Marin County, California — Tax Sale & Surplus Procedure
Local operations layer. The legal framework (redemption periods, surplus rights, statutes, case law) lives on the parent page → california. This page covers how Marin County actually runs it. Legal information, not legal advice. Last verified: 2026-06-02.
C0. Identity
- County seat: San Rafael
- Population: ~256,400 (FIPS 06041)
- FIPS: 06041
- Recording unit: County (one of California’s 58 counties)
- Parent legal framework: california — California is a tax-deed, administrative-sale, pre-sale-redemption-only state, already Tyler-compliant via RTC §§ 4674–4676.
- Sale type inherited from state: Tax deed (administrative, no lien certificate, no post-sale redemption) — RTC §§ 3691, 3708.
- Structural note: Marin consolidates the Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector, and Public Administrator functions into a single Department of Finance. The Tax Collector (within the Department of Finance) administers the tax-defaulted sale and excess-proceeds process. The current Director of Finance is Mina Martinovich, confirmed by the Board of Supervisors on October 11, 2024 after the April 2024 retirement of long-serving Director Roy Given. — marincounty.gov news release “Marin County Hires New Director of Finance” (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Lead office: Marin County Tax Collector, County of Marin Civic Center, Room 202, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael, CA 94903 · Mail: P.O. Box 4220, San Rafael, CA 94913-4220 · (415) 473-6133 · taxcollector@marincounty.org — marincounty.gov Tax Collector / Tax Defaulted Land Sales pages (retrieved 2026-06-02)
C1. Local Tax Sale → framework: california
- Conducts own sale? Yes — the Marin County Tax Collector conducts the county’s own tax-defaulted-property sale. Each property offered is subject to the Tax Collector’s Power to Sell because property taxes have not been paid for five or more years (the statewide RTC § 3691 trigger). No lien certificates are sold (California is a tax-deed state). — marincounty.org Tax Defaulted Land Sales (archived 2021-09-26, retrieved 2026-06-02); RTC §§ 3691, 3708 (see california)
- Platform: Public Surplus — Marin’s tax-sale storefront is “County of Marin – Tax
Sale” at
https://www.publicsurplus.com/sms/list/current?orgid=1001874. Registration and bidding run through PublicSurplus.com; buyer support (800) 591-5546. A Buyer’s Premium of 8% (service charge collected by Public Surplus, $1.00 minimum) is added to the final sale price of each parcel won. Marin historically also ran live in-person public auctions (Board of Supervisors Chambers / Civic Center) and conducts separate sealed-bid sales for parcels unusable by size/location; the county migrated its general public auction to the Public Surplus online platform. — Public Surplus “County of Marin – Tax Sale” listing and auction-terms snippets (retrieved 2026-06-02); marincounty.org archived Tax Defaulted Land Sales page (2021) - Calendar: Irregular / as-needed — Marin does not hold a fixed annual tax-deed auction. The Tax Collector schedules a public auction when a sufficient pool of power-to-sell parcels exists; sealed-bid sales are held separately for qualifying contiguous-owner parcels. As of the retrieval date, no tax-default public auction was scheduled (the Public Surplus storefront showed “No auctions found”; the county page has historically shown “Currently, no tax default public auction is scheduled. … TBD”). A prior sealed-bid sale was noticed for October 21, 2021 (Board of Supervisors Chambers, Room 328). — Public Surplus storefront (retrieved 2026-06-02); marincounty.org archived page (2021); 2017 and 2014 auction final reports (referenced)
- Rate within statutory range: N/A — no investor interest rate (tax-deed state; no lien certificates). Pre-sale redemption penalties follow the statewide RTC § 4103 figures (see california).
