A California company was the high bidder at Duchesne County's May Sale, taking the title to just over 75 percent of the parcels being sold for back taxes.
According to County Auditor Diane Feston, 918 pieces of land in Duchesne County were advertised for bid a week prior to the annual May Sale.The owners of 163 parcels of land with five years in unpaid back taxes redeemed their property prior to the sale. Many other parcels were exempted from the sale following last-minute bankruptcy filings, and a few were withheld from the sale due to IRS liens. That left just 580 parcels that actually made it to the sale last Thursday, said Freston.
A Stockton, Calif., couple, Sandi and Dante Perano, purchased 449 of the available parcels for their Keogh Profit Sharing Co. According to County Treasurer Colleen Madsen, with back taxes, penalties and interest the price tag on the 449 parcels totaled $153,880.
Twenty-nine of the remaining 131 parcels went to Jim Grant, Duchesne, for $25,000. The rest went to individuals and seven parcels were returned to the county when no bids were offered.