156 MISC. PUBLICATION 218, U. 8. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 
of the redemption period. In Wisconsin he may demand title after 
the expiration of 3 years, but he is not debarred from doing so until 
after 6 years have elapsed. If the certificate was acquired by the 
county and later assigned to an individual, the limitation does not 
apply until 6 years after the certificate was assigned, provided not 
more than 15 years have elapsed since the date of the tax sale. In 
Louisiana lands adjudicated to the State are eligible for redemption as 
long as title is vested in the State. In North Carolina the regular 
procedure requires that foreclosure proceedings be instituted within 
3 years and that a certificate becomes invalid if this is not done, but 
this provision has been liberalized by subsequent legislation. Like- 
wise in Minnesota the redemption period has been extended from 5 to 7 
years by recent legislation. 
Cost or REDEMPTION 
The cost of redemption is often fixed by statute at a definite rate of 
interest, this rate usually being sufficiently high to attract private 
buyers for the liens. A rate of 10 or 12 percent is the most common, 
though it is 15 percent in Nevada, 20 percent in Louisiana, and 25 
percent in Mississippi. This is usually in addition to all the legal 
costs incurred by the certificate holder. In Texas the purchaser of 
the lien may charge the delinquent owner as much as twice the face 
of the certificate, and in Michigan, double the sale price plus $5 on 
each description. These charges are in lieu of interest and are 
independent of the length of time which has elapsed since the sale. 
In contrast to these heavy charges, Oregon limits the interest rate to 8 
percent, and North Carolina has recently lowered the rate from 12 to 
6 percent. 
Although the cost of redemption from a tax sale is often fixed at a 
definite rate of interest, there is a growing tendency to establish a 
maximum rate of interest and to lower this by competitive bidding 
among the tax-title purchasers. Colorado, New Jersey, and New York 
have general or special statutes governing this method of competition. 
VALIDITY OF Tax DEEDS 
In a few States a tax deed conveys a clear title. This appears to 
be the case in Ohio. Similarly Nevada gives the owner of property 
sold at a tax sale 1 year in which to redeem, after which the tax pur- 
chaser gets absolute title to the property. All technical errors of 
taxing officials are waived by statute. But in most States a tax deed 
issued at the expiration of the statutory redemption period of a tax 
certificate, with no judicial process involved, is a poor instrument 
in the eyes of the court. There is always the danger of having the 
title set aside for error. Even in California, where the ta sales are 
conducted by the State government, the tax deed seems to have little 
standing, for it does not give the holder possession. Because of the 
weakness of a tax deed, several States, including North Carolina and 
Missouri, have adopted a procedure which involves foreclosure of the 
lien as in the case of a mortgage. Wisconsin and New Mexico offer 
this course as an alternative procedure. 
TRESPASS ON DELINQUENT LANDS 
One aspect of tax delinquency which has not received much atten- 
tion and regarding which the law is often somewhat obscure, is the 
pe 