- Registration & deposit: Bidders register on PublicSurplus.com before the sale. The Tax Collector may require a bid deposit to ensure fairness; the deposit amount is stated in each parcel’s description and is requested via credit card upon submitting a bid (one Marin tax-sale listing required a $4,000 bid deposit). Non-winning bidders’ deposits are reversed by Public Surplus; a defaulting winning bidder’s deposit is retained/forfeited. — Public Surplus Marin tax-sale auction-terms snippets (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Bidder requirements: Anyone may bid except Marin County Department of Finance employees. Properties are sold “as is” with no warranty as to condition, zoning, permitted use, legal status, or contamination; bidders must conduct their own due diligence. A bid is an irrevocable offer and an accepted bid is a binding contract; bidding proceeds in $100 (or higher) increments above the minimum bid. — marincounty.org archived Tax Defaulted Land Sales page (2021); Public Surplus snippet (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Payment terms / fees collected at sale: Successful bidders settle at the time of purchase. In addition to the bid, the county collects: California documentary transfer tax $0.55 per$500 (or fraction) of the sales price; and a transfer tax of $1.10 per$1,000, except $3.10 per$1,000 within the City of San Rafael. A $10 monument fee may apply to sealed-bid parcels whose legal description is not in Lot & Block format. (Tender types historically: sealed-bid — certified funds only; live auction — cash/money order/cashier’s/certified check for the minimum, balance by personal check. Online Public Surplus settlement-method specifics — needs_verification.) — marincounty.org archived page (2021); Public Surplus
- Minimum bid: statutory — “no less than the total amount necessary to redeem the parcel, an estimate of the current year taxes (if billed) and costs” (RTC § 3698.5; see california).
- Tax deed timing: a tax deed is issued to the purchaser within 60 days of the tax-default sale. — marincounty.org archived page (2021)
- Delinquent / auction list location: the candidate parcel list (Assessor’s parcel number, situs, minimum bid) is published with each scheduled sale via the county Tax Defaulted Land Sales pages and the Public Surplus storefront; statutory publication of the notice of sale runs in a newspaper of general circulation (RTC §§ 3701–3704, see california). — marincounty.org archived page (2021); Public Surplus storefront
C2. Local Redemption → framework: right-of-redemption
- Where/how to redeem locally: pay the amount necessary to redeem to the Marin
County Tax Collector, Civic Center, Room 202, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael, CA
94903 (mail: P.O. Box 4220, San Rafael, CA 94913-4220), or via the online tax-bill portal at
https://apps.marincounty.gov/taxbillonline. “All parties of interest … have until close of business the day prior to the tax sale to redeem the defaulted taxes and remove the property from tax sale” — the statewide RTC §§ 4101/3707 cutoff. The county expressly notes “There is no extended right of redemption in the State of California.” — marincounty.org archived Tax Defaulted Land Sales page (2021); RTC §§ 4101, 3707 (see california) - Local fees: the statewide redemption penalties/fees apply (10% delinquent penalty, 1½%/month redemption penalty, $15 redemption fee — RTC §§ 4102/4103, see california); no Marin-specific surcharge located. (Local fee schedule beyond statewide amounts — needs_verification.)
- Redemption contact: Marin County Tax Collector, (415) 473-6133, taxcollector@marincounty.org. — marincounty.gov Tax Collector page (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Deviations from state default: none identified; Marin follows the statewide pre-sale-only redemption scheme. Installment plans available under RTC §§ 4216–4218 for property not yet subject to the power to sell (see california).
C3. Local Surplus / Excess Proceeds → framework: surplus-funds
(Business-critical module.)
- Claim filing venue: Marin County Tax Collector — claims are filed with the
county (not a court); per RTC § 4675 the Board of Supervisors determines proof required
and decides claims, and the Tax Collector administers.
