The aim of county auctions is to get the property into the hands of someone financially healthy, someone who can actually pay for the upkeep of the property. Ta

The aim of county auctions is to get the property into the hands of someone financially healthy, someone who can actually pay for the upkeep of the property. Taxes are usually the last thing you stop paying because you know the county will seize the house, maintenance stops long before that. I once had the misfortune to rent from a landlord like this. They stopped paying for garbage removal, a few days later the heating broke. That was in a state where code enforcement actually had teeth, in a more tenant-hostile state I'd had had no recourse except moving out at shortest notice. Thankfully the roof held tight all the time I was there, there would have been no money for that kind of repairs. That landowner actually did "renovate" the property somewhat, they did tart up the kitchen a bit but did nothing about the sewage leak in the downstairs bathroom. No one should have patience for bankruptcy artists who go crying about "violence inherent to the system" when they can't make it, if they overextend themselves they need to go through the bankruptcy process. That's why you have interest as a risk premium. Too bad the fellow missed out in the gentrification windfall.