R. M. Investors Corp. v. Maggi

104 Misc. 2d 41, 427 N.Y.S.2d 919, 1980 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2390
CourtNew York County Courts
DecidedMay 5, 1980
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 104 Misc. 2d 41 (R. M. Investors Corp. v. Maggi) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York County Courts primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
R. M. Investors Corp. v. Maggi, 104 Misc. 2d 41, 427 N.Y.S.2d 919, 1980 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2390 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1980).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

Harry Edelstein, J.

The underlying action is maintained by plaintiff, R. M. Investors Corp., to quiet title to certain real property located at Stony Point, New York. The plaintiff claims title to the property pursuant to a tax deed issued to it by the County of Rockland on April 5, 1979. Defendant and third-party plaintiff, Carlo Maggi, has instituted a third-party action against Joseph T. St. Lawrence, Treasurer of the County of Rockland, and Roy Moskoff, individually. This third-party action is brought pursuant to article 14 of the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law and seeks an order setting aside County Resolution No. 167 in which the legislature of Rockland [43]*43County voted to reject defendant’s offer of redemption and to issue a deed to the plaintiff corporation. In addition, the third-party action seeks an order directing Moskoff to pay rent of $800 per month for each month that he has occupied the premises in question. Plaintiff, R M. Investors Corp., moves for summary judgment on the question of its title to the property purchased at the auction. Carlo Maggi, the defendant, opposes plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment and cross-moves for summary judgment on his third-party complaint seeking an order setting aside the deed to R. M. Investors Corp.

The facts of the case appear to be as follows: Defendant and third-party plaintiff alleges that he acquired equitable title to the subject property as the sole survivor of Ernestina Maggi, his mother, who died in January, 1972. Ernestina Maggi acquired title to the property pursuant to the last will of her husband, Joseph Maggi, in 1958. Joseph Maggi, the original owner, acquired title to the property on March 23, 1938, at which time he filed the deed in the office of the Clerk of the County of Rockland. At all times relative to this proceeding, the property remained listed on the assessment rolls of the county in the name of Joseph Maggi and no deed to either Ernestina Maggi or Carlo Maggi, the defendant herein, appears ever to have been recorded in the office of the County Clerk. On October 23, 1974, the County of Rockland purchased a tax lien certificate at the sale of the subject property for delinquent taxes due for the year 1974. Thereafter, the county bought tax lien certificates for the property, for unpaid taxes, at annual tax sales held for the years 1975, 1976, 1977, and 1978. Not until March 30 of 1979 was a deed issued to the county for the property in question. On March 13, 1979, the county conducted a public auction of the property pursuant to County Resolution No. 268 of 1978 which authorizes the County Treasurer of Rockland County to hold public auctions, "for the sale of County owned property acquired for delinquent taxes * * * resolved that the Treasurer of the County of Rockland shall proceed to tax sale of any parcel of County-owned property acquired for delinquent taxes as expeditiously as possible and shall report back to the Budget and Finance Committee of the Legislature in no more than nine days from the date thereof.” It shold be noted that one year from the date of the original tax sale to the county in October, 1974, the county had the right, pursuant to section 1018 of the Real Property Tax Law to acquire the property by deed from the [44]*44County Treasurer, to sell the property for delinquent taxes, and thus place the property back on the tax rolls. The court has been informed by the County Treasurer that there was a moratorium in Rockland County on the sale of property purchased for delinquent taxes. This moratorium terminated in the year 1979. The purpose of the moratorium was to provide an informal means by which delinquent taxpayers could obtain additional time in which to redeem their property. During this five-year period the defendant alleges that he never received notice of delinquent taxes, of his right to redeem or of the notice of sale. These allegations by defendant remain uncontradicted by plaintiff and third-party defendant. On March 13, 1979, the county conducted an auction, at which time R. M. Investors Corp., by its alleged agent, Roy Moskoff, submitted a bid for the property in question. The plaintiff appears to have been the only bidder at the auction, and the bid submitted of $10,294 was equal to the unpaid taxes plus interest and penalties. At the time of the auction and on the date the plaintiff submitted its bid for the property, March 13, 1979, R. M. Investors Corp. had not yet filed a certificate of incorporation, together with the requisite fees, with the Secretary of State of the State of New York, which certificate was subsequently filed on March 27, 1979. On March 29, 1979, after the auction, but prior to the issuance of the deed to the plaintiff, the defendant Maggi, by his attorney tendered a check to the Treasurer of Rockland County in the amount of $10,294, together with a letter seeking redemption of the tax lien against the property. At a meeting held on April 3, 1979, the legislature considered defendant’s offer of redemption as well as the plaintiff’s bid at the auction and voted to reject the defendant’s offer of redemption and to issue a tax deed to the plaintiff. The decision of the legislature was announced pursuant to the Resolution No. 167 of 1979.

Defendant and third-party plaintiff Maggi argues that the deed to plaintiff R. M. Investors Corp. should be set aside for the following reasons: (1) that the treasurer acted without legal authority in auctioning the property in question before the deed was issued to the county. The county claims that on October 23, 1975, a deed could have been acquired; that the county failed to perform this "purely ministerial act” does not effect the county’s title to the property at the time in question; (2) that Resolution No. 268 of 1978 applies only to property already owned by the county at the time the resolu[45]*45tian was passed, and does not operate prospectively. Inasmuch as the county did not acquire a deed until March, 1979, the resolution does not authorize the sale to plaintiff; and (3) that the sale of the property for one sixth its market value violates section 1 of article VIII of the New York State Constitution. The county contends that the sole purpose of the sale was to recoup delinquent taxes and as such, the county was under no duty to sell the property for a sum greater than this amount; (4) that the county was without authority to issue a deed to the plaintiff in that the bid was made by Roy Moskoff, acting individually. Plaintiff contends that the successful bid placed by Roy Moskoff entitled the county to transfer the property by deed "to any person or entity or being Roy Moskoff selects”; (5) that Resolution No. 167 of 1979 is unconstitutionally arbitrary and unreasonable and thus, violative of defendant’s due process rights. The county fails to address this argument except to say that the county was under no legal obligation to accept defendant’s offer of redemption after the statutory period had expired.

The court holds that the deed issued to R. M. Investors Corp. should be set aside and that title shall revest in the County of Rockland subject to any jurisdictional defects which can be proven by the defendant.

Section 1018 of the Real Property Tax Law dictates the procedure by which the County Treasurer may dispose of property acquired by the county for the nonpayment of taxes:

"1.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
104 Misc. 2d 41, 427 N.Y.S.2d 919, 1980 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2390, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/r-m-investors-corp-v-maggi-nycountyct-1980.