Lost Certificates
First thing I will say is “DON’T LOOSE YOUR CERTIFICATES”. Besides the obvious reasons, there are a number of reasons why you don’t want to loose your certificates.
One of the main reasons is that a tax lien certificate is a negotiable instrument and is subject to all the risks that a negotiable instrument has. It could be forged or sold and redeemed.
In a number of jurisdictions it isn’t a really major hassle if you loose your certificates, it is only a minor hassle, but in all jurisdictions it will cost you money. to get a replacement and in some jurisdictions you will have to go to court to get it replaced and, unless it is a fairly large certificate, the expense of going to court to get it replaced will wipe out any return you might make.
In some other jurisdictions you will be required to post a bond to get a duplicate certificate. There are some very progressive jurisdictions that have gone to a “book entry” system and there are no certificates to lose, maybe someday they will all go this way, but in the meantime make sure you know here they are, make sure they are secure, and
DON’T LOOSE THEM!
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