Over-the-Counter Tax Liens (and Leftover Deeds)

Not every certificate sells at auction, and not every parcel sells at a tax deed sale. What is left over does not disappear. Some become eligible for purchase outside an auction, subject to state rules and the responsible office's current list and purchase conditions. This is the over-the-counter (OTC) market, and it is one of the least understood corners of tax sale investing.

Over-the-counter certificates

When no investor bids on a tax certificate at the annual sale, it is struck to the county. In Florida these are called county-held certificates, and they carry the full statutory maximum of 18 percent. Under F.S. 197.4725, a buyer may purchase an eligible county-held certificate before a tax-deed application is made. Ask the Tax Collector to confirm eligibility and the current purchase amount.

The appeal is obvious: no bidding war, and you get the top rate instead of a rate someone bid down to 2 percent. In Florida the purchase amount includes the certificate face amount plus interest, costs and charges. F.S. 197.4725 calculates the county-held interest at 1.5 percent per month or fraction of a month to the purchase date, and the two-year clock toward a tax deed still runs from the original issuance date.

How District of Columbia tax sales work covers a version with no county in it: liens nobody bought at the annual sale are bid off to the District, and the Office of Tax and Revenue resells them online through MyTax.DC.gov for the bid-off amount plus interest, with payment due the same day.

Leftover deeds: lands available for taxes

The deed side has its own leftover list. An unsuccessful tax deed sale does not by itself establish that the parcel can be purchased from a lands available list.

In Florida, F.S. 197.502 and 197.542 tie Lands Available for Taxes listing to the no-bid and certificate-holder payment conditions. If no higher bid defeats the certificate holder, that holder has 30 days to pay the required amount. Confirm the parcel's actual listing with the tax-deed sale office.

Once listed, the county has a 90-day purchase period and may waive that right. Section 197.502(7) permits purchase from the Clerk for the statutory opening bid, with applicable interest and charges. Section 197.502(8) provides for escheat three years after the land was offered for public sale. Ask the Clerk for the current purchase amount and applicable waiting-period exceptions.

Buying from the lands-available list means you acquire the property outright at a fixed price rather than bidding. Again, the parcels are there because nobody wanted them at auction, so due diligence is everything.

How Alaska tax sales work reaches the same kind of inventory by another route: the borough or city takes foreclosed parcels through the superior court, and once an ordinance finds the land is not needed for a public purpose, the municipality may sell it by public outcry auction, sealed bid, online auction or over the counter, as its own disposal ordinance sets.

The same list, a different name in every state

"Lands available for taxes" is a Florida phrase. Search it in Texas and you find nothing, because Texas calls the same inventory struck-off property. South Carolina routes it through a Forfeited Land Commission, Pennsylvania shelves it in a repository, Minnesota calls it tax-forfeited land, and Washington calls it tax-title property. The names and purchase conditions vary. Check the governing statute and responsible office rather than assuming every unsold parcel is available to buy.

Use State-held and struck-off land by state to look up the state's inventory terminology and statutory purchase rules.

How to find OTC inventory

Each county publishes its own lists, usually on the Tax Collector site (for county-held certificates) and the Clerk site (for lands available). The formats vary: a spreadsheet download, a searchable portal, or a PDF. Every county page on this site points to where those lists live for that county. Start on the Florida tax sales hub and open a county to find its OTC links.

Is OTC right for you?

OTC suits patient investors who would rather research quietly than compete in a live auction, and who understand that the discount comes with a reason. If you want the maximum certificate rate without bidding, county-held certificates are worth a look, especially held in a self-directed IRA. If you want to acquire land outright at a fixed price, the lands-available list is the deed-side equivalent. Either way, the parcel research is the job.