The Basics of IRS Property Auctions

Buy a home, car, helicopter, NFL team or whatever forproperty, you must be prepared to pay in cash, with a
one measly dollar. Ah, we must be talking about IRScashier's check or certified bank check. You cannot
property auction hype.finance the transaction, pay by personal check or
The Basics of IRS Property Auctionseven use a credit card. Again, make sure to review
You may have seen commercials or advertisementsthe official notice of auction for payment requirements.
on the web about the steals you can get at IRSThis cash or equivalent attitude stymies many bidders.
property auctions. Whether you can actually get suchHow can you get a cashier's check before the auction
deals is questionable, but there is no doubt the IRSif you do not know what the winning bid will be? To
does hold auctions. The purpose of the auctions is toresolve this, many people will get a check for their
sell off property of a taxpayer that owes the IRSminimum bid and then bring cash on top of it to make
money. Here are the basics of the auction process.up the difference between the check and winning bid.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about IRS auctionsNot the smoothest approach, but the IRS accepts this
is there is no set procedure. With some auctions, youapproach.
must appear in person to bid. With others, you can mailFinally, most people wish to know if they can get on
in a bid. Still others require you to submit a sealed bid.the IRS mailing list for property auctions. In short, the
So, how do you know which is which? You need toanswer is no. There is no list. While this might make
get a copy of the official notice of the auction. It laysyou groan, you should realize it also constitutes the
out all the specifics and is binding on the property sale.reason you can sometimes get a major deal. If
The second basic thing to know about IRS propertyeveryone was able to access a mailing list, the
auctions is the payment method. Ironically, the IRS isauctions would be packed and great deals would not
really into cash. If you intend to bid on a piece ofexist!