$122,000 raised in October Land Sales

Auditor’s Office Collects over $120,000 in Land Sale Proceeds

Jefferson- Ashtabula County Auditor David Thomas and his staff held four Vacant Land Sales in October selling 16 parcels of land and collecting $122,933.92 from the successful sales.

“I am thankful to our staff and the Treasurer and Prosecutor’s Offices for their help in making these sales a positive for our taxpayers,” shared Auditor Thomas.

These mark Auditor Thomas’ 16^th land auction since taking office in 2019. In total, he estimates roughly 475 properties have been auctioned off and received by local taxpayers and turned into productive parcels in the county.

“I wish we never need to have land sales or have delinquent properties but since we do, our goal is to get them turned around as quickly as possible,” said Auditor Thomas.

The four sales were held each Wednesday in October and included only vacant properties without structures or improvement value. Some properties offered had been delinquent for nearly a decade while other began falling back on taxes in 2016.

See the remaining lots here: 

Sale 2016

Sale 2016B

Properties available at this auction were from all parts of Ashtabula County, with concentrations in Roaming Shores, Windsor, Ashtabula, and Conneaut.

“We’re seeing good returns for taxpayers through our strong marketing of these opportunities and a great real estate market too,” explained Auditor Thomas. “My goal is to push our partners to do even more each year to help clear the backlog.”

The backlog Thomas discussed are several thousand delinquent parcels in Ashtabula County which must either be foreclosed on and sold or transferred to the landbank or be redeemed by their owner.

The roughly 100 unsold properties from these four Vacant Land Sales will be added to other foreclosed properties for a mass Forfeited Land Sale in the Spring where parcels are offered at $100 a piece starting bid instead of the back-tax amount.

The two highest winning bids were for large acreage parcels. The highest lot sold for $30,088 in a very competitive bidding war. That parcel is a five-acre vacant lot on Storey Road in Colebrook Township. The second highest auctioned property at $27,096 is an eight-acre farmed parcel on State Route 193 in Wayne Township.  

Remaining parcels varied in winning bid amounts with some competitive bidding and others just selling for the back taxes.

Funds collected will be used to pay the back-tax amounts owed on the properties in addition to court costs and fees. Excess funds of the back taxes are owed to the property owner but if uncollected, are placed in the county’s general fund.  

“The enthusiasm for these sales only continues to highlight the need to be proactive with land sales and encourage delinquent properties to either pay or move through the process quickly,” stated Auditor Thomas.

Those interested in future sales should call 440-576-3785 or email djthomas@ashtabulacounty.us to be placed on a notification list.

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(Pictured is Auditor David Thomas during the most recent Vacant Land Sale.)