Every property owner is required to pay property taxes to the applicable local and state governments based on the value of the property owned and the state in which one owns the property. They are also sometimes refereed as real estate taxes.

There are times when the property owners are unable to pay the required property tax. When this happens, they become delinquent. Once the delinquency has been established, the appropriate governing authority is in charge for collecting property taxes. This collection can be achieved by a tax sale or tax auction.

All 50 states in the US have their own separate set of laws regarding the course of action on collecting the delinquent taxes. Most often the local county government is in charge for this procedure, as collected property taxes are usually used for the improvement of local communities. There are two types of government tax sales used in the United States, tax deed sales and tax lien certificates.

The local governments hold an auction called the tax deed sale for tax delinquent property. Generally, the minimum bid is the total sum of taxes owed and any administrative charges and interest on the amount owed. The highest bidder at the tax deed sale is awarded the deed to the property. Note that different state follow different set of rule about the restrictions on possession and the time lapse required before you are assigned the absolute deed.

Tax lien certificates are also auctioned and valued at taxes owed, plus administrative charges and interest, but there is where the similarities end. In the case of tax lien certificates, there is no transfer of the property deed at the time of auction. Once the tax lien certificates are sold, the delinquent taxpayer is required to pay back the amount of the lien plus interest charges, usually 16-18%, back to the owner of the certificate. Now, if the delinquent taxpayer fails to do so within a set time period as decided by the governing authority, the owner of the tax lien certificate can be awarded the deed to the property after properly foreclosing on the lien.