Florida Statute 197.582 does allow surplus funds from a tax deed sale to be disbursed to valid lienholders before any remaining funds are paid to the former owner/titleholder. The statute also specifically references payment of tax certificates not incorporated in the tax deed application and omitted taxes before surplus is paid to nongovernmental claimants.

That said, whether a particular tax certificate holder can recover from surplus depends on the certificate’s status, whether it was part of the tax deed application, the clerk’s claim process, lien priority, and whether a timely claim is filed. Non-owner claimants generally must file within 120 days of the notice, or the claim may be barred. This should be confirmed with the county clerk or a Florida attorney for the specific file.

Hi Russell.

Actually it is a tricky issue, because depending in how the tax deed plaintiff and/or the court managed the civil procedure, you may find your funds within the surplus or within the final judgment ammount

Tax deed sales are generally initiated based upon the accumulation of delinquent tax certificates, including subsequent certificates, which are typically incorporated into the final tax deed calculation and satisfied from the sale proceeds prior to any surplus distribution.

Accordingly, if a certificate was already included within the tax deed file and redeemed through the tax deed sale proceeds, there would generally be no additional amount due from surplus funds for that certificate since it was covered by the judgement itself.

As a certificate holder you should review the Clerk’s tax deed records and distribution records to determine whether your certificate was included in the tax deed application, redeemed, cancelled, satisfied, or otherwise addressed through the tax deed sale process.

Good luck!