6 0 obj According to the law (Rule 3132), the court may, upon proper cause shown, set aside the sale and order a resale or enter any order which may be just and proper under the circumstances. The most common example of proper cause is lack of notice. May 14, 2014). She received the certified mail notice of the upset tax sale only because her husband happened to be home when the mail was delivered. Complicating matters, the third-party purchasers were represented by a large law firm in Philadelphia and one of the attorneys who wrote the brief in support of their appeal was the former president judge of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Due to the delinquency on account of the property, a sheriffs sale was scheduled for the property unless the tax arrearage was appropriately dealt with. Est. In early 2014, the property was subjected to a tax sale and the property was sold to a third-party bidder. We rejected the owner's argument. 1, 1.) 6. In 2010, Morris Park Congregation of Jehovahs Witnesses purchased a property for $282,500 with the intention of constructing a Kingdom Hall, the opinion said. What our clients did not know at the time is that the day prior to the sheriffs sale a letter had been faxed, after business hours, from the city government to our clients attorney at the time, who had already left his office for the night, informing him that the sheriffs sale would take place the following morning and that the property would be for sale. Therefore, if there is proper cause under the circumstances to cancel the sale the judge has the authority to do so. In 2012, she filed the petition to set aside the sale of the house to QAC Inc. for $8,000. On February 2, 2010, Appellant's cooperative interest in the Property was sold following active bidding. The properties are sold at auction. No statutes or acts will be found at this website. 78a. 2009). Therefore, consider speaking with the Third Party Purchaser and his counsel before the court hearing. Our clients attorney at the time did not arrive back to his office until the following day after the property was already sold at the sheriffs sale for a significant sum. FindLaw.com Free, trusted legal information for consumers and legal professionals, SuperLawyers.com Directory of U.S. attorneys with the exclusive Super Lawyers rating, Abogado.com The #1 Spanish-language legal website for consumers, LawInfo.com Nationwide attorney directory and legal consumer resources. The trial court found that the response wanting to get out demonstrated that Grudsky lived at 3089 Brighton 6th Street, Brooklyn, New York 11235. 2009). The trial court scheduled a hearing for May 20, 2015, and notice was sent to Grudsky at the same address used by the Tax Claim Bureau. If that notice is returned undelivered, the clerk must conduct additional search and inquiry to determine the owners address. Tennessee Petition To Set Aside Tax Sale The Forms Professionals Trust! I'm Law360's automated support bot. Grudsky contends that the Tax Claim Bureau did not make reasonable efforts to discover his whereabouts because it did not make a search of current telephone directories for the county 72 P.S. The Pennsylvania Contractor and Subcontractor Payment Act, Zoom Webinar: State and Federal Prompt Payment Act, Federal Arbitration Act Preempts Pennsylvania Payment Act, SCOTUS Opens Up Federal Courts to Land Owners. All rights reserved. Philadelphia thereafter initiated tax foreclosure proceedings against Morris Park as to the property. Colins first addressed whether the petition was filed by the property owner in a timely fashion. He established that his address is 215 Amherst Street, Brooklyn, New York, 11235. Grudsky was not sure if the letter was in reference to the property or the trailer. If the City of Philadelphia opposes setting aside the sale they may file a brief with the Court. In the related Rule 1925(a) opinion, the trial court reasoned that, among other things, Philadelphia posted its petition and subsequently issued rule upon the most prominent part of the property and, thus, satisfied the notice and service requirements under the act. 5860.607a. Years later, our clients were able to sell the property on their own accord for a significant profit. Maya v. County of Erie Tax Claim Bureau, 59 A.3d 50, 55 (Pa.Cmwlth.2013) (citations omitted)(The statutory notice provisions in the Tax Sale Law must be strictly construed lest a person be deprived of property without due process.) It is equally well settled that when a taxing authority fails to strictly comply with the Tax Sale Laws notice provisions the tax sale of a property is void. Grudsky appealed to this Court.3 In his first issue, he contends that the Tax Claim Bureau's acknowledged failure to search the Lackawanna County telephone directories invalidates the tax sale. endobj Official Note at 1099 (quoting Smith v. Tax Claim Bureau of Pike County, 834 A.2d 1247, 1252 (Pa. Cmwlth. Further duplication without permission is prohibited. If that notice is returned undelivered, the Clerk is required to have notice delivered by the Sheriff. After appearing before all of the judges of the Commonwealth Court during oral argument, the Commonwealth Court affirmed the trial courts ruling which set aside the sheriffs sale of the property and ordered that a deed transferring title to the property back to our clients. Further, section 27-43-3 must be given a strict construction, and its