Quit Claim Deed for Alabama Tax Certificate

[Tai Bhattad]

For ALABAMA: Has investors with an Alabama tax certificate acquired a quit claim deed from property owner before it converted to a tax deed… and redeemed the property on your ‘own behalf’ before it converted to a tax deed? 
if so are there any benefits for redeeming as the quit claim deed holder before it converts to an actual tax deed or… even after it converts to a tax deed. 

I understand you will pay the redemption amount to the county and get your money back from the county… but this seems like a way to remove a blemish from title quicker (or not)… just looking for an understanding on self-redemption. 

I only know that if you record your QC deed with probate and without tax redemption, the property is still registered with the county as a tax sale property and flagged for no online property tax payment. 

[Denise Evans]

@Tai Bhattad, you should be careful when accepting quitclaims BEFORE you have a tax deed. The tax sale wipes out the lienholders, who have only redemption rights. If the owner redeems (title goes back into owner) then the liens re-attach to the property again. 

It is my opinion that if you get a quitclaim BEFORE you get your tax deed, then your only path to title was the quitclaim itself.  There is a good argument to be made that all the liens will reattach, just as if you were the former owner.

If, on the other hand, you have a tax deed before the quitclaim, then you already had your own title. The quitclaim merely removed blemishes on the title. 

There is no appellate decision that says that is how it will go. That is just me speculating, based on my knowledge of real estate common law over the past 900 years going back to King Henry II of England (1133 - 1189) up to the present and "how things work." There is a theory, a unity, of things in real estate law. It is what lets you figure out what the right answer should be, even if you do not know for sure what it is.

The better strategy might be to get a release and waiver of redemption rights and a transfer of any claims or defenses to the tax sale, if all you have is a tax sale certificate.