- Office / mail: Marin County Tax Collector, Civic Center, Room 202, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael, CA 94903 · P.O. Box 4220, San Rafael, CA 94913-4220
- Phone: (415) 473-6133 · Email: taxcollector@marincounty.org — marincounty.org archived Tax Defaulted Land Sales page (2021); marincounty.gov Tax Collector page (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Who may claim: “If a property is sold at tax default sale, the former owners and lien holders of the property have the right to claim proceeds remaining in excess of property taxes, assessment liens and costs of sale. To claim the excess proceeds, you must be a ‘party of interest’ as defined by Section 4675 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.” Per RTC § 4675 priority: (1) lienholders of record prior to recordation of the tax deed (in priority order); (2) any person with title of record prior to recordation. Deceased parties’ heirs may claim by affidavit under Probate Code §§ 13100 et seq. (see california). — marincounty.org archived page (2021)
- Claim form: Marin issues a claim consistent with the State Controller’s “Claim for Excess Proceeds” sample (RTC § 4675 / SCO Excess Proceeds Guide). (A standing, separately hosted “Marin County Excess Proceeds Claim Form” PDF was not located at a retrieved URL; the county directs claimants to contact the Tax Collector at (415) 473-6133 / taxcollector@marincounty.org for the form and instructions — needs_verification: direct form URL.) — marincounty.org archived page (2021); SCO Excess Proceeds Guide 2025 (see california)
- Local deadline notes: statewide one-year RTC § 4675 deadline — Marin “holds excess proceeds for one year,” during which it notifies lienholders/creditors/parties of interest; the completed claim must be postmarked on or before the one-year anniversary of recordation of the tax collector’s deed. — marincounty.org / marincounty.gov Tax Defaulted Land Sales pages (retrieved 2026-06-02); RTC § 4675(a)(1)–(2) (see california)
- Unclaimed list published? needs_verification — no standing “unclaimed excess proceeds” roster was located at a retrieved Marin URL. Historically the county published per-auction “Right to Claim Excess Proceeds” notices (e.g., the 2017 auction excess-proceeds publications dated Jan 18 / Jan 25 / Feb 1, 2018). Per statewide RTC §§ 4674/4676, unclaimed proceeds revert to the county general fund after the one-year claim period (see california). — marincounty.org archived 2017-auction excess-proceeds publication PDFs (CDX-confirmed, retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Contact: Marin County Tax Collector, (415) 473-6133, taxcollector@marincounty.org.
▸ For Investors / Operators — Marin runs its tax-deed sales through Public Surplus (8% buyer’s premium) on an as-needed cadence, plus separate sealed-bid sales for contiguous owners. The venue you will work for any post-sale surplus is the county Tax Collector / Board of Supervisors (not a court), under the RTC § 4675 waterfall (lienholders of record by priority → record owner). See california §5b for the marketable-title path (the one-year RTC § 3725 challenge window and quiet title — Marin’s own page flags that title companies generally will not insure until quiet title is pursued or quitclaims are obtained) and §7b for which liens survive a California tax deed (IRS redemption-right liens, special assessments, recorded restrictions).
▸ For Former Owners — When a Marin tax-deed sale produces more than the taxes, assessment liens, and costs, the residual excess proceeds are claimable by lienholders of record and then the former record owner. The claim is filed with the county Tax Collector (Civic Center, Room 202, San Rafael), and must be filed within one year of recordation of the tax deed. Contact (415) 473-6133 / taxcollector@marincounty.org for the claim form. California sets no percentage fee cap on a tax-sale excess-proceeds recovery agent (see california §3), but an agent must disclose the amount/source and the right to file directly at no cost.
C4. Offices & Contacts
| Office | Name | Address | Phone | URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tax Collector (Dept. of Finance) | Marin County Tax Collector (Director of Finance: Mina Martinovich) | Civic Center, Room 202, 3501 Civic Center Dr., San Rafael, CA 94903 · Mail: P.O. Box 4220, San Rafael, CA 94913-4220 | (415) 473-6133 | https://www.marincounty.gov/departments/finance/property-tax/tax-collector |
| Clerk of Court (Superior Court, Civil) | Superior Court of California, County of Marin — Civil Division, Hall of Justice (tax-sale/surplus claims are NOT filed here — they go to the Tax Collector) | 3501 Civic Center Dr., Room 116, San Rafael, CA 94903 · Mail: P.O. Box 4988, San Rafael, CA 94913 | (415) 444-7040 (Civil Clerk) | https://www.marin.courts.ca.gov/divisions/civil |
| Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk | Shelly Scott, Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk | 3501 Civic Center Dr., San Rafael, CA 94903 | (415) 473-6092 (Recorder) | https://www.arcc.marincounty.gov/ |
| Sheriff | Marin County Sheriff’s Office (Sheriff/levying officer conducts judicial-foreclosure & execution sales and enforces evictions; tax-defaulted sales run administratively by the Tax Collector) | 1600 Los Gamos Dr., San Rafael, CA 94903 | (415) 473-7250 | https://marinsheriff.gov/ |
C5. Local Procedure Notes
- Consolidated Department of Finance: Marin runs the Auditor, Controller, Treasurer, Tax Collector, and Public Administrator functions out of one Department of Finance; the Tax Collector administers the tax-defaulted sale and the Board of Supervisors decides competing surplus claims (RTC § 4675(d)).