requirements fully satisfied. Id. In addition to seeking to redeem the property under the act, Morris Park filed a petition attempting to set aside the tax sale due to an alleged inadequate proof of service of the citys petition and rule. When the certified mailing was returned, the tax claim bureau did the searches set forth in Section 607.1 but did not find an alternate address. See Pa.R.C.P. Those efforts shall include, but not necessarily be restricted to, a search of current telephone directories for the county. Id. However, a property speculator who wants another chance to bid on the property may not have standing without more connection to the property. There is no air in the Tax Sale Law on the minimum search requirement. Accordingly, the mailing addresses changed to Second floor, 2F and 2B. N.T. Grudsky stated that he purchased the trailer in 2009 or 2010 and that it was in good condition. In Philadelphia, properties are sold at sheriff sale to the highest bidder to collect on delinquent taxes. <>>> Act of July 7, 1947, P.L. Colins stated that Philadelphias failure to perfect service by first-class and certified mail made compliance with the posting mandate under the act all the more important. 5860.602. In Sabarese, the Commonwealth Court affirmed the trial courts invalidation of a tax sale because the tax sale notices were not marked personal addressee only. Sabarese, 451 A.2d at 793. Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. See Mortg. The property owner then appealed the trial court's ruling to the Commonwealth Court. On December 22, 2017, Hansford filed the Petition alleging that he is an owner occupant of the Property, thus the Lehigh County Tax Claim Bureau (Bureau) was required to personally serve him notice of the sale. Michael Grudsky appeals an order of the Court of Common Pleas of Lackawanna County (trial court) denying his petition to set aside a tax sale of property he owned. Our firm answers all incoming calls from clients, at all hours, and strives to promptly resolve your legal issue. ); R.R. P. 3051 "serves the same function as a post-trial motion," as in Sahutsky v. H.H. Example: a court dismisses a complaint believing the case had been settled. Its notice provisions must be strictly construed lest a person be deprived of property without due process. which is a session in which a case is heard before all the judges of a court (before the entire bench) rather than by a panel of judges selected from them. Finally, the City may take a position on the Petition to Set Aside. Jefferson Township is inapposite. The city of Philadelphias Department of Revenue also provides the property owner with a way to change the notice address through the filing of an administrative form. Pitts v. Delaware County Tax Claim Bureau, 967 A.2d 1047, 1052 n.8 (Pa. Cmwlth. Speak with an attorney about filing a motion to set aside sheriff sale. In an unreported memorandum opinion issued by Commonwealth Court Senior Judge James Gardner Colins, the Commonwealth Court in City of Philadelphia v. Morris Park Congregation of Jehovahs Witnesses, 2016 Pa. Commw. Per this agreement, the sheriffs sale for the property was not subject to the bidding process at the sheriffs sale scheduled for that day and our clients believed things were close to rectification. Judge Cosgrove did not participate in the decision in this case. Failure of the chancery clerk to file the requisite affidavits renders a tax deed void. In re Upset Tax Sale Conducted on September 11, 2014, 2016 WL 916867, at *1 (Pa.Cmwlth. REALESTATETAXSALELAW ActofJul.7,1947,P.L.1368,No.542 Cl.53 ANACT Amending,revisingandconsolidatingthelawsrelatingto delinquentcounty,city,exceptofthefirstandsecondclass A pardon is a formal forgiveness granted by the Board of Pardons. In the petition, the property owner, among other things, argued that Philadelphia failed to adequately establish proof of service of the citys petition and rule by way of posting of the property. Koldjeski explained that [he] didn't think there was a need because he did not find that Grudsky was registered to vote anywhere in the Commonwealth. N.T. Therefore, if you do not act fast you may lose the ability to set aside the sale. The property owner then petitioned to set aside the tax sale, asserting the notice of sale was the first and only notice she ever received. 48; R.R. Copyright 2023, Zimolong Law, LLC All Rights Reserved. Here, the trial court erred in excusing the Tax Claim Bureau's failure to search current telephone directories of Lackawanna County on grounds of futility.6 The Tax Claim Bureau was required, at a minimum, to do a search of current telephone directories for the county, and this was not done. (emphasis added). Date: 03/21/2001 . Further, the tax claim bureau bears the burden of proving strict compliance with the notice provisions. PRESIDENT'S TAX RELIEF PROPOSALS: TAX PROPOSALS AFFECTING INDIVIDUALS 107th Congress (2001-2002) House Committee Meeting Hide Overview . For information, contact 877-257-3382, reprints@alm.comor visit www.almreprints.com. Previous Champaign County Board met Dec. 15 | Chambana Sun Next New Legislation Aims to Curb Controversial Cook County Tax Sale | Chicago News | WTTW About The Author Wallace Reid Related Posts Upon being informed by a lawyer's motion that the lawsuit was not settled, the judge will issue an order to "set aside" the original dismissal. 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