MOHAVE COUNTY – Last month’s Mohave county tax deed sale collected back taxes and provided a substantial general fund cash infusion as the Board of Supervisors and staff prepare to address a difficult budget year.
Once conducted as auctions on the steps of the historic courthouse, Mohave County tax deed sales were mothballed years ago as they netted less return than resources invested in the exercise. Treasurer SueAnn Mello said her predecessor Cindy Landa Cox revived tax deed sales in 2019.
Mello said Mohave County made bank by going for broke during the five-day sale conducted online by the Public Surplus Auction House March 4-8. She said 96% of the parcels were purchased, a higher percentage of parcels ever sold in the history of Mohave County tax deed sales.
“This year we had 2,895 parcels that we could have taken to tax deed sale. Normally we handpick from 300-700 a year and hope that they sell, but this year we decided to do something a little bit different,” Mello said. “We took all that we had and we sold a phenomenal amount. 2,792 parcels were sold this year.”
Mello said the sale netted more than $2.3 million from vacant and undeveloped land in tax delinquent status for years.
A good share of the money is used to reimburse the county, school districts and other special districts that were due back taxes, interest and fees. Other portions of the revenue are used to cover parcel sale expenses, but a $1.5-million chunk of the revenue bolsters the general fund.
Mello also noted there’s a long-lasting dual benefit of collecting the back taxes and transitioning the parcels to owners more likely to pay property taxes and possibly develop property to higher assessed value in future years.
“The property gets returned to the tax rolls. So you’re going to have future revenue and these taxes are going to be coming in from the property going forward, which is a win-win,” Mello said.
Mello said the tax deed sale is a bit cumbersome and requires teamwork.
“This is a collaborative effort with my office, the Assessor’s office, Recorder, Development Services and the Clerk of the Board,” she said. “We just hunkered down and thought we’d try it this year.”
While the county can enjoy its record tax deed sale haul in 2024, Mello noted the success cannot be sustained because the county will have far fewer parcels to take to market next year.
Dave Hawkins