- Online platform = Public Surplus (not Bid4Assets/GovEase): Marin’s tax-sale storefront is on PublicSurplus.com (orgid 1001874) with an 8% buyer’s premium — a different vendor and fee structure from neighboring Bay Area counties (Contra Costa = GovEase; Santa Cruz = Bid4Assets). Bid deposits are charged via credit card per parcel.
- Two sale mechanisms: a general public auction (online via Public Surplus; historically also live/in-person) plus separate sealed-bid sales restricted to owners of contiguous land or holders of an undivided interest / predominant or right-of-way easement specific to the parcel (RTC sealed-bid framework). A sealed-bid winner may be required to combine the purchased parcel with their contiguous parcel.
- As-needed cadence: no fixed annual auction; the county schedules a sale when a parcel pool accumulates. Confirm the next sale via the Public Surplus storefront and the county Tax Defaulted Land Sales pages.
- City transfer taxes apply at sale: $1.10/$1,000 countywide, $3.10/$1,000 within the City of San Rafael, on top of the $0.55/$500 documentary transfer tax — relevant for bid-economics calculations.
- As-is, buyer-beware, contamination warning: the county expressly disclaims responsibility for property condition, code violations, and hazardous-materials contamination; known contaminated parcels are announced before being offered (RTC § 3692.3). Surviving encumbrances follow RTC § 3712 (see california §7b).
- No tax-lien certificates and no extended post-sale redemption — the county conveys only a tax deed and reminds bidders there is “no extended right of redemption in the State of California.”
C6. Records Access
- Parcel / tax-roll search (Assessor): TaxRollSearch —
https://apps.marincounty.gov/TaxRollSearch(search Assessor records by parcel number and maps by book/page). — arcc.marincounty.gov (retrieved 2026-06-02) - Recorder / deed search: Recorder’s Index Search —
https://apps.marincounty.gov/RecordersIndexSearch(Official Records index). Recorder (415) 473-6092. (Whether recorded-document images are viewable online or only at the office was not separately confirmed from a retrieved official page — needs_verification.) — arcc.marincounty.gov (retrieved 2026-06-02) - GIS map: MarinMap viewer —
https://www.marinmap.org/Html5Viewer/Index.html?viewer=smmdataviewer; parcel/district lookup athttps://experience.arcgis.com/experience/c134749a2ce54508be5df43fb18ab250; open data athttps://gisopendata.marincounty.gov/. — marincounty.gov GIS page (retrieved 2026-06-02) - Tax payment portal: Property Tax Bill Online —
https://apps.marincounty.gov/taxbillonline(search by Parcel Number / Property Identifier; E-Check free, credit/debit 2.35%, $1.49 minimum; pay-by-phone 1-800-985-7277). — marincounty.gov Property Tax Payments (retrieved 2026-06-02)
C8. Title & Quiet Title
- Title type inherited from state: Tax deed (not a lien certificate; no post-sale redemption period for the former owner). — california module 1; RTC §§ 3691, 3708
- Quiet title action:
- Required? Not required to receive the tax deed (issued administratively by the Tax Collector within ~60 days of the sale). However, Marin’s own page states that “the former assessee or any lien holder has one year from the date of recording of the tax deed to challenge the validity of the Tax Sale (RTC §177 and §3725),” and that “title companies may not issue their policy of title insurance on property purchased through a tax-defaulted land sale, unless a quiet title action has been successfully pursued in the courts, or in lieu thereof, quitclaim deeds are acquired from the former assessee or every lien holder.” Quiet title is therefore practically required before resale to a financed buyer or before insuring. — marincounty.org archived Tax Defaulted Land Sales page (2021); RTC §§ 3725–3726 (see california §5b)
- Type: Judicial (Code Civ. Proc. §§ 760.010–764.010).
- Court: Superior Court of California, County of Marin — Civil Division, Hall of Justice, 3501 Civic Center Dr., Room 116, San Rafael, CA 94903; Civil Clerk (415) 444-7040. — marin.courts.ca.gov Civil division (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Typical timeline (uncontested): 6–9 months; publication adds 2–3 additional months; contested 12–18+ months — consistent with statewide CA estimates (california §5b); no Marin-specific case data located. (secondary — needs_verification for Marin-specific figures.)
- Typical cost range (uncontested): ~$3,500–$10,000 total (filing fee + title search + publication + attorney fees), per statewide estimates. (secondary only — needs_verification: Marin County-specific attorney rates and current Superior Court filing fees not primary-sourced.)
