County’s first 2020 tax auction Thursday morning at arena

Prospective bidders will have their first chance to acquire tax-delinquent Luzerne County properties this year in an auction that kicks off at 10 a.m. Thursday inside the Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township.

More than 500 properties were eligible for sale on the eve of the auction, according to county tax-claim operator Elite Revenue Solutions LLC.

With more than 3,800 parcels initially headed to the auction in June, the list was dramatically reduced as property owners paid or obtained removal through court orders, installment repayment plans or bankruptcy filings, the company said.

“That is a much better situation than we’ve been in the last few years, when sales started with over 600 parcels,” said Elite representative Sean Shamany.

It’s a first-stage “upset” sale, which means buyers must pay all back real estate taxes and accept responsibility for any outstanding mortgages and liens.

Properties become eligible for auction if taxes have gone unpaid for two years, or dating back to at least 2018 for this sale.

Minimum bids are set to cover all real estate taxes owed through 2019, the estimated 2020 taxes due and transfer tax.

As always, Shamany cautioned buyers to make sure they fully research outstanding liens attached to properties before they bid so they are not blindsided — a point that will be emphasized at the start of the auction.

Registration to bid for this auction is now closed, and more than 400 people are signed up. It’s unlikely that hundreds will attend, especially now that some lower-bid properties with few or no liens have been removed, officials said.

The former Stanton Lanes bowling alley in Wilkes-Barre is among the big-ticket commercial properties still listed in the auction as of Wednesday night.

Bids for the 5.34-acre property at 470 Stanton Street start at $162,656.

Assessed at $800,000, the longtime recreational facility abruptly shut down in 2018, according to published reports.

Also still on the list Wednesday night were two parcels containing part of the All-Pro auto dealership complex along Airport Road in Hazle Township.

Fiscal and legal issues involving the dealership have been publicly reported. The two properties also are listed in an upcoming October sheriff sale due to an outstanding mortgage, Elite said.

A 9.27-acre parcel owned by All-Pro Airport Rd K/HY 2 LLC is assessed at $4.1 million and listed at a starting bid of $374,031. The second parcel, which appears on county GIS maps to be a road cutting through the property, is assessed at $10,000 and listed at a $17,997 starting bid, county records show.

A third parcel in the All-Pro complex assessed at $1.5 million is not listed in the tax auction because no back taxes are owed, records show.

A commercial property with two adjoining vacant properties in downtown Wilkes-Barre was removed from the sale because the owner — 649 S. Main LLC — recently filed for bankruptcy, Elite said. These parcels include a structure identified as 936 S. Main St., a parking lot and strip at the rear, GIS maps and county records show.

Safety protocols

Thursday’s sale is the first of the year because both the April and August auctions were cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The arena was selected because it is more spacious to accommodate social distancing, Shamany said. Auctions were held at the King’s College auxiliary gym in downtown Wilkes-Barre before the pandemic.

Under new rules, all auction attendees must wear a mask covering their mouth and nose at all times and remain six feet away from anyone not in their household. Due to limited resources and space, only registered bidders will be permitted to attend the auction.

Properties that don’t sell at the September auction will advance to a more popular free-and-clear sale in 2021, when all liens and delinquent taxes are forgiven unless bidding competition drives up the purchase price to cover some or all of that debt.

Because this year’s main Aug. 13 free-and-clear auction was not held, those properties will be added to a special auction held Nov. 5.

Information on the auctions is available at luzernecountytaxclaim.com.