SUNBURY - Ninety-eight properties will be available for sale at the Northumberland County Tax Claims Bureau Judicial Sale at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the public meeting room at the county administration center, 399 S. Fifth St.
Jan Nestico, tax claims bureau director, said opening bids for the properties total $158,245, but noted that number will change depending on how many properties sell and at what price.
She said the registration desk will be open at 9 a.m. Pre-registration is recommended, but not mandatory this year. A complete list of the properties, along with a list of the necessary forms to complete, can be found on the county website at northumberlandco.org. The tax office is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, and from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.
Nestico said all sales are final and payment in full is due the day of the sale at least one hour before the close of the day. All sales are "buyer beware," she said.
Anyone with questions regarding the sale can contact the tax claims office at 988-4116.
Nestico said another judicial sale involving 100 properties will be held in November.
Cleaning up backlog
Prior to 2009, no judicial sales had been conducted in the county since 2001.
In 2009, Nestico said 165 properties were sold among the 230 available for sale, generating $492,231. In 2010, 55 properties were sold among 89 available for sale, generating $186,500. Last year, 47 properties were sold among 85 available for sale, generating $150,392.
"We would like to have two sales this year and two again next year to clean up the backlog of properties that have been sitting out there for many years," Nestico said. "The November sale will bring us up to 2010 and once we get those cleaned up, we can concentrate on what is left over each year from the upset sale. That should also clean up some of the blight that we have so much of and give potential buyers a better property selection. It will also make it easier to find lien holders and banks because there won't be as much of a time lapse between the upset sale and judicial sale."
Nestico explained how the properties become eligible for a judicial sale.
"There is a tremendous amount of work involved in preparing for a judicial sale, not only for the tax claims staff, but for the sheriff's department as well," she said. "Each property must first be exposed to an upset sale. If it does not sell at an upset sale, it is then prepared for a judicial sale."
The director added, "We need to do deed searches on each property first and then must file a petition with the court to set a date for the rule returnable hearing. From there, we must locate anyone having any interest in the property and have them personally served. This includes banks, lien holders, reputed owners or their heirs if they are deceased and have no estate filed. Some of them have as many as 10 heirs that need to be located and served. This is not always an easy task."
Nestico said Northumberland County residents are served by the sheriff's department. Residents from out of the county are served by a sheriff who has been deputized by the Northumberland County Sheriff's Department, and out-of-state residents are served by certified, restricted delivery mail.
She said, "There is a time line for this service, so it keeps the sheriff's department hopping. All interested parties must be served within 90 days of the day the petition is signed by the judge. Sometimes there are several hundred parties to serve. After everyone is served, the interested parties have an opportunity to appear at the hearing to state their case as to why they feel the property should not be sold. If no one shows, the property is included in the sale. The date of the sale is then set by the judge and then we may advertise the sale.
"We do the best we can to locate everyone having any interest in the property, but we also recommend that any potential purchaser do his or her homework and have their own title search done as all tax sales are 'buyer beware,'" Nestico said.