Legal Question in Real Estate Law in New York

Re: Abandoned property

The key to what you want to do is to find the heirs and buy the property from them. Bear in mind that most of the "auction sales" conducted by tax authorities are sales of the tax lien, not sales of the underlying property. It's complicated, but converting the ownership of the tax lien into ownership of the property itself is possible; until that has been taken care of, the purchaser at the auction has only the right to pay the taxes for a period of time, after which the conversion can take place. As a general rule, it is not worthwhile for individuals to play this game, particularly if they are playing one property at a time. However, if you can find the heirs, you can generally strike a deal for a deep, deep discount. Pick up a copy of the New York Law Journal and look for the ads for heir locator services (or look in the Yellow Pages under private investigators).

Re: Abandoned property

I agree with Kevin except as to the effect of a foreclosure on the tax lien. If you purchase the tax lien, you have the right to foreclose also, which could be expanded not only to cover the taxes you paid, but for the entire property. However, you will still need to give notice of the foreclosure sale and advertise to try to locate missing heirs. I suggest using an attorney familiar with both foreclosures and tracing missing heirs. A general advertising may be required to try to loctae them, which could become expensive.