State Foreclosure Law Library

broward-fl

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Broward County, Florida — Tax Sale & Surplus Procedure

Local operations layer. The legal framework (redemption periods, surplus rights, statutes, case law) lives on the parent page → florida. This page covers how Broward County actually runs it. Legal information, not legal advice. Last verified: 2026-06-01.

C0. Identity

  • County seat: Fort Lauderdale · Population: ~1.94 million (largest by population is Miami-Dade; Broward is FL’s 2nd-most-populous county) · Recording unit: county (one of Florida’s 67 counties).
  • Parent legal framework: florida (Ch. 197 tax certificates / tax deeds; Ch. 45 mortgage foreclosure).
  • Local quirk (important): Broward is one of the Florida counties where tax deeds, the tax-deed auction, AND surplus claims are handled by the county’s Records, Taxes and Treasury Division (RTT) — Tax Deed Section, a unit of the Finance and Administrative Services Department, not by the elected Clerk of the Circuit Court. (Source: Broward RTT Tax Deeds; surplus-claim packet header “RECORDS, TAXES, AND TREASURY DIVISION — Tax Deed Section.“) This differs from most FL counties where the Clerk runs tax-deed sales.

C1. Local Tax Sale

Two distinct sales exist in Florida and both touch Broward (see florida for the statutory mechanics — not restated here):

(a) Tax-certificate sale — run by the Broward County Tax Collector

(b) Tax-deed auction — run by RTT Tax Deed Section

  • Conducts own sale? Yes. · Platform: transitioning to RealAuction (online), expected URL pattern broward.realtaxdeed.com. The prior platform broward.deedauction.net is retired — that site now states “Broward County tax deed auctions will no longer be conducted in DeedAuction” and directs bidders to the RTT Division site; bidder registration moves to RealAuction. (Sources: broward.deedauction.net; Broward RTT Tax Deeds) ⚠ The exact live RealAuction subdomain and resumed-sale dates are pending — see needs_verification.
  • Registration / deposit / payment (per RTT Auction Rules): successful bidders post a non-refundable deposit of 1,000 multiples. (Source: Broward RTT — Auction Rules FAQ)
  • Bidder requirements / bans: bidders who renege on a winning bid are banned ≥ 1 year; those who fail to pay/forfeit a deposit are banned ≥ 2 years; a second infraction is a permanent ban. (Source: Broward RTT — Auction Rules FAQ)
  • Tax-deed legal notices: published via the county legal-notices portal — browardcountylegalnotices.com/163/Broward-County-Tax-Deed.

C2. Local Redemption → framework: right-of-redemption

  • Where/how to redeem: redemption of a tax certificate before a tax deed issues is handled through the Broward County Tax Collector (certificate redemption); see florida § 197.472 for the formula, 5% minimum interest, and “redeem any time before the tax deed issues” rule. Local mechanics route through LienHub/the Tax Collector.
  • Local fees: statutory redemption + tax-collector fee per florida (no Broward-specific surcharge confirmed). · Contact: Broward County Tax Collector, browardtax.org, 115 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale.
  • Deviations from state default: none identified — Broward follows the Ch. 197 redemption framework. (needs_verification: any Broward-specific redemption fee schedule)

C3. Local Surplus / Excess Proceeds → framework: surplus-funds

This is the business-critical, fully-verified module. In Broward, tax-deed surplus is held and disbursed by the RTT Tax Deed Section, not the Clerk (unusual for FL).

