Bidding Rules
2024 Pima County, Arizona
Tax Lien Certificate Auction
SUMMARY OF IMPORTANT INFORMATION
1) Getting Started
If you are not completely familiar with the statutes governing tax liens in this state, read the “Tax Certificate Process” document located on the left-hand menu, prior to logging in. It is a plain-English summary of the law and will take only a few minutes to read.
2) Bidder Training
Realauction offers live training classes (via the Internet) once a week for several weeks prior to the close of the sale. Attendance is by registration only. These classes last about ninety (90) minutes, cover the use of the software only, and are free of charge. To register for a class, please contact the Realauction Customer Service Center at (877) 361-7325.
3) Terms
While purchasing tax lien certificates is generally a good investment, there are some risks involved. The treasurer does not make any guarantees that a purchaser will make money on a purchase and bidders should be aware that the property owner has a right to redeem the tax lien AT ANY TIME.
Note: The purchase of a tax certificate does not convey title to the land. Understand the risks and apply the “buyer beware” philosophy.
4) Register on this site
Potential buyers must register on this website to receive a bidder number for the Pima County tax lien certificate sale. Registration begins at 9:30 AM MT on 03/28/2024 and ends at 2:00 AM MT on 12/15/2024. At the time of registration, you will create a Username and Password as part of the process.
Note: Pima County uses a Single Simultaneous Bidding Entity Rule which states that each bidder may register only once and cannot have a contractual, legal or financial relationship with any other bidder in the Pima County Tax Lien Sale.
5) Requirements to Participate
Registration grants you access to the website only and does not guarantee participation in the Pima County tax lien certificate sale.
To become a "qualified" participant in the 2024 sale, you must also comply with the participation requirements by 2:00 AM MT on Sunday, December 15th, 2024.
The participation requirements in Pima County are as follows:
Pay the registration fee
Failure to meet ALL of the the participation requirements, by the date/time specified, will affect your ability to participate in the sale.
6) Place a Deposit
The deposit is required and must be submitted before the deposit deadline in order for your bids to be valid.
Decide how much money you would like to invest in tax lien certificates for this auction ($10,000 for example). Make a deposit of exactly 0% of that amount. Your deposit will limit how much you can win, no matter how many bids you place.
7) Pay Your Registration Fee
A registration Fee of $10.00 is required to participate in the sale and must be submItted, prior to placing bids.
Note: The $10.00 Registration Fee is a cost to participate in the sale. As such, this fee:
• is non-refundable
• does not get applied to your winnings
8) Place Your Bids
It is the bidder's responsibility to research properties, prior to placing bids.
You may bid on as many quality liens as you like; your deposit will limit how much you can win, no matter how many bids you place and there is no penalty for running out of deposit money. Once your deposit monies are exhausted, your remaining bids are simply ignored.
Note:
• All bids placed whether intentional or not are the responsibility of the bidder.
• You may place as many bids as you like before making a deposit. However, none of your bids will count unless the deposit requirement is met, prior to the deposit due date.
9) Batch Closings
Tax lien certificates are advertised and sold individually. However, in order to make the bidding process more manageable, certificates are divided into groups called "batches" which close every 60 minutes on the auction sale date.
As each batch closes, you can review the results for that batch by clicking “Results” on the website menu. After reviewing the results, you are welcome to modify your bids in any open batches.
10) Certificate of Purchase Fees
If you are a successful bidder, the following fees will be levied on the Certificates of Purchase(s) per Arizona Revised Statutes, specifically:
a) Processing Fee - The purchaser shall pay a processing fee of not more than ten dollars per tax lien (A.R.S. 42-18116).
The fee schedule in Pima County is as follows:
• Face Amount < $50 = $1 Processing Fee
• Face Amount $50-$200 = $5 Processing Fee
• Face Amount > $200 = $10 Processing Fee
Note: The treasurer shall deposit Processing Fee monies collected into the taxpayers' information fund (A.R.S. 42-18116).
In accordance with state statutes, the processing fee is non-refundable (A.R.S. 42-18153).
b) Certificate Fee - The county treasurer shall collect from the purchaser or assignee a fee of ten ($10) dollars for each certificate (A.R.S. 42-18118).
11) Final Payments
Payment for auction items won and the associated fees will be accepted by ACH (electronic check) only. It is the bidder's responsibility to ensure your bank account will accept ACH debits and credits prior to placing bids.
A.R.S. 42-18116 states that if the purchaser of a tax lien fails to pay the amount due by the date/time determined by the treasurer, the treasurer may prohibit the purchaser from purchasing tax liens from any county in Arizona for a period of not more than one (1) year.
SUMMARY OF IMPORTANT DATES AND AUCTION OPTIONS
| Bidder Accounts | |||
| Allow foreign bidder registrations | Yes | ||
| Single simultaneous bidder rule | Yes | ||
| Auction Information | |||
| Bidding style | Buy Now | ||
| 0 value bids use proxy system | No | ||
| SubAccounts | |||
| Allow sub-accounts | No | ||
| Automatic certificate rollup / rollup fee | --- | --- | |
| Auction Dates and Times | |||
| Registration begins (site opens)** | 03/28/2024 at 9:30 AM MT | ||
| Deposits, Registration fees and Budgets begin | 03/28/2024 at 10:00 AM MT | ||
| Bidding begins | 04/01/2024 at 9:00 AM MT | ||
| Deposits, Registration fees and Budgets end | 12/15/2024 at 2:00 AM MT | ||
| Participation Requirements |
Pay the registration fee
|
||
| Participation Requirements Due Date | 12/15/2024 at 2:00 AM MT | ||
| Registrations end | 12/15/2024 at 2:00 AM MT | ||
| First batch closes | 04/01/2024 at 2:00 AM MT | ||
| Batch closing interval | 60 minutes | ||
| Last batch closes | 12/15/2024 at 2:00 AM MT | ||
| Auxiliary batch opens | N/A | ||
| Auxiliary batch closes | N/A | ||
| Payment due date | 02/26/2024 at 2:00 AM MT | ||
| Budget, Deposit and Payment Information | |||
| Deposit or Budget required (% of estimated winnings) | 0% | ||
| Minimum deposit amount | $0.00 | ||
| Registration Fee | $10.00 | ||
| Registration Fee Refundable | No | ||
| Registration Fee Applied to Winnings | No | ||
| Deposit / Payment types acceptable: | Deposits | Payments | |
| Budget | No | --- | |
| ACH | Yes | No | |
| ACH auto-debit final payment | --- | Yes | |
| Wire transfers | No | No | |
| Counter payments | No | No | |
| Redemptions available via ACH? | Yes | ||
| Public Access | |||
| Public computers available | Libraries | ||
| ** Subject to change. The site will open when approved by the County. | |||