Clerk of the Court - 15th Circuit - Palm Beach County

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Tax Deed Department

John Ditullio, Manager
(561) 355-2993
E-Mail Us

Mission Statement

This department handles Tax Deed Sales, Declaration of Domicile, Transfer Bonds and Foreign Judgments.

We are located in the Central County Courthouse at 205 North Dixie Highway, Room 4.2500, West Palm Beach, FL

Our mailing address is P.O. Box 484, West Palm Beach, FL 33402

The office opens at 8:00 a.m. and closes for walk-in business at 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday except legal holidays. Phone operators are available from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The telephone number is 561 / 355-2962.

Tax Deed Sales

Tax Deed Sale information is published in the Palm Beach Daily Business Review Newspaper. The same information is posted in the Tax Deed Department, along with the procedure list for sales. A $200.00 cash deposit is required at the time of the sale from the highest bidder and is forfeited upon default. Legal identification is required in addition to the deposit. Requirements for Tax Deed Sales are per Chapter 197 of the Florida Statutes.

Information may also be obtained by calling the Department of Revenue in Tallahassee. The Clerk's Office conducts the tax deed sale. Sale dates may be obtained from the Tax Deed Department up to one month in advance.

Redemption

To redeem prior to recording of a Tax Deed you must present to the Clerk's Office a cashier's check made payable to the Tax Collector, for the redemption amount. This figure will be on the notice mailed to you prior to the sale. Should you wish to mail your redemption, be sure to make the cashier's check payable to the Tax Collector and allow enough time for us to receive it before the sale date. You must provide a certificate number on your correspondence as well as a phone number where we can reach you in the event there is a problem with the redemption. The certificate number can be found on your notice.

If you are redeeming in person you must present you check prior to the sale which presently is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. on the date shown on the notice. If you wish to find out if a property has been redeemed prior to the upcoming sale, you may call (561) 355-3311. You must provide the certificate number.

Declaration of Domicile

You may obtain the domicile forms from any of the branch locations. However, you may only record the domiciles at the Central County Courthouse at 205 North Dixie Highway, Room 4.2500, West Palm Beach, Fl. If you leave your domicile forms at one of the Branch offices, it will be forwarded along with your check to the Central office the following work day.

You must bring some form of legal identification. Acceptable forms of identification include: an identification card or driver's license issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles; a passport issued by the Department of State of the United States. Other acceptable forms of Identification are described in Chapter 117 of the Florida Statutes.

The domicile recording fee is $10.00 plus an additional $3.00 for verification of signature and is payable in cash or money order.

Transfer of Lien to Bond

If you wish to transfer a lien to bond, you must provide a recorded copy of the Claim of Lien being bonded together with a cashier's check pursuant to Chapter 713 of the Florida Statutes. Fees for the amount of the bond are calculated in the following manner: The amount of the claim of lien, plus the legal rate of interest for a 3 year period, plus $1,000.00 or 25% whichever is greater for court cost.

In addition to the cash bond, a check is required for the recording and notification. The fee for a one page transfer certificate is $32.02. If you are bonding out with a surety bond and not a cash bond, please allow an additional $7.50 for the approval of the bond by the Deputy Clerk.