154 MISC. PUBLICATION 218, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 
by the Municipal Administration Service (64). The statements based 
on the latter source have not all been verified by an examination of 
recent statutes, and hence the examples cited here as ulustrative may 
have been modified in some instances by subsequent legislation. 
Four Typsés oF PROCEDURE 
The existing laws in respect to the enforcement of real-estate tax 
liens are of four general types: (1) The most common practice is to 
hold a tax sale*! at which the liens are offered to private buyers. 
The purchaser acquires a certificate which, if not redeemed by the 
delinquent owner before the expiration of a fixed period, may be ex- 
changed for a tax deed. If no private party purchases the lien, the 
State or county is assumed to be the purchaser, the landowner having 
the usual right of redemption. (2) In some jurisdictions a certificate 
is issued to the purchaser of the lien, and, after a fixed period of 
redemption has been allowed, the lien is enforced by foreclosure 
proceedings similar to those used in foreclosing a mortgage. (3) No 
tax sale is held, the State or county automatically becoming the pos- 
sessor of all delinquent tax liens. The interest thus acquired is held 
for a fixed period and then liquidated by a sale of the property or of 
the lien created by the unpaid tax. (4) At the tax sale the land, or a 
fractional part of it, is sold instead of the tax lien, the purchaser 
acquiring clear title after certain legal requirements as to notification 
are met. 
The tax sale law of Michigan illustrates the first type. The tax 
sale is held 2 years and 2 months after the delinquent rolls are sent 
to the county treasurer. The interest during the delinquent period 
is 0.75 percent per month plus a collection fee of 4 percent. The owner 
may redeem during the first year after the sale of the certificate by 
paying the sale price plus 1 percent permonth. Any time after 1 year 
and before the expiration of 5 years the holder may apply for a tax 
deed, which may be perfected by notifying all holders of a recorded 
equity in the property. Any holder of a recorded equity may obtain 
a reconveyance within 6 months from the date of this notification by 
paying twice the face of the certificate, plus $5 for each description 
and the sheriffs tee if a notice were served. If the certificate is 
acquired by the State the redemption procedure is similar, except that 
the State may sell the land after 1 year or, if it is unoccupied, may 
acquire absolute title when it has been delinquent for 5 years’ taxes. 
An ilustration of the second type of procedure is found in North 
Carolina. A tax sale is held 8 months after the tax first becomes due, 
the purchaser of the tax claim acquiring a certificate as in the first 
type of procedure. The certificate is made out to the county if there 
is no private bidder. The certificate bears interest at 12 percent per 
annum for the first year and 8 percent thereafter, provided that, if 
foreclosure proceedings are not started within 18 months, the interest 
rate is reduced to 6 percent. A tax certificate must be foreclosed 
within 3 years or the lien is no longer binding. 
The California law is an illustration of the third type. It provides 
that all delinquent taxes shall be automatically purchased by the 
State. The delinquent owner may redeem his property any time 
within 5 years by paying a penalty, which increases gradually from 
41 These sales are often referred to as land sales, but what is actually sold is the tax claim, not the land 
The purchaser acquires at first only a lien upon the land. 
