will not result in an award under any circumstances. In other words, the associated bid will be disregarded.

Awards displayed on the Results page are unofficial until certified by the Seller.

Definitions

Advertised List: The list of properties having delinquent property taxes that is published by Seller in conjunction with the annual sale of tax certificates.

Bidder: A User who has completed all auction registration steps required by Seller.

Bidder Number: The numeric identifier assigned by Seller to a User who has completed all required auction registration steps.

Bidder Support: Grant Street Group's technical and user support team. Bidder Support is available between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Business Days by calling 866-247-4370.

Certificate List: A subset of the Advertised List. All Users are given three Certificate Lists, by default, for their convenience: All Certificates, My Certificates and Removed Certificates. Additional Certificate Lists can be created on the Search Page.

Minimum Acceptable Rate (MAR): The lowest rate at which a given Bidder is willing to purchase a given tax certificate. This is the rate entered by a User into the 'Min. Rate' cell on the Bid page and the basis for establishing the minimum acceptable proxy bid to be submitted by the Software on the Bidder's behalf.

Seller: Public entity sponsoring the Web Site and primarily responsible for conducting the tax certificate sale.

Software: The application software hosted by Grant Street Group that is designed to automatically operate online tax certificate auction.

Submitted Budget: The maximum aggregate face amount of tax certificates a single User has authorized for purchase in an auction.

User: A person who has truthfully and completely provided all information required to create an account on LienHub or any tax certificate, tax deed or foreclosure auction web site hosted by Grant Street Group.

Winning Bidder: The Bidder with the lowest submitted bid rate for a particular certificate; except in the case of ties, in which case, it is the bidder that has received the award by random selection.

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