Kern County, California Research Teleseminar

STEP 1: Research on County Website

Kern County Homepage

Click on “Department” in the blue bar at the top of the page.

Scroll down and click on “Treasurer/Tax Collector”

http://www.co.kern.ca.us/depts/

You will be redirected to the Kern County Treasurer and Tax Collector

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/

Click on “Taxpayer Service” on the left margin, then click on “Tax Sales” from the pop-up menu to get to the Tax Sales web page.

You will be redirected to the Tax Sales web page.

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/taxsales.cfm

This web page contains the links to topics related to the February 27, 2006 online tax sale. You can click on any of the blue underlined links you want to look at.

Clicked on “Tax Sales Information”

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/taxdeflt.cfm

This web page presents general tax sale information.

Clicked on “Tax Sale FAQ”

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/salefaq.cfm

This web page contains answers to frequently asked tax sale questions.

Clicked on “Tax Sale Brochure”

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/taxsalefaq.pdf

This brochure contains information regarding Kern County Tax Defaulted Land Sales.

List of Tax-Defaulted Properties

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/ptslist.cfm

You must check the box next to the “Yes” button, then click on the “Yes” button to advance to the list.

You are then redirected to the Power to Sell Listing. This is the tax sale list for the Kern County sale as of January 18, 2006. It is updated frequently. As you perform your research, it is recommended that you consult the list frequently to determine what properties have been redeemed. That way you do not waste your time researching properties that will not be in the sale.

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/ptslist.pdf?agree=0

Scroll through the list using the bar on the right margin. You can click on the blue underlined ATN (Assessor Tax Number) that will take you directly to the Kern County GIS Maps. However, this is probably not the best method for viewing the GIS Maps.

Hot tip for screening the list: Define your investment objectives and the amount of capital you can spend at the sale. Most of the properties in the sale will be land. One quick screen is to separate parcels with improvements from the rest of the list. Another quick screen is to separate commercial properties from the rest of the list.

Parcel Information (linked to Assessor)

Click on “Taxpayer Service”, then “Parcel Info” from the pop-up menu to get to the Treasurer’s web page for the link to parcel information. All properties on the tax sale list are referenced by the parcel number.

You will be redirected to the following page.

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/parcel.cfm

Click on “Online Parcel Maps”.

You will be redirected to the Kern County Assessor’s Property Search web page as shown on the following screen.

http://www.assessor.co.kern.ca.us/kips/property_search.asp

Select ATN in the “Search Type” box. Then enter the ATN as listed in Property List for the property you are interested in. You can also search by address, Assessor Parcel Number (APN), or File Number.

Note: Do not use hyphens when entering the ATN.

(We have selected an example parcel: ATN is 230-200-62-00-5; therefore, you will enter 23020062005)

Then click on the “Search” button.

http://www.assessor.co.kern.ca.us/kips/property_values.asp?atn=23020062005

Use your cursor to scroll up and down through this page to view.

Information you can get from this screen:

Parcel number

Legal description

Land size

Property Use Code and description

Assessed Value

Tax Bill Information

Print this page if you desire. You can click on “View Parcel Map”, “Parcel History”, and “GIS Map” to be directed to these items.
Clicked on “View Parcel Map”. A new window will open to the parcel map on which the subject property is located. (No URL available)

Our example parcel is the second from the top on the far left side of the map. You can save or print this map for your use as desired.
Clicked on “Parcel History”. A new window will open. (No URL available)

The text states that the example parcel is in active status.

Clicked on “GIS Map”. You will be redirected to a new webpage.

http://206.169.45.184/imf/imf.jsp?site=krn_pro&qlyr=
Assessment+Parcels&qzoom=true&qbuf=250&qhlt=true&qry=
Kern.KERN.ParcelData_Full.ATN%3D%2723020062005%27

Please note that you cannot use BACK button to get out. You will need to experiment with selecting the layers for items you wish to be displayed on the map and zooming in and out for different views.

Example of view zoomed out 2x

Example of view zoomed out several times

Note: Edwards AFB south of site.

Search for Liens and Other Documents. Your goal is to determine if there are any recorded liens or other issues with the title.

WARNING: State of California Tax Sales DO NOT erase municipal liens, state liens, or federal liens.

Kern County Recorder’s Office home page http://www.assessor.co.kern.ca.us/

Click on “Official Documents” in the left margin. You will be redirected to the following screen where you can select your search type:

Grantor/Grantee

Document Number

Document Date

Document Class

Assessor Parcel Number
Click on “Search Type”

We will use Grantor/Grantee search for the example parcel.

(No URL available)

Click on “Grantor/Grantee” and you will be redirected to the following screen where you enter your search parameters.

From our earlier research, we will use the subject property’s owner of record, Robert B. Hill. Enter last name first, then click on “Search by Name”.

(No URL available)

You can also select to search by name within a date range.

Your are then redirected to the Recorder’s Office Search Results.

(No URL available)

Your search results will be displayed. We will click on the first listed name, “Hill Robert B” because this exactly matches the subject property owner’s name.

(No URL available)

The search results include deeds, deeds of trust, reconveyance, and other documents related to the subject property. You can click on the underlined Document Number corresponding to the description you would like to review.
For this example, we have selected the first document on the list – Notice of Power to Sell Tax Defaulted Property. This confirms that the subject property is in tax default status.

(No URL available)

Excess Proceeds Claim Form

http://www.kcttc.co.kern.ca.us/CLAIM%20FOR%20EXCESS%20PROCEEDS.pdf

This form is used to claim excess proceeds from tax deeded land sales. This form is to be used by delinquent taxpayers to recover money that exceeds the minimum bid (i.e., taxes, penalties, and interest owed).

Next Step: Use Google Map As Another Way to Lookup Property Location