Wyoming Tax Sales – A Hidden Opportunity in August
Posted by Courtney Lane on Tue, Jul 20, 2010 @ 04:19 PM
15% per year rate plus a 3% penalty…..these numbers sound pretty good to us! This is what the state of Wyoming offers lien buyers at their tax sales, which happen to be coming up in August. However Wyoming remains one of the states that few people go to to buy tax liens. This is good news!
We find it somewhat strange that the number of folks participating in the Wyoming Tax Sales is so low, considering the high rate of 15% per year plus a 3% penalty. We suspect that part of the reason for this is the long redemption period and the fact that it is the least populated state in the country. Another potential factor is that Wyoming Tax auctions tend to be lotteries. Whatever the reason we feel there is a lot of opportunity there and it is a state worth considering.
What You Need to Know:
If you are interested in attending the Wyoming sales this year here are some things you need to be aware of:
- You should familiar with the Public Land Survey System (this is how properties are described on the tax sale lists).
- There are a large number of liens offered each year that are agricultural and/or unimproved parcels. DO YOUR RESEARCH. Wyoming is a ranching state and these lands can be leased, however you can also end up with a strip of land next to highway or acres of land that has been allowed to lay fallow.
- Subsequent taxes are very important in Wyoming. If you do not pay them, you risk losing your position in the lien. Of course you can use this to your advantage if you did not do your due diligence and determine you made a mistake.
- Wyoming does not allow for overbids. This means that the average tax lien investor can easily participate.
Wyoming Bidding Methods: Wyoming is a Tax Lien State that has a little bit of a different way of doing things. The bidding method in the state is the party willing to offer to pay the amount of taxes, interest, penalties and costs due on the property gets the lien. However the practice in most counties (although not stated in the statute) is to hold a drawing if there are more than two parties willing to purchase the lien.
Redemption in Wyoming: Wyoming has a four year redemption period, but pays 15% per year plus a 3% penalty. Based on our experience in Wyoming, but not on any actual statistical analysis, it is our feeling that the redemption rate is approximately 92% on all liens sold. It can be assumed that the redemption rate on improved properties is substantially higher and the redemption rate on unimproved properties is somewhat lower. So if you have a little patience you could end up making a very nice return on your money.
If you would like more information about Wyoming tax lien sales work, click here and download our white paper on Wyoming.