KING COUNTY’S REAL ESTATE SERVICES SECTION
REAL PROPERTY SALES AND PROCESSES
Thank you for your interest in King County’s real estate inventory. The County currently has approximately 4,400 properties in its possession, many of which are in continual use by various County agencies, and others that are inventoried for future use or eventual sale. The King County Real Estate Services Section is responsible for tracking this inventory and for purchasing, selling, leasing, or managing many of those properties. King County’s Real Estate Services Section tracks two main types of inventory:
- Property that has come to King County ownership through an owner’s default on tax payments (the tax foreclosure process), and
- Property purchased in “fee” by King County for public service projects or ongoing use.
The Real Estate Services Section does not manage the collection of debt or foreclosure sales due to property tax default, and any questions regarding tax foreclosures must be directed to the King County Treasurer at 206-296-4184. However, a brief description of that process follows, with live links to the King County Treasurer’s Website regarding foreclosures for tax default.
In cases where a property owner fails to pay any particular year’s property taxes to King County for three consecutive years, County seizes that property through rights granted by the State of Washington and attempts to sell it through a tax foreclosure sale. County’s scheduled sales of properties in tax default foreclosure are conducted by public auction in December of each year. Properties that do not sell in that process are then deeded to County by the King County Treasurer and become known as Tax Title Properties.
You can learn more about the tax foreclosure process and this year’s auction by going to the King County Treasury website.
List of Pending Foreclosure Sale Properties:
In approximately June of each year, a list of properties-in-foreclosure may be found by going to the following King County Treasury website King County Property Tax Foreclosure List.
Please be aware that an owner has the right to save his or her property from foreclosure by paying all past taxes owed up to the night before the foreclosure sale. Therefore this list may change frequently, and interested parties should check with the Treasurer to assure status of properties they are tracking.
Any questions regarding tax foreclosures must be directed to the King County Treasurer at 206-296-4184.
Foreclosure Sales that occur due to defaulting mortgages are NOT handled by the County.
You should contact the lending institution holding the defaulting note.
Questions regarding tax title properties are managed by the County's Real Estate Services Section.
Tax Title Property- No Purchase at Tax Foreclosure Sale:
If no purchase occurs at the tax foreclosure sale described above, the property falls under County ownership and is then referred to as “Tax Title Property”. Oftentimes these properties are very small or development may be prohibited by the County’s Department of Development and Environmental Services. Many times they lie adjacent to the properties of owners who wish to expand the size of their own lots or use them as buffers and open space. These properties may remain unclaimed because their value, based on size, location or condition, is negligible.
Please re-read item 8 of the King County Tax Foreclosure Information website. Not only does this item discuss types of properties that experience foreclosure, but it is also a very good description of those same properties should they become Tax Title.
If the foreclosure process yields no purchaser, the County warehouses unsold properties in its Real Property Inventory Database. You may go to the following site to access a list of the 2008 Tax Title Properties. The 2008 Tax Title Inventory Spreadsheet list may be edited, sorted, filtered, copied or printed. Also available to you are explanations of Inventory Database Column Headings (PDF File) and a list of city abbreviations. We update this list from time-to-time, but it may not be totally current.
Should you find a property of interest, you are responsible for all research. We in Real Estate Services may not yet have had the opportunity to inspect the property, and your personal physical inspection is pertinent in all cases. King County properties are sold as is-where is. After you have performed such research and physical inspection, if you are interested in purchasing the property, please contact the Surplus Properties Agent at 206-205-5638, or e-mail Anne Lockmiller.Sale Of Tax Title Properties:
Tax title properties are usually available for public sale. Once you have researched and viewed a property and determined your interest to purchase, the following is our process:
- A final determination is made by Real Estate Services whether to release the property for sale;
- Real Estate Services sends notice letters to surrounding property owners to alert them of its intention to sell for a particular purchase price. The notice letter includes an Offer to Purchase Form.
- The purchase price will include all back taxes owed, administrative fees accrued, and a possible estimation of any market value the property may have beyond those taxes and administrative fees;
- A deadline is stated for return of the Offer to Purchase Form and a check for the purchase price . Should more than one property owner wish to purchase, we will suggest that these owners contact one another for resolution. If no agreement occurs, we will suggest that each owner resubmit another bid, with the highest bid winning. The winning bidder will receive written notice from Real Estate Services confirming the sale;
- The winning bidder’s check will be deposited with the King County Treasurer. Back taxes and administrative costs will be paid out of this check.
- King County ’s Treasurer will send a deed to the new owner within 60 to 90 days of acceptance of the bid. Non-winning bidders’ checks will be returned.
Certain County departments may purchase properties for public works projects or public facilities. These acquisitions may be intended for use as expanded roadways, for use as health facilities and hospitals, for parklands and courthouses, or for other public and administrative purposes.
The County department acquiring the property is known as the “custodian” of that property. The custodian is responsible for the ongoing maintenance of that property. Should the time arrive when a custodian has no further use for the property, it may ask the Real Estate Services Section to “surplus” it. The surplus process is a King County Code-mandated process (KCC 4.56.070.3) to determine if any other King County agency or municipality, or the County’s Affordable Housing program, may have use for it. Real Estate Services is obligated not to sell a County-held property until such determination is made. If such lack of need prevails, the property is then declared surplus to the county’s needs.
Many of these properties may truly have no potential for development. However, in some cases, an appraisal to determine estimated market value is performed and the property subsequently marketed for sale.
The Process For Marketing and Selling Fee Owned County Properties:
The Real Estate Services Section has licensed brokers and salespeople who are held to the same agency standards as other real estate sales personnel and companies in the State of Washington. Most County sales are conducted through a sealed bid process that involves a marketing period, as well as a specifically-defined deadline by which time all interested and qualified purchasers may submit bids.
Methods of Advertisement May Include The Following :
- Listing on this King County Surplus Real Properties website
- Listing in the Northwest Multiple Listing Service
- Advertisement in the Seattle Times and Post Intelligencer (and perhaps neighborhood newspapers) of legal notices and scheduled open houses
To understand the paperwork involved, please see the King County Offer to Purchase Form. Additional purchaser requests may be attached to this form. Once the winning bid is chosen, a purchase and sale agreement is negotiated between King County and the winning bidder.
This process for selling surpluses inventory is reserved for those properties having reasonable potential for use or development. Out of all the properties held by King County, only a relative few experience these detailed marketing efforts!
Other research tools to locate property and information within King County
- The King County Geographic Information Systems (GIS) website holds a wealth of information relating to location, size, zoning, taxes, council district, permitting jurisdiction, etc and is an agile and informative tool. iMap and Parcel Viewer programs are the primary sources for information at this website. Once you have explored the link provided above, should you have questions specifically regarding the use of iMap or Parcel Viewer, you may e-mail the GIS Center for additional information.
- The King County Tax Assessor’s website holds even more site-specific information and is a good source for finding the assessed value for current and past years that has been placed on property for purposes of land taxes. This Tax “Assessment” may be a different dollar amount than that you might see in a real estate appraiser’s estimate of market value, know as an “Appraisal”. You may also go directly to the eReal Property System website.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST IN KING COUNTY’S REAL ESTATE SERVICES SECTIONS’ PROCESSES!
If you are unable to find the information you need at any of the above sites listed here, you may contact King County’s Real Estate Services Section, Surplus Properties Agent, at 206-205-5638
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