  • Claim filing venue: RTT / Tax Deed Surplus Process, Records, Taxes and Treasury Division — Tax Deed Section, 115 S. Andrews Avenue, Room GC114, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 · email taxdeeds@broward.org. (Source: Broward Tax-Deed Surplus Instructions & Affidavit packet, Rev. 11/4/2022) ⚠ An older standalone claim form lists Room A400 for the same office — see needs_verification on the current room number; the GC114 packet is the more recent (2022) document.
  • Claim form: “Claim To Receive Surplus Proceeds of Tax Deed Sale” (notarized affidavit). PDF: Claim form; full instructions + affidavit packet (Rev. 11/4/2022): Affidavit packet.
  • Local deadline / process notes:
    • Surplus held 120 days from the date of the certified-mailed Notice of Surplus (for tax-deed applications filed after 9/30/18). A lienholder claim not filed within 120 days is barred; the former owner is not barred by the cutoff (per § 197.502(4)(h) carve-out referenced in the packet — framework on florida).
    • Senior liens paid in full before junior liens/former owner (waterfall).
    • RTT has 90 days from expiration of the 120-day window to review claims and determine distribution, pursuant to § 197.581, Fla. Stat. (Source: Affidavit packet, Rev. 11/4/2022)
    • Filing must be by mail or in person with ORIGINAL wet signatures and the original certified Notice of Surplus — affidavits are NOT accepted by email. Required: notarized affidavit + proof of lien/entitlement + amount due; former owners submit proof of prior ownership (deed, mortgage, tax receipts, insurance, HOA letter — usually dated within 1 year before the auction) + government ID + phone. Attorneys/representatives must attach POA/assignment/contract + ID. RTT will not pay attorney fees that are not court-ordered or in the original recorded lien. (Source: Affidavit packet, Rev. 11/4/2022)
  • Unclaimed-funds list published? Broward historically published a tax-deed “overbid” file (Records, Taxes & Fees → Overbid). The historical overbid page returned HTTP 404 at retrieval — needs_verification of the current published-list URL. Unclaimed surplus ultimately routes to FL DFS Division of Unclaimed Property per florida (Ch. 717 / fltreasurehunt.gov).
  • Contact: Tax Deed Section, taxdeeds@broward.org; Notice of Surplus / DeedAuction-era inquiries historically also taxdeedclerk@broward.org (per retired deedauction.net notice).

C4. Offices & Contacts

OfficeNameAddressPhoneURL
Tax Collector (certificate sale, redemption, tax payment)Broward County Tax Collector115 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301needs_verificationbrowardtax.org
Tax-Deed authority (NOT the Clerk in Broward)RTT Division — Tax Deed Section (Finance & Admin Services)115 S. Andrews Ave., Room GC114, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301 · taxdeeds@broward.orgneeds_verificationBroward RTT Tax Deeds
Clerk of the Circuit Court (mortgage-foreclosure sales per Ch. 45; NOT tax deeds here)Broward County Clerk of Courts201 SE 6th St, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301needs_verificationbrowardclerk.org (needs_verification of exact URL)
Recorder / Official RecordsRTT Division — Recording (County Records)115 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301needs_verificationPublic Records Search
Property Appraiser (assessment/ownership)Marty Kiar, Broward County Property Appraiser115 S. Andrews Ave., Room 111, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301needs_verificationbcpa.net
Sheriffn/a — Florida uses clerk (mortgage) / RTT (tax-deed) sales, not sheriff sales———

C5. Local Procedure Notes

  • Conducting office is RTT, not the Clerk. The single most important Broward-specific deviation: tax-deed auctions and surplus are administered by the Records, Taxes and Treasury Division Tax Deed Section (county administrative division), where most Florida counties use the Clerk of Court. File surplus claims with RTT (taxdeeds@broward.org), not the Clerk.
  • Two platforms, two sales: LienHub for the Tax Collector’s certificate sale; RealAuction (replacing the retired broward.deedauction.net) for the RTT tax-deed auction.
  • Tax-deed bidding quirk: post-initial bids must be in $1,000 increments; 24-hour full-payment rule; aggressive multi-tier bidder-ban policy. (Source: Auction Rules FAQ)
  • Delinquent list / legal notices centralized at browardcountylegalnotices.com.
  • Surplus filings require original wet-signature documents in person/by mail — no email.

C6. Records Access

C7. Meta

Legal information, not legal advice. This page summarizes how Broward County, Florida administers tax-certificate and tax-deed sales and surplus claims for research purposes only and may be incomplete or out of date. Procedures, offices, platforms, room numbers, and deadlines change. Verify every figure, address, and deadline against the cited official Broward County sources and consult a licensed Florida attorney before acting. The legal framework lives on florida. Last verified: 2026-06-01.

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