- Alternative: Marin’s own guidance expressly allows quitclaim deeds from the former assessee and every lienholder as an in-lieu alternative to a quiet-title judgment for obtaining title-company coverage. Tax Title Services-style certification may also be accepted by some insurers (county-specific availability not confirmed — needs_verification). — marincounty.org archived page (2021)
- Deed seasoning local notes: title insurers active in Marin generally require the one-year RTC § 3725 challenge period to run and a quiet-title judgment (or full quitclaims) before issuing a policy — the county states this directly. — marincounty.org archived page (2021); california §5b
- Title insurers active locally:
- First American Title — 1 McInnis Parkway, Suite 150, San Rafael, CA 94903, (415) 461-7570. — firstam.com / local listing (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Old Republic Title — Marin offices in Mill Valley (591 Redwood Hwy, Suite 3150, (415) 388-8740) and nearby Petaluma; oldrepublictitle.com/california/marin. — Old Republic Title Marin page (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Chicago Title and Fidelity National Title also operate in the San Rafael market. — directory listings (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Note: none published tax-deed/quiet-title underwriting guidelines on its local page; seasoning and quiet-title/quitclaim requirements follow standard California statewide practice and Marin’s stated policy. (needs_verification: insurer-specific tax-deed criteria.)
C9. Purchaser Obligations
- Subsequent tax payment office:
- Subsequent property taxes are paid to the Marin County Tax Collector (Department of
Finance), Civic Center, Room 202, 3501 Civic Center Dr., San Rafael, CA 94903; online at
https://apps.marincounty.gov/taxbillonline; (415) 473-6133. - From the date the tax deed is recorded, the purchaser is the owner of record and is responsible for all future property taxes assessed. — RTC § 3712(a); california §10b
- Subsequent property taxes are paid to the Marin County Tax Collector (Department of
Finance), Civic Center, Room 202, 3501 Civic Center Dr., San Rafael, CA 94903; online at
- Notice to owner procedure:
- The County (Tax Collector) bears the obligation to notify parties of interest of the right to claim excess proceeds within 90 days of deed recordation — not the purchaser. — RTC § 4676(b); california §3
- Purchaser has no statutory duty to notify the former owner of the RTC § 3725 one-year challenge period’s expiration. — california §10b
- Redemption payment office:
- Pre-sale only — redemption is made to the Tax Collector (same office as above) until close of business on the last business day before the sale. There is no post-sale redemption for California tax-deed sales; after the deed is recorded the former owner’s only recourse is a § 3725 challenge (within one year) or an excess-proceeds claim (within one year). — RTC §§ 3707, 3708; marincounty.org archived page (2021); california
- Occupancy and access notes (local practice):
- The tax deed conveys title and the right to possession upon recordation; the county does not manage occupancy or conduct evictions. Former occupants who remain are holdovers; the purchaser must file an unlawful detainer action in Marin County Superior Court (Civil Division, Hall of Justice, Room 116) to remove them. The Sheriff’s civil division enforces court-ordered evictions. The IRS may redeem federal-lien properties within 120 days of the sale (see california §7b).
C10. Local Restrictions
- Right of first refusal active locally?
- No municipality-level or land-bank ROFR identified for Marin County. The statewide RTC § 3695.5 nonprofit purchase preference applies county-wide (a qualified nonprofit may file a written objection and application to purchase before the first publication/posting of the notice of intended sale, effectively vetoing the public auction for that parcel). Under RTC Chapter 8 (§§ 3771–3841), a taxing-agency governing body may negotiate to purchase tax-defaulted property subject to Board of Supervisors agreement and State Controller approval — a pre-auction negotiated-purchase option, not a post-auction match ROFR. — RTC §§ 3695.5, 3771–3841 (see california §11b)
- needs_verification: whether any Marin municipality (San Rafael, Novato, etc.) has adopted a local tax-sale ROFR ordinance beyond the state framework — not confirmed from a retrieved source.
- Land bank name / URL:
- No dedicated Marin County tax-defaulted-property land bank was identified. The county does not operate a Michigan-style land-bank authority. Nonprofits seeking tax-defaulted properties use the RTC § 3695.5 process. (needs_verification: any city-level land bank.)
