CAPE COUNTY TO SELL LAND FOR BACK TAXES

Cape Girardeau County has some land for sale, but don't expect to find any bargains.

Most of the property that goes on the sale block each year involves tracts that are too small to develop. Some aren't worth the cost of paying off back taxes and liens, said County Collector Harold Kuehle.

"Sometimes we sell a nice house," he said. This year the list includes some 20-acre tracts, Kuehle said.

Just the threat of selling the land on the courthouse steps prompts many property owners to pay their back taxes, Kuehle said.

On Monday the county advertised 139 tracts of land for sale. Last year about 250 tracts were listed for sale.

Kuehle will hold the delinquent tax sale on the Cape Girardeau County Courthouse steps in Jackson Aug. 25 at 10 a.m.

But Kuehle said Wednesday that property owners will pay the back taxes they owe on most of the acreage. Some showed up at the beginning of the week to pay their back taxes.

He estimated only about 15 to 20 parcels would end up on the sale block. Of those, the county likely will find a buyer for only five or six pieces of land, Kuehle said.

The county collector's office puts land up for sale when a property owner owes taxes dating back three years or more. If the taxes aren't paid and the property doesn't sell at the land sale, the tract goes back on the list of tracts for the delinquent tax sale the next year.

After five years the parcel doesn't have to be offered for sale again for another five years. The land then would continue to be offered for sale every five years or sooner if a prospective buyer requests it.

Kuehle said delinquent taxpayers only have to pay for taxes owed in 1994 and earlier years to have their land removed from the sale list.

But those who buy the land must pay all the back taxes. Even then it takes two years to receive a clear title.

The original owner may buy the land back after it has been sold for taxes by paying whatever was paid at the sale, plus a 10 percent annual interest payment.

That money is paid to the collector's office, which then turns the money over to the person who bought the property at the county land sale.

"You can't lose," Kuehle said.

The county doesn't make it easy on those who owe back taxes. Delinquent taxpayers must pay the back taxes plus an interest penalty and the cost of advertising the sale, he said.

For three years of back taxes the interest penalty is up around 50 percent.

The 139 tracts advertised for sale involved varying amounts of delinquent taxes ranging from $20.80 to $28,501.85.

Some involved only two years of delinquent taxes. Others went back a dozen years.

Over the years Kuehle has heard all sorts of reasons why a person failed to pay his or her taxes.

In some cases people aren't aware that there were back taxes on a piece of property they bought, Kuehle said.

In addition to the back taxes owed the county, there often are liens on the land. Kuehle said he always warns potential buyers of that possibility. But they don't always listen.

Some years ago a woman bought a little corner lot in Jackson for $80 to $100 at the land sale. But it turned out that there were $1,500 worth of paving bills against it, an amount that was more than the lot was worth.

"So she let it go delinquent," Kuehle said.

Delinquent taxes aren't a major problem in Cape Girardeau County, Kuehle said. "In a normal year 94 percent of the people pay their taxes," he said. "Cape County is an excellent tax-paying county," said Kuehle.

"After five years we write off on personal property less than one-half of 1 percent," he said.

Kuehle said the real estate that remains on the delinquent tax list is typically worth little.