Tax Delinquent List Request DENIED! Please Help!

[Alexandra Wright]

Hi there, I'm a newbie in NC and called a  county's tax department to see if I could get a tax delinquent list. They were extremely rude, and told me that they can't give me that information. I politely stated that they must have a tax delinquent list if they send letters out to the owners of these properties to let them know they are delinquent on their taxes. They said they don't have a tax delinquent list, and they don't have an assessor's list either that they can give me because it wouldn't help them ( even though it actually WOULD because I would pay the back taxes on the properties...). She said that NO counties in North Carolina can give me a list of any properties, even though I pointed out that it's public information. I'm so frustrated right now. They wanted to know why I needed it so I told them I'm an investor, and she said that the information was only for the people who owed taxes, not for someone like me (in a very accusatory manner, I might add). How do I get a hold of these lists? I need an assessor's roll, vacant property list, and assessor's list with all of the parcels for various counties in North Carolina. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated! Thanks!