Posted by Chenel_MD on February 08, 2000 at 10:14:17:
In my neck of the woods, MD, the delinquent tax information is listed in the same book as the properties that are going into foreclosure. This is because taxes are liens placed by the government. Tax liens take precedence over and above all liens. The government is first on the totem pole and this includes 1st mortgages. That is why mortgage companies pay your taxes in escrow. They are protecting their 1st mortgage position, and it is not an act of kindness.
At any rate, What you need to do is look up the information on liens in your county. All the liens should be listed somewhere together. What I have to do is look through that gigantic book at the courthouse in the Real Property section called the Title Abstract and find all the foreclosures, and all the liens filed against titles. This includes delinquent taxes.
So it is sort of like a list. Don’t worry about the people at the courthouse. After they get to know you, they will be more cooperative. If you want, use a title company. They have people on staff that are skilled at searching the title abstracts and are much quicker at it than we are.