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Potter County

Tax Claim & Assessment

Tax Claim

Jacob W. Ostrom

Director

Karin Karr

Deputy Director

Gunzburger Building, Suite 111
1 North Main Street
Coudersport, PA 16915

Address

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Phone
Collection of Delinquent Real Estate Taxes
Payments now available online at PayLocalGov.com
Web ID is your control number, which can be found on your tax bill or by contacting our office.

Tax Sales / Bidder Forms

Effective August 2021

ALL Prospective Bidders are required to pre-register 10 days prior to the tax sale date.
ALL REQUIRED FORMS MUST BE RETURNED IN PERSON
Registration begins approximately 4 weeks prior to sale dates.

The DEADLINE to Pre-Register for the Upset Sale is Friday, August 30, 2024.
2024 Upset Sale is Monday, September 9, 2024, at 10:00 A.M. in the Great Room.
On the day of the sale, please come to the Tax Claim & Assessment Office prior to the sale to sign in.
Properties are sold “as is” and the Tax Claim Bureau makes no representation or warranties as to the title, location, or use of the property. It is strongly recommended that you seek the advice of an attorney prior to buying any of these properties. No refund is given for any property sold at any tax sale, unless by Court Order. All properties sold under and by virtue of the Act of 1947, P.L. 1368, as amended, known as the “Real Estate Tax Sale Law.”

Upset Tax Sales

The Upset Tax Sale is the first sale in the tax sale process. The sale is no earlier than the second Monday in September of each year in the Gunzburger Building at 10:00 a.m. There are typically over 1,000 properties that begin the sale process each year. Most parcels are settled either through receipt of payment or an agreement to stay sale of property. The sale list is released each month prior to the sale and is available from our website. Typically there are approximately 400 properties on the sale list. We anticipate that fewer than 30 will actually proceed to sale. Most will be paid before the date of sale.

The Upset Sale is a public auction with the minimum bid starting at the amount of delinquent taxes, costs and any municipal liens that may be due on the property. The property is sold subject to all liens, mortgages and judgements. It is the responsibility of the bidder to research the title of the property. The Tax Claim Bureau sells the property as outlined in the Assessment records and makes no warranty or representation as to the existence or condition of the property. The bidder should be very familiar with the property location and condition.

After the sale, the winning bidder will proceed to the Tax Claim Office and settle his account. The bid amount, Realty Transfer Tax in the amount of 2% of the calculated fair market value (which is calculated by multiplying the assessed value times the common level ration), deed preparation fee and recording fees are all collected. Payment is to be made in cash, certified funds or a personal check with a letter of guaranty from a local bank.

Judicial Tax Sales

Any property not sold at Upset Sale will proceed to the following Judicial Sale. The Judicial Sale is typically held in the spring of the following year.

The Judicial Tax Sale is also a public auction with the opening minimum bid starting at costs only. All mortgages, liens and judgements as of a date set by the Court are exonerated, with the exception of mobile homes. IRS liens may or may not be divested and it is the responsibility of the bidder to complete the process which may be necessary to divest these liens. The Tax Claim Bureau does not have the authority to divest encumbrances on trailers. It is the responsibility of the bidder to know exactly what property they are bidding on as Tax Claim sells based on the Assessment records and has no actual knowledge as to the condition or location of the property.

Repository Sales

Any property not sold at Judicial Sale will be listed in the County Repository for Unsold Properties.
The County always has a list available for review. There is no cost for this sale list and a copy may be picked up in the Tax Claim Office.

Repository properties are sold by a written bid. All three taxing authorities must approve the sale. A bid is submitted to the Tax Claim Bureau. The Director of the Tax Claim Bureau reviews the bids and submits the proposed bid along with property information, to the School and Township/Borough where the property is located. Once a bid is received, the bidding is closed until an approval/declination is received. After submission, approval or denial is received from the School and Municipality within thirty days.

Tax Assessment

Contact

F. W. Gunzburger County Office Building
One North Main St., Suite 111
Coudersport, PA 16915

Address

Jacob W. Ostrom

Chief Assessor and Director of Tax claim & Assessment

Email

Phone

Fax
Tax Appeal Meetings • Tax records • Property information