BILL ANALYSIS

 

 

                                                                                                                                           H.B. 1404

                                                                                                                                          By: Dutton

                                                                                                     Local Government Ways & Means

                                                                                                       Committee Report (Unamended)

 

 

 

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

 

Most often landowners who reside next to abandoned property care for the property, maintain it, and perform all the duties associated with ownership of the property, such as cutting the grass and paying for yearly pest control. However, once the property is seized under foreclosure and placed up for sale at an auction, those persons who have maintained the property for years are not made aware of the impending sale.

 

H.B.1404 would provide property owners who live adjacent to the abandoned real property to be given written notice of their entitlement to purchase the property so long as the owner can show that they have maintained the abandoned property for at least a year.

 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

 

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. 

 

ANALYSIS

 

Amends Subchapter E, Chapter 33 of the Tax Code by adding Section 33.931 to provide that before abandoned real property described in a tax warrant can be offered for sale at a tax sale, the collector for the municipality or county, shall send a written notice to each owner of real property that is contiguous to the abandoned real property described in the warrant that informs each property owner of that owner's potential entitlement to purchase the abandoned real property for the total amount owing on the abandoned real property as stated in the tax warrant.

 

An owner of contiguous real property is entitled to purchase the real property that has been seized under a tax warrant, if the owner demonstrates to the collector that the owner has substantially maintained the abandoned real property for at least one year before the real property is seized. 

 

If more than one owner is entitled to purchase the property, the collector shall offer the property for sale to each owner.  If more than one owner indicates that the owner wishes to accept the offer, the collector shall select one of the owners by lot and offer the property for sale to that owner.

 

If the abandoned real property is not purchased by an eligible property owner before the 60th day after the date the collector sent the written notices, the abandoned real property may be sold at a tax sale.

 

EFFECTIVE DATE

 

September 1, 2007.