- Entity / insider notes:
- Insider restriction (local): Marin expressly bars Marin County Department of Finance employees from participating in the tax-default public auction — a specific local application beyond the general state conflict-of-interest law (Gov. Code §§ 1090/87100). — marincounty.org archived Tax Defaulted Land Sales page (2021)
- No entity restriction otherwise: any other person or entity (LLC, corporation, trust, foreign entity, natural person) may purchase — RTC § 3691(a) (“Any person … may purchase at the sale”). — california §11b
C7. Meta
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parent_state: california
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last_verified: 2026-06-02
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confidence: 0.85
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completeness_score: 0.88
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gap_score: 9
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sources:
- {type: gov_portal_archived, url: “https://web.archive.org/web/20210926073412id_/https://www.marincounty.org/depts/df/divisions/tax-collector/tax-defaulted-land-sales”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Marin Tax Defaulted Land Sales (archived 2021-09-26, fetched via Wayback raw): power-to-sell 5+ years; redemption cutoff close of business day before sale; “no extended right of redemption”; minimum bid = amount to redeem + current-year taxes + costs; $100 bid increments; documentary transfer tax$0.55/$500 +$1.10/$1,000 (San Rafael$3.10/$1,000);$10 monument fee (sealed bid); tax deed within 60 days; excess proceeds (party of interest per RTC § 4675, held 1 year); title-insurance/quiet-title note (RTC §177/§3725, quitclaim in-lieu); employees of Dept. of Finance barred; sealed-bid sale rules (contiguous owner / easement holder); Tax Collector Civic Center Room 202, P.O. Box 4220, (415) 473-6133
- {type: auction_platform, url: “https://www.publicsurplus.com/sms/list/current?orgid=1001874”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — “County of Marin – Tax Sale” Public Surplus storefront (orgid 1001874); 8% buyer’s premium; bid deposit via credit card per parcel ($4,000 example); deposit reversed for non-winners, retained on winning-bidder default; buyer support (800) 591-5546; “No auctions found” at retrieval
- {type: gov_portal, url: “https://www.marincounty.gov/departments/finance/property-tax/tax-collector”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Tax Collector page: Civic Center Room 202, 3501 Civic Center Dr., San Rafael 94903; mail P.O. Box 4220, San Rafael 94913; (415) 473-6133; taxcollector@marincounty.org; hours Mon–Fri 9:00–4:30 (page Cloudflare-protected to direct fetch; fields confirmed via search snippets and archived page)
- {type: gov_portal, url: “https://www.marincounty.gov/departments/finance/property-tax/property-tax-payments”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — online tax-bill payment: apps.marincounty.gov/taxbillonline; E-Check free; credit/debit 2.35% ($1.49 min); pay-by-phone 1-800-985-7277
- {type: news_release, url: “https://www.marincounty.gov/news-releases/marin-county-hires-new-director-finance”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Mina Martinovich confirmed Director of Finance (Board 10/11/2024); Roy Given retired April 2024; Dept. of Finance includes Auditor/Controller/Treasurer/Tax Collector/Public Administrator
- {type: parcel_search, url: “https://apps.marincounty.gov/TaxRollSearch”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Assessor tax-roll/parcel search by APN; maps by book/page
- {type: recorder_search, url: “https://apps.marincounty.gov/RecordersIndexSearch”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Recorder Official Records index search
- {type: arcc_portal, url: “https://www.arcc.marincounty.gov/”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk Shelly Scott; Recorder (415) 473-6092 (direct fetch 403; confirmed via search results)
- {type: gis, url: “https://www.marinmap.org/Html5Viewer/Index.html?viewer=smmdataviewer”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — MarinMap GIS viewer; parcel/district lookup ArcGIS experience; gisopendata.marincounty.gov
- {type: court, url: “https://www.marin.courts.ca.gov/divisions/civil”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Superior Court Civil Division, Hall of Justice Room 116, 3501 Civic Center Dr., San Rafael 94903; mail P.O. Box 4988; Civil Clerk (415) 444-7040; civilclerksoffice@marin.courts.ca.gov
- {type: title_insurer, url: “https://local.firstam.com/ca/offices/sanrafael”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — First American Title, 1 McInnis Pkwy Ste 150, San Rafael 94903, (415) 461-7570
- {type: title_insurer, url: “https://www.oldrepublictitle.com/california/marin/”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Old Republic Title Marin (Mill Valley 591 Redwood Hwy Ste 3150, (415) 388-8740)
- {type: gov_archived_pdf, url: “https://www.marincounty.org/-/media/files/departments/df/2017-tax-defaulted-auction/right-to-claim-excess-proceeds-2017/2017_auction_excess_proceeds_publication_jan-25-2018.pdf”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — 2017-auction Right to Claim Excess Proceeds publication (Jan 25, 2018); evidences per-auction excess-proceeds notice practice (CDX-confirmed 200)
- {type: gov_portal, url: “https://www.sco.ca.gov/ardtax_public_auction.html”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — SCO public-auctions portal links Marin tax-defaulted land sales page
- {type: gov_portal, url: “https://marinsheriff.gov/contact”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — Marin County Sheriff’s Office, 1600 Los Gamos Dr., San Rafael 94903; main (415) 473-7250
- {type: statute, url: “https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=RTC§ionNum=4675.”, retrieved: 2026-06-02} — RTC § 4675 excess-proceeds waterfall / party-of-interest definition (applies county-wide; see california)
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needs_verification:
- Direct URL for the current Marin Excess Proceeds Claim Form (county directs claimants to phone/email; no standalone form PDF located at a retrieved URL).
