Foreclosing on a tax lien without a lawyer

[Helene R]

I've noticed a few on here are versed in AZ tax liens. I have a couple tax liens that can now be foreclosed on (5 years back taxes) and I'm wondering if anyone does the foreclosure process without the expense of an attorney.

[Jerry K.]

Helene,
Been on the road and just getting caught up for the last week on BiggerPockets. I see Justin has a contact to provide you the advice you need.

I've been buying lines in AZ for the past 4 years. Just coming up on my first liens that I can foreclose on this February. I've bought tax liens and tax deeds in IL in the past and like all states, IL and AZ are different.

I noticed on the Coconino county website they have a Judicial Tax line Foreclosure Package. http://www.coconino.az.gov/uploadedFiles/Treasurer/Revised_Completed_2008_Foreclosure%20Packet.pdf

You could do this yourself, just as anyone can represent themselves in court if they want. But I always follow the adage, "A person who represents themselves in a legal matter, has a fool for a client."

In AZ you must send a Notice of Intent to File a Foreclosure 30 days before you file the actual Foreclosure action. This goes to the property owner(s), their heirs (if owner deceased), and all lienholders. This letter alone drives most people to pay the back taxes and interest. There is a some detective work to get current addresses and prove you made a reasonable attempt to locate all parties.

From there you proceed with the Judicial Foreclosure process. The Coconino package has a simplified checklist spelling out the process.

Good luck and let us know how the process goes. I'll be blogging on my Biggerpockets blog about the process as I go through it.