[pastor1189]

Can a person start paying property taxes on a abandon home and thereby taking ownership.
Is this possible? Florida

[smoothy]

Not anywhere near that simple... somebody somewhere holds a deed to it and you would have just paid their taxes for them

[ma0641]

How do you know it is abandoned? Either someone or a governmental agency owns it.

[Alty]

No, it's not that easy. Someone owns that home. You can pay the taxes, but unless you buy the home, you're simply paying the taxes for the current home owner. Very nice thing to do, but you would not have ownership.

If you want this home you have to go through the process of purchasing it and having your name on the deed. Until then all payments towards arrears for that home only benefit the current owners.

[ScottGem]

Counties regularly hold auctions for properties that are delinquent in their taxes. This is the only legal way to buy a house for the taxes owed. But even then its not that simple. Even if you win the auction, there is usually a grace period where the homeowner can recover. Check with the County tax collector for more info.

[pastor1189]

In Florida it is a big thing. I never could understood it myself. One fellow lived in a vacated mansion and started paying back taxes. It took months to remove him.Lived like a homesteader

[smoothy]

What that is called is Squatting... it not legal and really is nothing but trespassing, and people that believe in squatters rights are the same people that believe they are entitled to get something of value for nothing.

Scott is quite right about the tax auctions. My parents owned a property purchased at a tax sale for my grandmother to live in. Took a long while before they ever got a clear deed to the property, in that case years.

[pastor1189]

Very informative

[ScottGem]

In Florida it is a big thing. I never could understood it myself. One fellow lived in a vacated mansion and started paying back taxes. It took months to remove him.Lived like a homesteader

The point is he was removed. It doesn't only happen in Florida. With the Real Estate bust a lot of homes were abandoned. There are also instances where people have rented homes to tenants that they had no right to rent. The homeowner comes back to find someone living there.

One of the major issues with tax sale properties is that they tend to be in a state of disrepair so even if you do get title it cost to repair.

[pastor1189]

So true

[Fr_Chuck]

My son buys property for taxes all the time, I buy a few. I am living in a house now, that we bought for taxes last year.

Each state as noted has different rules, but in general, when purchased at a tax sale, the old owner has right of redeeming the property for what you paid plus interest and costs.

But some sales are absolute where you get a clear tax deed to the property at the end of the sale. I am going to try and buy another house that way, next month.

Just paying the tax, is a gift to the real owner and actually stops the sale from happening. It will never give you any legal right to the property.

[Alty]

A few years ago I saw a news story on TV about this couple that had gone away on vacation for 2 months, came back to find people living in their house. These people just broke in and moved in. At the time of the story those people had been living in the house for 8 months, and because of where this couple lived, even though these people had no lease, paid nothing towards the mortgage or utilities or property taxes, they couldn't be forcefully removed. The owners of the house had to formally evict them, and it took a lot of money and time in court to do so. Even after they got the formal eviction, the squatters refused to leave, and literally held the house hostage. The owners only option was to wait until they all left, and then steal their house back. Sadly the squatters were smart enough to never all leave at the same time.

A news reporter tried to interview the squatters, and they refused to comment. Bunch of dead beat losers, stealing a house. The owners, after 8 months of trying to get their home back, decided to stop paying the expenses and hoped that would force the squatters out. At the time of filming, the squatters were still in the home, and now the home owners had debt collectors calling them and were risking the house being foreclosed on.

Scary stuff.

[pastor1189]

Yes exactly what was going down here in Florida a few years back.
Only happens occasionally now