24 Estated, Bulk Data, Massachusetts (1.99M properties) (May 2021), sold by Estated. Lost value could be estimated for 152 of the 163 homes taken.
25 A median value of 91% of equity and $224,000 per home.
26 The 11 localities that did not sell any tax-foreclosed homes are Brookline, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Concord, Easton, Fall River, Granville, Medford, Methuen, Natick, and West Springfield.
27 Government entities typically do not have the resources to put tax-foreclosed properties on the real estate market for a competitive sale process, at least not without contracting out the process to other professionals.
28 This value is typical of bank foreclosures. ATTOM data, “Foreclosure Sale Discounts Rising Across U.S.” (December 3, 2020).
29 Estated, Bulk Data, Massachusetts (1.99M properties) (May 2021), sold by Estated. Value kept could be estimated for 229 of the 254 homes taken.
30 Tallage LLC v. Meaney, 23 LCR 375, 375-76 (Mass. Land Ct. 2015).
31 Tallage LLC v. Meaney, 23 LCR 375, 375-76 (Mass. Land Ct. 2015).
32 Tallage LLC v. Meaney, 23 LCR 375, 375-76 (Mass. Land Ct. 2015); Christopher Burrell, “Tax Lien Law Haunts Massachusetts Property Owners (Pt. 1),” GBH News, January 22, 2018.
33 Even after a foreclosure judgment, more homes appear to be returned than sold. From December 2018 through December 2020, 82 redemption deeds were issued, while 59 homes were sold.
34 Estated, Bulk Data, Massachusetts (1.99M properties) (May 2021), sold by Estated.
35 This value is determined by the price Tallage sold the home for minus all the known payments it made to localities for unpaid taxes, fines, fees, utility bills, and the like.
36 John Rao, The Other Foreclosure Crisis: Property Tax Lien Sales (Boston: National Consumer Law Center, July 2012).
37 See Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 12-157(i); Del. Code Ann. tit. 9, § 8779; Thomas Tool Services, Inc. v. Town of Croydon, 145 N.H. 218, 220 (2000); Bogie v. Town of Barnet, 129 Vt. 46, 55. (1970). In addition, Rhode Island effectively operates in the same way (see R.I. Gen. Laws Ann. § 44-9-37), but through auctioning the smallest undivided part of the land, if possible. R.I. Gen. Laws Ann. § 44-9-8.
38 Margaret Dewar, The Effects on Cities of “Best Practice” in Tax Foreclosure: Evidence from Detroit and Flint (Ann Arbor, MI: CLOSUP Working Paper Series, No. 2, 2009); Charles D. Rittenhouse, “The True Costs of Not Paying Your Property Taxes in Ohio,” University of Dayton Law Review 36 (2010): 221; William Weber, “Tax Foreclosure: A Drag on Community Vitality or a Tool for Economic Growth?” University of Cincinnati Law Review 81 (2012): 1615; Stephan Whitaker and Thomas James Fitzpatrick, “The Impact of Vacant, Tax-Delinquent, and Foreclosed Property on Sales Prices of Neighboring Homes” (Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland Working Papers [Old Series] 1123, 2011).
39 Tax Collector, Palm Beach County, Florida, “Official Tax Certificate Auction Site.”
40 Larry Barszewski, “County Tax Auctions Put Small Investors at Disadvantage,” Sun Sentinel, May 19, 2017. Florida includes other safeguards in its property tax system that provide a model for other states to follow, including provisions analogous to home mortgage foreclosure rules to ensure that any forced sale is close to market value. For example, the state authorizes counties to sell their tax-delinquent properties to the highest bidder via online auction.
41 Because current law does not require a lienholder to notify the former owner of a foreclosure judgment, homeowners often find out that their home was foreclosed more than a year after foreclosure—once the period for appeal expires.
42 Mass.gov, “Reports Relating to Property Tax Data and Statistics.”
43 Jennifer C.H. Francis, “Redeeming What Is Lost: The Need to Improve Notice for Elderly Homeowners Before and After Tax Sales,” Civil Rights Law Journal 21, no. 1 (2014): 85–121.
44 United States Census Bureau, Population, Population Change, and Estimated Components of Population Change: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2019 (CO-EST2019-alldata), distributed by United States Census Bureau.
45 Estated, Bulk Data, Massachusetts (1.99M properties) (May 2021), sold by Estated.
46 “The valuation data comes from our proprietary AVM using advanced machine-learning algorithms. The property value comes from a number of weighted factors based on the property characteristics, market data, and other calculations.” Estated, Bulk Data, Massachusetts (1.99M properties) (May 2021), sold by Estated.
47 G.L. c. 60, § 37.
48 G.L. c. 60, § 53.
49 G.L. c. 60, § 53.
50 G.L. c. 60, § 65.
51 G.L. c. 60, § 64; G.L. c. 60, § 69.
52 Lynch v. City of Boston, 48 N.E.2d 26, 27 (Mass. 1943).