Tax liens in public records

[Dana R.]

I'm going through credit reports, and there are some red flags with their public reports- namely that the tax applicant had tax liens in 2009, 2011, and 2013.

It concerns me that this happened to him multiple times. He runs a business so is this something that's not that unusual when you run a business?

The liens for 2009 and 2011 have been paid off.

But, the tax lien for 2013 has not been paid off. The amount for 2013 in the credit report is  about $23,000. Is that amount what they still owe right now or the amount for the initial tax lien?

The applicant has high income and good rental history.

But, I'm concerned with how this tax lien from 2013 will affect the applicant's ability to pay his rent.

What's the income he'd need to generate to satisfy your debt/income ratio if he is in debt for that lien?

How much of a rope does the government give you to pay off tax liens?

Is there a deadline by which you have to pay off this tax lien? I'm afraid that if he needs to pay it off by a certain period, then he'd shift his resources to pay that lien instead of his rent.

If you see a tax lien, is that an automatic denial regardless of applicant's income, references, etc..?