Foreclosure of Tax Liens Pursuant to Section 75.521 Wisconsin Statutes Ex Rel. Waukesha County v. Young

309 N.W.2d 339, 103 Wis. 2d 515, 1981 Wisc. App. LEXIS 3332
CourtCourt of Appeals of Wisconsin
DecidedMay 12, 1981
Docket80-1513
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 309 N.W.2d 339 (Foreclosure of Tax Liens Pursuant to Section 75.521 Wisconsin Statutes Ex Rel. Waukesha County v. Young) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Wisconsin primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Foreclosure of Tax Liens Pursuant to Section 75.521 Wisconsin Statutes Ex Rel. Waukesha County v. Young, 309 N.W.2d 339, 103 Wis. 2d 515, 1981 Wisc. App. LEXIS 3332 (Wis. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

SCOTT, J.

Richard Young appeals from an order dismissing his motion to vacate a judgment which fore *516 closed a tax lien on a particular parcel of land. He argues that the judgment is entirely void because Waukesha County failed to give a certain Hilaria Reischl notice of the pending foreclosure action. We hold that the lack of notice to Reischl did not invalidate the judgment as to Young, and, accordingly, we affirm.

The facts are undisputed. Many were stipulated. At all times relevant to this action, a Waukesha County ordinance was in effect which adopted sec. 75.521, Stats., as the procedure for enforcing tax liens. On February 17, 1978, the County commenced an in rem action under that statute to foreclose its tax liens on certain real estate parcels for delinquent 1973 real estate taxes. The County commenced the action by filing a list of the parcels with the circuit court clerk. Young possessed an interest in one of the parcels as a land contract vendee. The land contract vendor was Hilaria Reischl. The land contract was executed on August 21, 1972 and recorded on August 22, 1972. The contract provided that Young would purchase the parcel for $5,000 at five percent per annum and that the unpaid balance as of the contract date was $3,400. The contract also provided:

The Purchaser covenants and agrees as follows:

1. To pay before they become delinquent all taxes and assessments, now or hereafter assessed or levied against and on the real estate described in this contract and to deliver to the Vendor receipts evidencing due payment thereof.
In case any such taxes or assessments remain unpaid after they become delinquent, . . . the Vendor may cure such defaults, and all sums so paid shall immediately be repaid to the Vendor and shall, unless so repaid, be added to and deemed part of the purchase price, and bear interest at the rate aforesaid.

In an affidavit filed in the present action, the Wau-kesha county treasurer stated that her duties included *517 giving notice to parties regarding tax foreclosure sales. She stated that a delinquency in taxes for the years 1973 through 1977 inclusive arose as to the parcel described in the land contract. She further stated that she requested and received a report on the parcel from a title insurance company. The company’s report, dated December 19, 1977, informed her that title to the parcel was vested in Young as land contract vendee, that there were no outstanding mortgages of record and that two small claims judgments were docketed against Young in favor of a certain Louis Ascher.

The list of tax liens that the County filed on February 17, 1978, pursuant to sec. 75.521(3) (a), Stats., to commence the foreclosure action contained only Young’s and Ascher’s names as the last owners and mortgagees of the parcel in question. The list did not contain Reischl’s name. Further, the list of tax liens and the foreclosure petition that were posted at the county treasurer’s office and published pursuant to sec. 75.521(6), Stats., as a class 3 notice on February 16, February 23 and March 2 similarly contained only Young’s and Ascher’s names. Finally, the list of tax liens and the foreclosure petition that were sent by registered mail to each owner and mortgagee of record pursuant to sec. 75.521(3) (c), Stats., were mailed only to Young and Ascher and not to Reischl. Each of these notices fixed April 13, 1978 as the final redemption date. The County made no attempt to discover the identity of the land contract vendor, Reischl, for the purpose of sending her a notice of the pending foreclosure action.

In mailing a copy of the list of tax liens and the foreclosure petition to Young, the county treasurer used Young’s last known address as obtained from his 1977 tax bill. The notice was sent by registered mail, return receipt requested, on February 16, 1978. The notice was returned by the post office and stamped “Not Deliverable as Addressed. No Forwarding Order on File.”

*518 On May 10, 1978, the trial court granted judgment vesting the County with an estate in fee simple absolute in the parcel in question and foreclosing any interest or equity of redemption that any person may have had in the parcel. After the entry of judgment, the County sold the property to Howard or Marion Kaufmann on February 13, 1979. The Kaufmanns paid the County $8,-500, plus the 1978 real estate taxes of $128.

On November 9, 1979, Young moved the trial court to vacate the May 10, 1978 judgment. He contended the judgment was void because the County had failed to notify Reischl of the pending foreclosure action.

In support of his motion, Young submitted an affidavit in which he stated that as of December 20, 1979, he had paid $3,200 of the principal balance on the land contract, that his semiannual interest payments were current and that he and Reischl had entered into an oral agreement whereby there was no final date by which he had to pay the principal balance. He stated that after he entered into the land contract in 1972, he never received a real estate tax bill or notice of a tax deliquency for the parcel in question. He stated that because he never received a tax bill, he assumed he did not have to pay the taxes. He further stated that he had sufficient income each year to pay any taxes and that if he had received a tax bill or notice of a tax delinquency, he would have immediately paid all delinquent taxes.

Young further stated that he first learned of the foreclosure action in late February or early March of 1979. He stated that on the same date he learned this, he met with the county treasurer and corporation counsel in an effort to pay the delinquent taxes and regain his interest in the property. He stated he met repeatedly with the corporation counsel during the next several months and that he was assured the property would be returned. He stated he then presented a $700 check but was informed that the property could not be returned.

*519 Reischl, too, submitted an affidavit. Her statements corroborated Young’s statements regarding the terms and outstanding balance of the land contract. She stated that between 1972 and March 1979, she never received any notice that the taxes had not been paid. She further stated that if she had known of 'a tax delinquency, she would have contacted Young or, if unable to contact him, she would have paid all delinquent taxes. She stated that she never executed a warranty deed transferring the property title to Young.

The trial court dismissed Young’s motion to vacate the foreclosure judgment. The court concluded that the County should have given notice to Reischl but that the County’s failure to do so did not invalidate the judgment as to Young. The court also ruled, “The motion to vacate the judgment having been made more than a year after entry must be deemed untimely made.” We agree with the trial court in all respects, except we disagree that the motion was untimely made merely because it was made more than one year after the entry of judgment.

TIMELINESS OF MOTION TO VACATE JUDGMENT

Section 806.07, Stats., provides:

806.07 Relief from judgment or order.

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309 N.W.2d 339, 103 Wis. 2d 515, 1981 Wisc. App. LEXIS 3332, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/foreclosure-of-tax-liens-pursuant-to-section-75521-wisconsin-statutes-ex-wisctapp-1981.