The Madison County tax sale is under way

The Madison County tax sale is under way this morning.
As of Friday, there were nearly 2,000 property parcels on the county tax collector’s auction list, totaling nearly $2 million in back taxes and related fees.The auction-style sale, at which people bid on others’ overdue taxes, started at 8 a.m. at the Justice Court building on U.S. 51 in Canton. About 150 bidders were expected to attend.All owners had until 5 p.m. Friday to pay the taxes before those who are willing to fork over the owed money could bid on them. Property owners also could show up this morning to pay.Some owe as little as $5. Others owe upwards of $50,000.The property owners have two years from today to redeem their property before deeds may be issued to the new buyers.Those who pay their taxes during the two-year period face an 18 percent interest rate, or 1.5 percent per month.All properties sold at the auction have been delinquent for 18 months.Property owners are notified of their delinquent taxes by mail three times, and the tax sale information is published in The Madison County Herald twice.