Posted by Nate(DC) on December 06, 2002 at 09:30:49:
Without knowing what state you’re in and their foreclosure process, one can’t say for sure.
A general principle is that municipal liens (taxes, water and sewer, etc.) are not wiped out by a foreclosure because they are superior to any mortgage.
NT
Do sewer liens get wiped out at auction?? - Posted by John D
Posted by John D on December 06, 2002 at 01:45:15:
I was just wondering if county sewer liens get cleared after a house is sold at a foreclosure auction?
Depends greatly… - Posted by JT-IN
Posted by JT-IN on December 06, 2002 at 14:35:33:
John:
Depends greatly… on where you are located, which state… whether it is a judicial foreclosure or a non-judicial case.
If the sewer lien takes precedence over the mortgages, then it should be paid out of any proceeds of the sale, prior to the plaintiff (in judicial states) receiving any funds. This bill should not follow the buyer from a sheriff sale, in a judicial state. Now with that said, if it isn’t paid, you may find that Bruenhilda down at the local city utilities station is not going to turn on the utilities until the bill is paid, then I guess you will pay the bill. It is best to keep Bruenhilda happy…
In the case of a Trustee sale, all bets could be off, and you will probably owe the sewer bill… IMHO.
Just the way that I view things…
JT-IN
Re: Do sewer liens get wiped out at auction?? - Posted by Ronald * Starr(in No CA)
Posted by Ronald * Starr(in No CA) on December 06, 2002 at 13:03:27:
John D---------------
I agree with Nate(DC), but would go a step further. It may even depend upon the county or city in which you are located. Plus, in some states there may be more than one way to foreclose.
Sometimes you can tell there are likely to be delinquencies by your search of the title in the county land records office. If you see previous liens in the owner’s names expect to pay up. Even if you don’t see them, the safe way to buy at foreclosure sales is to always expect to have to pay any municiple or government-owned utility bills, including delinquent ones.
Sometimes these types of liens are are put onto the taxes as a special assessment. In which case the older utilities liens probably will not have to be paid by you, separate from the taxes, anyway. More recent delinquent ones probably have not reached the tax bill yet.
Rarely should this matter. You should be buying with such big spreads between purchase price and market value that you can ignore a few nundred dollars in utility liens. Now things like board-up liens or yard-clean-up liens can get big enough to worry about. But those should be in the county land records office for you to find.
Good InvestingRon Starr***