In accordance with the Office of the Tax Collector’s commitment to efficient and effective tax collection enforcement, the City of Norwalk will conduct a tax sale of tax delinquent properties on Monday, September 20, 2021, beginning at 3 p.m. in the Norwalk City Hall Concert Hall.
The 2021 tax sale is the city’s ninth tax sale. It was originally planned for July 2020 but was postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic. The full property list and complete information is available on the city's website.
The Tax Collector’s Office has collected more than $6 million on tax sale properties since November 2019. Most of the properties originally included in the tax sale have paid. Those properties have been removed from the sale. The City of Norwalk has had tax sales since 2003 that have collectively yielded more than $44 million. The City’s last tax sale was held in July 2018 and generated more than $5 million in tax revenue.
At the time the notices for the 2021 sale were filed, the auction included single family residential properties; multi-family residential properties; residential condominium units; commercial / professional condominium units; various types of commercial properties; retail facilities; mixed use commercial / residential buildings; non-conforming lots; garage units; and vacant land that may or may not be buildable.
Several properties included in this sale are due to blight fees. The Tax Collector’s Office is empowered to assist the Code Enforcement Department in collecting outstanding blight fees.
In November 2019, the Tax Collector’s office began working on this sale and selected more than 200 properties for inclusion. Since that time, 178 properties have paid in full. Notices of sale were filed in the Norwalk land records on Monday, July 19, 2021
The list of properties scheduled for sale will be published in a local newspaper and posted in the lobby of City Hall. Properties are not removed from the tax sale until taxes and associated fees are paid in full. It is anticipated, as with prior sales, that most of the properties will be paid in full prior to the tax sale. As of today, there are 66 properties remaining in the sale.
An informational packet describing the tax sale process may be purchased in the Tax Collector’s Office for $25. The packet includes a complete description of the process, instructions for potential bidders, and copies of the relevant state statutes. The Tax Collector’s Office encourages those who think they may be interested in the process to buy the packet and become educated about tax sales before deciding to bid.
Each of the properties included in the tax sale property is private property. Potential bidders are not permitted to trespass on the properties at any time prior to, or after, the tax sale. There is no public inspection of tax sale property. The owners of the properties retain all of their rights to their properties and are entitled to the peaceful enjoyment of their properties.
The purpose of the tax sale is to collect past due taxes and to maintain a high current tax collection rate, and not necessarily to redistribute property ownership.
The full property list and complete information is available on the city's website.