- Whether a standing public “unclaimed excess proceeds” roster is published for Marin specifically (only per-auction Right-to-Claim publications located, e.g., 2017 auction).
- Next scheduled public auction / sealed-bid sale date — none scheduled at retrieval (Public Surplus showed “No auctions found”; county page historically “TBD”).
- Online Public Surplus settlement mechanics for Marin (exact payment deadline after auction close, accepted final-payment methods) — historical in-person/sealed-bid tender rules captured from the 2021 archived page; current online-sale settlement terms behind Public Surplus login.
- Marin-specific bid-deposit amount(s) — $4,000 confirmed for one listing; deposit is set per parcel and varies.
- Whether recorded-document images are available online via RecordersIndexSearch or only at the office.
- Quiet-title cost/timeline figures (statewide secondary estimates; Marin Superior Court filing fees and local attorney rates not primary-sourced).
- Insurer-specific tax-deed/quiet-title underwriting criteria for First American / Old Republic / Chicago Title / Fidelity in Marin.
- Whether any Marin municipality has adopted a local tax-sale ROFR ordinance or city-level land bank beyond the state framework.
- Confirmation that the current marincounty.gov Tax Collector / Tax Defaulted Land Sales pages (Cloudflare-protected to direct fetch) still recite the 2021 terms verbatim — substantive facts corroborated via search snippets but the live page text was not fetched directly.
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cross_links: california, right-of-redemption, surplus-funds, treasurer-sale, tyler-v-hennepin-county, third-party-recovery-rules, due-process-notice, federal-tax-lien-redemption, heirs-property
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changelog:
- 2026-06-02 — Initial population (autoresearch, county wave). All modules C0–C10 populated. Key local facts: tax-deed sales via Public Surplus (orgid 1001874, 8% buyer’s premium, per-parcel credit-card bid deposit, $4,000 example) plus separate sealed-bid sales for contiguous owners; as-needed cadence (no auction scheduled at retrieval); consolidated Department of Finance (Director Mina Martinovich, succeeded Roy Given Oct 2024); Tax Collector at Civic Center Room 202, San Rafael (415) 473-6133 / taxcollector@marincounty.org; excess-proceeds claims filed with the Tax Collector under RTC § 4675, one-year deadline; quiet title at Marin Superior Court Civil Division (Hall of Justice Room 116) with county-stated quitclaim-in-lieu alternative; Dept. of Finance employees barred from bidding (local insider rule); city transfer tax$3.10/$1,000 in San Rafael. Live marincounty.gov pages are Cloudflare-protected; substantive terms drawn from a Wayback-archived (2021-09-26) county page plus current search snippets and platform/court/insurer pages. Items flagged needs_verification: current claim-form URL, unclaimed roster, next sale date, online settlement mechanics, quiet-title local cost/timeline.
Legal information, not legal advice. This page summarizes public records and procedural information about Marin County, California’s tax-sale and surplus process as of the last_verified date. Laws, procedures, dates, platforms, and contacts change; verify against official county sources and the parent framework at california, and consult a licensed California attorney before acting.