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The author begins the preface of the revised second edition by recounting his personal experience with the tax lien process. He explains that after paying off his mortgage, he discovered that his property taxes were going to auction as part of a tax lien sale. This came as a shock to him as he had not received any notification or understood the process. He had to quickly send a cashier’s check to prevent his taxes from being auctioned off.

The author reflects on the factors that led to this situation. He had not realized that he should have been receiving tax statements each year, even though the mortgage company was handling the payments through an escrow account. The address on file was incorrect, and the tax statements were being returned as undeliverable. The county did not make any effort to track down the owner and simply expected the owner to pay, regardless of whether they received a statement.

The author also questions why the tax lien was sold so quickly after nonpayment. He discovered that the county recorded him as delinquent for two years, even though it had only been one annual payment missed for a few months. Under their rules, the taxes charged for the current year were actually for the previous year. This meant that he was recorded as not paying for the previous year, and when January came, he also owed for the current year. This interpretation of the rules allowed the county to sell the tax lien quickly.

Despite the distressing situation, the author discovered the “profit from tax liens” industry and made attempts to become involved in it. However, he found little success due to the lack of detailed information in the popular internet course he purchased. He mentions that his positive credit rating remained intact, as Maricopa County in Arizona did not report delinquency to credit rating agencies. This policy may not apply to other jurisdictions.

The first edition of the book was already a thorough reference work, but the author decided to address any criticism and make revisions for the second edition. One major revision was adding website addresses for county treasury departments that handle tax lien and tax deed sales. The author acknowledges that some of the information might be out of date, but the majority of references should be usable. The author personally viewed each of the listed sites for current relevance.

The final chapter of the book was added in response to readers’ comments that it lacked a step-by-step action plan. The author provides a general framework for participating in tax lien and tax deed auctions, which can be easily adapted to local regulations.

In conclusion, the author shares his personal experience with the tax lien process and how it led him to discover the “profit from tax liens” industry. The second edition of the book addresses any criticisms and includes website addresses for relevant county treasury departments. It also provides a step-by-step action plan for participating in tax lien and tax deed auctions.

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