Selling a House with a Tax Lien in Georgia | Cash in 24hrs | Homeinc

Selling a House with a Tax Lien in Georgia

Georgia counties move fast on delinquent property taxes. After just one year unpaid, the county can issue a tax fi.fa. (fieri facias) and sell your property at a tax sale on the courthouse steps. The redemption period that follows lets you buy it back — but it’s expensive and the clock runs out at 12 months. Homeinc gives Georgia homeowners a way out: we buy the property with the tax lien attached, satisfy it at closing from sale proceeds, and you walk away with cash.

Why Selling a Georgia House with a Tax Lien Through Traditional Channels Is Hard

Tax liens are silent deal-killers in normal home sales. Most retail buyers never make it to closing once their title company surfaces a tax lien. Here’s what specifically goes wrong in Georgia:

• Title insurance refuses to insure. No buyer’s lender will close on a property where the title isn’t clear. The tax lien must be paid before — or out of — closing.
• Georgia counties can issue a fi.fa. and conduct a tax sale within 12 months of delinquency. Once a third party owns the tax certificate, they can ultimately force a public sale of your property — and your equity goes mostly to them.
• The county adds 18% interest per year in Florida, or up to 20% in Georgia, on the unpaid balance. Every month that passes, the payoff grows.
• Buyer financing falls apart. Conventional and FHA lenders reject any property with an active tax lien. Cash buyers are your only realistic market.
• Listings sit. A retail listing with “tax lien encumbrance” on the disclosures scares off almost every buyer. The handful that don’t are wholesalers offering 50 cents on the dollar.
• Multi-year delinquencies stack up. By the time most homeowners reach out, they’re 2-4 years behind, the lien is huge, and they don’t know whether selling will even leave them anything.

How Homeinc Solves a Georgia Tax Lien Sale

Homeinc has bought Georgia houses with tax liens since 2013. We have title companies, attorneys, and tax sale experience built into our process. Here’s what we do:

• We buy with the lien attached. We don’t ask you to pay the county before closing. The lien gets satisfied from sale proceeds at the closing table.
• We pull the exact payoff before making an offer. We contact the county tax collector and the certificate holder (if applicable) to get the exact dollar amount needed to clear the lien — so our offer accounts for it accurately.
• We handle multi-year delinquencies. Whether you’re 1 year behind or 5 years behind, the title company at closing pays everyone in priority order: county tax collector first, mortgage lender second, you last (with whatever’s left).
• We close fast enough to beat tax deed / tax sale. If a tax sale is scheduled, we can close before the first Tuesday of the month auction date and stop the sale.
• We handle title cure work. Our title company resolves the lien at closing, gets a satisfaction recorded with the county, and issues you a clean closing statement.
• Confidential process. No public auction. No tax-deed sale on the courthouse steps. Just a normal cash transaction.

What to Expect: Step by Step

1. Day 1: Call 888-850-2636 or submit your address. Tell us roughly how much you owe in back taxes (a guess is fine; we’ll verify with the county).
2. Day 1-2: We pull the exact payoff from the county tax collector’s office. We do a property walk-through (one quick visit).
3. Day 2-3: Written cash offer that accounts for the lien payoff. You see net-to-you numbers clearly.
4. Day 3-5: Title company opens escrow, contacts the lien holder, prepares payoff documentation.
5. Day 7-14: Close. Lien is paid from sale proceeds. Mortgage (if any) is paid. You walk away with the remaining equity.

Common Questions About Georgia Tax Lien Sales

Will the tax lien actually be paid off at closing?

Yes. The title company holds funds in escrow and disburses them at closing in legal priority order. The tax lien gets paid first, the mortgage second, and any remaining funds go to you. The county records a satisfaction of the lien within days of closing.

What if I owe more in back taxes than the house is worth?

This is rare but it happens. In that case we’d explore a short-sale style approach where the certificate holder accepts a discounted payoff. Georgia tax sale buyers sometimes negotiate redemption discounts to avoid the cost of going through the courts. We’ve negotiated these before.

How does the Georgia tax sale system actually work?

In Georgia, the county issues a fi.fa. (writ of fieri facias) and conducts a tax sale on the first Tuesday of the month at the county courthouse steps. The winner pays the back taxes plus interest. You have a 12-month redemption period to buy the property back at a 20% premium, or you lose it.

Can I sell during the redemption period?

Yes. You retain ownership and the right to sell throughout the 12-month redemption period. We’ve closed many sales in this window.

Will this affect my credit?

Tax liens stopped appearing on credit reports in 2018 (Fair Credit Reporting Act changes), so the lien itself doesn’t show up. But the consequences of not paying (loss of property, deficiency judgments) absolutely affect credit. Selling now avoids all of that.

What if I have a mortgage AND a tax lien?

Both get paid at closing from sale proceeds. Tax liens are usually superior to mortgage liens, meaning the county gets paid first. Whatever’s left covers the mortgage. Whatever’s left after that goes to you. The title company runs all the math.

Other Georgia Selling Situations We Handle

• Selling a Stigmatized Property (Death, Crime, or Trauma in the Home) in Georgia
• Selling a House with HOA Special Assessments or Back Fees in Georgia
• Selling a House with a Failed Septic System in Georgia
• Selling a House with a Reverse Mortgage in Georgia
• Selling a House with Asbestos in Georgia
• Selling a House with Roof Issues in Georgia
• Selling a Vacant House in Georgia
• Selling a House with a Sinkhole in Georgia
• Selling a House with Foundation or Structural Issues in Georgia
• Selling a House with Termite Damage in Georgia
• Selling a Flood-Damaged House in Georgia
• Selling a House with Mold in Georgia
• Selling a House When You
• Selling a House with Code Violations in Georgia
• Selling a House During Bankruptcy in Georgia
• Selling a House When You
• Selling a House with Squatters in Georgia
• Selling a Hoarder House in Georgia

Need this in Florida instead? See Selling a House with a Tax Lien in Florida.