The Broward County tax deed auction is an online sale held each month through broward.deedauction.net, where properties with years of unpaid taxes are transferred to the highest bidder. Winning takes cash on a tight deadline, and the deed you receive carries real risks: some liens survive the sale, title is not immediately marketable, and the previous occupant may still be living there.
How Properties End Up at Auction
Delinquent property taxes trigger the process. Broward sells a tax certificate on the unpaid amount at a separate annual sale, and the certificate holder earns interest while the owner has the right to redeem by paying the balance plus interest and fees.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 197.472 – Redemption of Tax Certificates Once two years have passed since April 1 of the year the certificate was issued, the holder can apply for a tax deed and force the property to public sale.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 197.502 – Application for Tax Deed by Holder of Tax Certificate
By the time a parcel reaches the auction, the owner has already received multiple statutory notices. That history matters to bidders because it shapes what you’re walking into: an owner who has ignored years of warnings may still be in the house, and liens recorded along the way may still be attached.
Researching a Property Before You Bid
Every property on the auction has a Property Identification Number (also called the Parcel ID) and a Tax Deed Application number. Use those to pull records from the Broward County Property Appraiser and the Records, Taxes and Treasury Division. The Property Appraiser’s site shows assessed value, square footage, existing structures, land use, and zoning.
Match the legal description in the tax deed file against the Property Appraiser’s maps. Legal descriptions in these files are easy to misread, and bidding on the wrong parcel or on an unbuildable sliver is the kind of mistake that only due diligence prevents. Drive by the address if you can. Records won’t warn you about collapsed structures, dumped debris, or contamination.
Liens That Survive the Sale
This is where first-time bidders lose money. A tax deed extinguishes most private liens and mortgages, but Florida law preserves any lien held by a municipal or county government, special district, or community development district if that lien isn’t fully paid from the sale proceeds.3The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 197.552 – Operation of Tax Deed Code enforcement fines, unpaid local utility assessments, and special district levies can follow the property to you.
Federal tax liens are a separate hazard. If the property is encumbered by an IRS lien, the federal government holds a 120-day right of redemption after the sale and can pay you off and take the property to satisfy the debt.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 7425 – Discharge of Liens The tax deed file includes an Ownership and Encumbrance Report, but the county does not guarantee it catches every recorded interest. An independent title search before you bid is the safest move.
Registering and Funding Your Account
Auctions run through broward.deedauction.net.5Broward County. Frequently Asked Questions – Tax Deeds Registering takes valid identification, a tax identification number (Social Security Number or Employer Identification Number), and verifiable contact information. Bidder instructions and rules are posted on the same site.
Florida law requires the winning bidder to post a nonrefundable deposit equal to 5 percent of the winning bid or $200, whichever is greater.6The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 197.542 – Sale at Public Auction Broward requires the deposit to be in your account before you can submit a bid, so get the funds in days ahead of the sale. Waiting until the morning of the auction to sort out payment is a reliable way to miss it.
How the Opening Bid Is Calculated
The opening price is set by statute, not by the county. It equals the amount needed to redeem the applicant’s certificate, plus the costs the certificate holder paid (advertising, service of notice, redemption of any other certificates on the same parcel), plus interest at 1.5 percent per month from the month after the tax deed application through the month of sale.6The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 197.542 – Sale at Public Auction
If the property is classified as homestead on the most recent tax roll, the opening bid also includes an amount equal to half the assessed value of the homestead.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 197.502 – Application for Tax Deed by Holder of Tax Certificate That addition is deliberate: it pushes the floor high enough that homeowners don’t lose a primary residence for pennies on the dollar.
Bidding, Winning, and Paying
Each parcel on the auction displays a countdown clock. You can enter a maximum bid and let the system increase your offer automatically up to that ceiling, so you don’t have to watch the clock. When a bid lands in the final moments before closing, the system extends the time to let others respond, which blocks last-second sniping. Desirable residential parcels can be bid up to or past market value.
