Any way you look at it the recent tax forfeited land auction held by St. Louis County was a success.  The total net take for the county from the event was $896,000 - which was added back to the bottom line of the budget and will also generate property tax revenue in years to come.  This particular land auction was the first one ever held completely online - due to the shutdown and the response to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

While expectations were mixed ahead of time for the event held on June 11, the results were very successful.  All told, 72% of the properties up for sale on that day were sold to successful bidders.  Additionally, one property from the county's former Lakeshore Lease Program also sold.  Organizers were unsure what the results would be due to the online medium (and not having any in-person sales opportunities) and the current state of the economy.

The event marked the first time that the St. Louis County Land and Minerals Department has offered a large scale auction of tax forfeited properties.  Earlier this year, the county had held a smaller online land auction as part of a pilot or test program; however, those properties has already been previously offered for sale - but remained unsold from an earlier live (or in-person) auction.

Julie Marinucci - Deputy Director of St. Louis County Land and Minerals shared:

"We went into this sale with so many unknowns.  This was our first full offering online. Add in the uncertainty in the economy, and it was anybody's guess how this would turn out. So to see these results, which are better than we see in our traditional in-person, live auctions, is simply amazing. And it's good news for all St. Louis County taxpayers because with these properties being returned to private ownership, we've just increased the County's property tax base by that much more."

Properties not sold during the even on June 11 will still be available on a first come-first served basis through the St. Louis County Land and Minerals department.  They've been added to the catalog of properties currently for sale - numbering almost 200 at the present time.  Click here to get more details.

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