NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 13, 2020
CONTACT: Dana Kazel, Communications Manager
218-725-5049 (office) • 218-591-2219 (cell)
Tax Forfeited Land Auction results in nearly $400,000 in sales
St. Louis County's first tax forfeited land auction of 2020, held today in Hermantown, was a success. Of the 65 properties offered, 27 were purchased for a total of $397,575. The 41% sales rate is the highest percent of tracts purchased at an auction in recent memory. Properties purchased include two houses in Duluth and one in Angora Township. Additionally, eight of the properties purchased are formerly blighted parcels that have been cleaned up and structures removed to make way for new development.
All parcels not purchased at the auction are now available for sale on a first come, first served basis through the St. Louis County Land and Minerals Department. There are nearly 200 properties currently available for sale. The list of those properties, along with results from today's auction, can be found online at stlouiscountymn.gov/landsales.
Meanwhile, earlier this week, the first round of bidding closed on a slate of properties offered for sale through online auction. Four of the 18 properties sold for a total of $60,000. The remaining properties are now being re-offered for sale at publicsurplus.com. The 18 properties had been approved for sale online as a pilot program. The County has not yet decided whether to offer additional tax forfeited properties for sale online.
St. Louis County will offer two additional live auctions of tax forfeited properties later this year. The next auction will be held June 11.
Within St. Louis County there are nearly 900,000 acres of tax forfeited land, which the County's Land and Minerals Department is responsible for managing. Most of the land is maintained for forest management, however, the County is working to sell parcels that are not planned for management as a way to encourage development and increase the property tax base.
For more information about tax forfeited land sales, or to subscribe to receive email notifications about updates and future sales, visit stlouiscountymn.gov/landsales or call the Land and Minerals Department at (218) 726-2606.
###
|
