Sales of land, building, and homes for delinquent taxes happen every year. Many times these sales can be set aside because they were not performed following the law.

The Chancery Clerk of the county in which the property sits plays a crucial role in tax sales.

Section 27-43-3 of the Mississippi Code (Revised 2013) sets forth the procedures that the Chancery Clerk must follow as a condition to a prior tax sale becoming valid by the running of the two-year redemption period. (Put another way, after a property is sold, the owner can still redeem the property by paying taxes and interest within two years. The two years is the "period of redemption.")

Three forms of notice of the upcoming end to the period of redemption must be given to the property owner. Those forms are:

• Service of notice by the Sheriff upon the owner at her usual place of abode, with the Sheriff then making his return to the Chancery Clerk to confirm service (Note: This is not required if the owner is not a resident of the state of Mississippi);

• Notice to the owner by certified or registered mail to her at her usual street address; and

• Notice by publication in the newspaper.

The Chancery Clerk must strictly comply with the law. Even minor errors may be enough to have the tax sale set aside.

“Statutes governing notice of a tax sale are to be strictly construed in favor of the landowner, and any deviation from the statutorily mandated procedure renders the sale void.” Vanaman v. American Pride Properties, LLC, 287 So. 3d 251, 257 (Miss. Ct. App. 2018).

"Section 27-43-3 requires redemption notice be given by personal service, by mail, and by publication in an appropriate newspaper. Therefore, in order for a redemption notice to be complete and in accordance with the statute, all three requirements must be met.” Viking Investments v. Addison Body Shop, 931 So. 2d 679, 681 (Miss. Ct. App. 2006).

"The chancery clerk's failure to comply fully with the statutory notice requirements renders a tax sale not just void but void ab initio. The tax sale is not simply voidable. It has no legal effect whatsoever.

A transaction that is void ab initio is null and void from its inception, and as a matter of law it is as if the transaction never even happened.” Rebuild America, Inc. v. Drew, 281 So. 3d 92, 100-101 (Miss. Ct. App. 2019).

If you have lost a property due to a tax sale, and if the time to redeem the property by paying back taxes has passed, you still may be able to have the sale set aside and get your property back.

Contact the Panter Law Firm, PLLC

7736 Old Canton Road, Suite B

Madison, MS 39110

601-607-3156

www.craigpanterlaw.com