If no one bids above the opening price, the certificate holder takes title and pays the clerk anything in the minimum bid not already covered, including documentary stamp tax, recording fees, and the homestead portion if any.6The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 197.542 – Sale at Public Auction
Win, and the clock is short. Full payment must reach the Broward County Tax Collector’s office at 115 S. Andrews Ave., Room A-100, Fort Lauderdale, by 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time on the next business day.5Broward County. Frequently Asked Questions – Tax Deeds Payment must come as a cashier’s check, money order, or wire transfer. Cash, personal checks, credit cards, ACH payments, and third-party cashier’s checks are all rejected. Each property requires its own cashier’s check if you win multiples.
You also owe documentary stamp tax of $0.70 per $100 of the bid amount, rounded up to the next $100,7Florida Department of Revenue. Documentary Stamp Tax plus recording fees that vary with the length of the deed.
Miss the deadline and the penalties stack. You forfeit the entire deposit, the county cancels all your bids and reschedules the sale, and you are barred from participating in future Broward tax deed auctions.6The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 197.542 – Sale at Public Auction The forfeited deposit is applied to the opening bid on the rescheduled auction.
When your funds clear, you provide vesting instructions (your name, a joint tenancy, a trust, or a corporate entity), and the county records the deed and gives you a copy.
Last-Minute Redemption
Winning the bid is not the same as owning the property. Between the close of the auction and the signing of the deed, the original owner can still redeem by paying the tax collector the face amount of all outstanding certificates plus accrued interest, costs, and a $6.25 fee per certificate.1Florida Senate. Florida Code 197.472 – Redemption of Tax Certificates Once you have paid the clerk in full, including documentary stamps and recording fees, the window closes.
If a redemption happens, the sale is canceled and your funds, including the full bid amount, are refunded. Late redemptions are uncommon on properties delinquent for years, but they do occur, often when a mortgage holder steps in to protect its collateral.
After You Win: Possession and Title
A recorded tax deed makes you the legal owner, but it does not clear the house. If the former owner or a tenant refuses to leave, Florida law lets you apply to the circuit court for a writ of assistance. You give the occupant five days’ notice before filing, and if the judge rules for you, the sheriff puts you in possession.8The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 197.562 – Grantee of Tax Deed Entitled to Immediate Possession Former owners who have received years of notices often leave on their own. Tenants under existing leases can require separate eviction proceedings. Build the possibility of legal fees and delay into any property you’re evaluating.
Title is the other post-sale problem. A tax deed does not give you marketable title, and title insurers generally will not write a policy on fresh tax deed property. Without a title policy, you cannot get a mortgage on it, and conventional buyers will not purchase it from you.
There are two ways out. The faster route is a quiet title action, a lawsuit asking the court to confirm your ownership and extinguish competing claims.9The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 65.081 – Quieting Title Everyone with a potential interest must be served and given 20 days to respond. The only defense available to the former owner is that the taxes were actually paid before the deed issued. Uncontested cases commonly resolve in 60 to 90 days; service by publication takes longer. Attorney fees for a straightforward action typically run $1,500 to $5,000.
The slower route is to wait. Four years after the tax deed is recorded, the former owner and anyone claiming under them are barred from challenging it.10The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 95.192 – Limitation Upon Acting Against Tax Deeds Many underwriters will insure at that point if you’ve paid taxes throughout, the original notices were properly sent, and no adverse claim has surfaced. Other defects in the chain can still block coverage. If you need to sell or refinance sooner, the quiet title action is the practical answer.
What Happens to the Excess Money
When a parcel sells for more than the opening bid, the overage is surplus. Government lienholders are paid first for any liens of record, including outstanding tax certificates that weren’t part of the original application.11The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 197.582 – Disbursement of Proceeds of Sale On a homestead parcel, the half-assessed-value amount built into the opening bid is also treated as surplus.
The clerk mails notice to parties who may be entitled. Anyone other than the property owner has 120 days from that notice to file a written claim; miss it and the claim is permanently barred.11The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 197.582 – Disbursement of Proceeds of Sale Property owners are not cut off at 120 days, and if no one else files, the former owner of record is presumed entitled to the remainder. Where claims compete, the clerk can interplead the funds and let a judge decide; the clerk’s fees come out of the surplus.