Tax Deed Sales

Tax Deed Sale Process

Property Owners are required to pay property taxes on an annual basis to the Calhoun County Tax Collector. If the owner fails to pay his/her taxes, a Tax Certificate will be sold by the Tax Collector at a date and time advertised by the Tax Collector.

A Tax Certificate represents a lien for unpaid real estate taxes. The amount of the certificate is the sum of the unpaid real estate tax and the non-ad valorem assessments, penalties, advertising costs and fees.

A Tax Certificate may be held for a minimum of two (2) years but not more than seven (7) years. At any time between the second and seventh year, the certificate holder may request the sale of the property to satisfy the certificate. The certificate holder must apply for the Tax Deed Sale by presenting the original certificate to the Tax Collector. For more information about Tax Certificate’s, you should contact the Calhoun County Tax Collectors Office.

The Tax Collector certifies the tax deed application and forwards the application to the Clerk, who computes the base bid and charges the certificate holder for the costs of holding the sale. The Clerk will require a deposit of $260.00 from the certificate holder to begin and set the sale date.

Once all sale costs have been paid, the Clerk sets a sale date, advertises the sale, notifies the certificate holder, the property owner and all lien holders and the sale is then held in accordance with Florida Statue 197.

Notices of pending Tax Deed Sales are published in a newspaper with local circulation. Tax deed files are available for viewing in the Clerk’s Office.

You must do your own research for each property!

You may research property improvements with the Calhoun County Property Appraiser’s Office.

Anyone may bid on a property there is no pre-registration required. The site provides information for each pending sale, including the name of the owner, Parcel ID information and the opening bid. If you click on the Parcel ID Number, it will forward you to the Property Appraiser’s website for parcel research. The Clerk is not responsible for the quality or accuracy of any information provided on this site.

Sales will be held in the front lobby of the Calhoun County Courthouse at 20859 Central Ave. E. Blountstown, FL, 32424.

At the date and time specified for the sale, each item is auctioned in order of case number. The property is sold to the highest qualified bidder.

Once a sale had been completed, the successful high bidder must remit to the Clerk the total bid or 5 % deposit down of the total sale with the balance being paid within 24 hours of the sale, as well as the recording fees of $10.00 for the first page, $8.50 for any additional pages and State Documentary Stamps of $0.70 per $100.00 of the bid. Payment may be made in the form of cash or cashier’s check payable to the Calhoun County Clerk’s Office. 

Upon payment of the remainder of the bid, the Clerk will issue a tax deed to the property. The sale is final when full payment is received, and the tax deed is signed and recorded by the Clerk. The property owner may redeem his/her property by paying all back taxes and costs up until the Clerk of Court signed the tax deed.

If the certificate holder is not the successful bidder, he/she is reimbursed all monies paid, plus interest earned from the monies received from the successful bidder. Valid liens are then paid out of the monies received. Notarized claims must be submitted to the Clerk’s Office to substantiate a claim. The former property owner may claim any excess funds.

The Clerk’s office is not authorized to give legal advice. If you require legal advice, you should obtain it from an attorney or some other source. The Clerk’s office assumes no responsibility for any encumbrances on any property offered for sale.

If you have additional questions concerning the procedure for tax deed sales, please refer to Florida Statutes Chapter 197 or contact the Clerk’s office at 850-674-4545.