After a tax sale, should the assessor put the property in the buyer's name or keep the delinquent owner's name?

Plain-English summary

The Livingston Parish assessor asked whose name should appear on the rolls after a tax sale: the successful bidder's or the delinquent taxpayer's. In Opinion 03-0282, the AG concluded that the successful tax-sale purchaser should be assessed and receive later tax notices. The statutory text it quoted began that treatment from the recording of the tax deed and continued until redemption.

The AG also quoted an earlier opinion on tax-roll changes after either a city or parish tax deed was recorded. That passage described a special case when the same debtor's property was sold for both municipal and parish taxes for the same year: the parish tax purchaser's title controlled the assessment under the earlier opinion.

Currency note

This opinion is dated August 6, 2003. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

What the opinion meant at issuance

Parish assessor

The opinion directed the assessor to list the successful tax-sale bidder and send that person later tax notices after the tax deed was recorded. Its quoted exception addressed competing city and parish tax sales for the same debtor and tax year.

Purchaser and former owner

Under the statute the AG quoted, taxes assessed after recordation were payable by the purchaser until redemption. The same quotation said a redeeming person would pay taxes assessed after the sale on the redeemed property.

Common questions

Q: Did the delinquent owner's name stay on the tax roll after a recorded tax sale? A: The AG said the roll should instead reflect the successful tax-sale purchaser.

Q: Who received the later tax notices?
A: The opinion said subsequent notices should go to the successful bidder.

Q: What if there were city and parish tax sales for the same year's taxes? A: Quoting an earlier opinion, the AG said the city-tax-sale title was subject to the parish-tax-sale title in that situation, so the property would be assessed to the parish tax purchaser.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion quoted LSA-R.S. 47:2193 on assessment after a tax deed was recorded. It also reproduced part of Attorney General Opinion 94-56, which cited R.S. 33:461 and Brady v. Slay and described the competing city and parish sales exception.

Citations and references

Statutes quoted or cited: LSA-R.S. 47:2193; R.S. 33:461. Case quoted in the attached earlier-opinion passage: Brady v. Slay, 460 So. 2d 732 (La. App. 3 Cir. 1984).

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/03-0282

Original opinion text

o~tate o[
One American Place
301 Main Street, Suite 600
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
P.O. Box 94005
CIVIL DIVISION
TEL.: (22.5) 342-7013
BATON ROUGE
FAX: (225) 342-2090

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
70804-9005
ATTORNEY GENERAL

AUG 0 6 2O03
Opinion Number 03-0282

125 TAXATION - Levy and Assessment
Honorable Jeffrey G. Taylor
(Ad Valorem Taxes)
Livingston Parish Assessor
LSA-R.S 47:2193

P.O. Box 307
Property sold at tax sale should be assessed in the name
Livingston, Louisiana 70754
of successful tax sale bidder, with subsequent tax notices
sent to him.

Dear Mr. Taylor:

This office is in receipt of your recent request for an Attorney General’s Opinion regarding the assessment of property which has been sold at tax sale. Specifically, you have asked this office to address whether property sold at tax sale should be assessed in the name of successful tax sale bidder, with subsequent tax notices sent to the bidder, or whether the property should continue to be assessed in the name of delinquent tax debtor, with subsequent notices sent to him.

We direct your attention to LSA-R.S. 47:2193, which pertinently provides:

"From the date of recording a tax deed to property, all taxes thereon shall after that date, be assessed to and paid by the purchaser, until the property, or any part thereof, be redeemed. If redeemed, in whole or in part, the person redeeming shall pay all taxes assessed upon the property redeemed, subsequent to the tax sale."

We also direct your attention to Attorney General’s Opinion No. 94-56. Pertinent to your request, that opinion states:

"It is the opinion of this office that when either a municipal or a parish tax deed is recorded with the parish clerk of court, the tax rolls of the parish should be adjusted to reflect the sale to the purchaser. In other words, the property should be assessed in the name of the most recent tax purchaser. R.S. 47:2193; R.S. 33:461; Brady v. Slay, 460 So. 2d 732 (La. App. 3 Cir. 1984).

There is, however, an exception to this rule in the case where property is sold for both parish and municipal taxes due for the same year by the same tax debtor. As stated in Attorney General’s Opinion No. 87- 585...the title acquired at a sale for city taxes is subject to the title acquired at a sale for parish taxes. In such a case, the property would be

Page 2

Opinion Number 03-0282
Honorable Jeffrey G. Taylor
Livingston Parish Assessor
Page -2-

assessed in the name of the parish tax purchaser, and the tax rolls would reflect his ownership." See also: Attorney General’s Opinion No. 88-310 and 92-396.

In summary, it is the opinion of this office that property sold at tax sale should be assessed in the name of successful tax sale bidder, with subsequent tax notices sent to him.

We trust the foregoing to be of assistance. Please do not hesitate to contact this office if we can be of assistance in other areas of the law.

Yours very truly,

RICHARD P. IEYOUB
Attorney General

NNE-MARIE (~ERIN’~ E I~-~RHAM stant AttorneY.Ge~_~al

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