Going, going, gone … and back on the tax rolls for Schuylkill County.

At a judicial sale held Jan. 4, 42 parcels were sold. During January the county’s Tax Claim Bureau also oversaw 13 repository sales and 17 private sales. All 72 properties were ripe for the picking due to unpaid real estate tax bills.

During a meeting Tuesday, on the recommendation of Tax Claim Bureau Director Angela Toomey, the Schuylkill County Commissioners approved all the sales.

After the meeting, Commissioners’ Chairman George Halcovage said that Toomey and other officials from the Tax Claim Bureau are working hard to make such sales happen more often. Getting delinquent tax properties to new owners and back on the tax rolls is an important tool in the fight against blight, he said.

Of the 17 private sale bids, five are within the Times News coverage area: In Schuylkill Township, 1007 Catawissa St. ($2,283), 149 School St. ($2,160) and 313 Valley St. ($1,279) were purchased by Francis Devizia, no address given. In Tamaqua, 235 Brown St. was purchased by Lissette Cires ($3,631), and 200 W. Cottage Ave. was purchased by Danielle Billetz-Reppert ($3,670).

The 13 repository sales ranged in successful bid amounts from $1 to $1,329; eight of the properties were in Mahanoy City and Ashland. There were 42 properties which changed hands at a judicial sale with a range of $929 to $14,000 in price. Gehringer Realty Inc. of Allentown purchased 18 of the properties, and Reizu Realty Co. of Pottsville purchased six.

What’s the difference in the types of sale? Private sales are buyer beware, as properties sold are subject to all liens and encumbrances. In a judicial sale, the properties are “free and clear” of liens and encumbrances, which must be proven by title search, a petition presented to the Court of Common Pleas and Sheriff’s service on all owners and lien holders.

A repository sale is for a property which remained unsold at judicial sale. A repository property may be sold by the Tax Claim Bureau any time the agency receives and approves a bid; but the county, as well as the municipality and school district for the property, have an opportunity to object to the sale. The repository sale is known as the “bargain basement” of Tax Claim Bureau sales.

In other action, the commissioners approved a grant application for Mental Health & Development Services, requested by County Administrator Gary Bender. The grant is for $350,000 over two years through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. Bender said that there are no matching funds required from the county. The filing deadline for the grant is Feb. 7.

The commissioners also approved Treasurer Linda L. Marchalk’s report for December 2018.

The ending balance for the county General Fund was $18.9 million; for other county funds, $21.7 million; $4.9 million for county agencies; $435,921 for worker comp; for a total ending balance of $45.7 million.

For December, real estate taxes collected equaled $518,604. Other revenue came from magistrate fees ($40,458), hotel tax commissions ($1,487) and hotel tax ($35,695).