Alabama Appeals Court Ruled to uphold Code section on Redemptions

[Gregory Stanley]

Alabama redemptions allow for an investor to recover the value of the improvements they made while in possession of tax lien property.  Some Alabama Courts had been using cost, or other strict criteria to determine the amount, today the Alabama Appeals Court ruled that the Value of improvements, not cost, is to be paid to redeem.  The Court further held that the recent strict interpretation that "preservation improvements" only applied to work that prevented waste was incorrect.   Preservation improvements for tax sales is similar to foreclosure redemptions by code, and the Appeals Court directed the lower court to apply the historically used meaning and award the value of improvements made to the residential property within reason.