Tax sale information

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2023 Tax Sale will be held at 10am on September 25, 2023 at Council Chambers, 1435 Water Street.

The following notes are intended to provide a general outline of the tax sale process. For more information about the annual sale of properties, read the information below or consult the Local Government Act, in particular (but not limited to) Sections 645 to 672.

  • The City is required by the Local Government Act to sell at Tax Sale all properties whose taxes have not been paid for three (3) years
  • The Local Government Act gives the Collector authority to sell a property for the upset price, which equals all outstanding taxes, penalties and interest, plus five per cent (5%) tax sale costs and Land Title Office fees
  • All property sales are "as is" without warranty or guarantee by the City of Kelowna
  • Registration required for bidders, desk opens at 9 am.
  • Requirement to adhere to all BC Provincial Health Officer orders pursuant to the Public Health Act (BC)

2023 Tax Sale List will be advertised in the Daily Courier on September 8th and September 15th, 2023 as per legislated requirements.

There will be no 2023 Tax Sale. 

Local Government Act

Advertising
  • The Local Government Act requires municipalities to advertise in two issues of a local paper. The second advertisement must be no less than three, or more than 10 days prior to the Tax Sale
  • The legal description and street address must be published
  • To avoid your property being listed in this ad in the newspaper, your delinquent taxes must be paid approximately three weeks prior to the Tax Sale date
Tax Sale
  • A public auction will be held at 10 a.m. on the last Monday in September each year for each property with delinquent taxes
  • Prospective bidders are advised to research the property in advance
  • The minimum bid is the amount of the Upset Price
  • If no bidding takes place within three calls by the Collector (auctioneer), the City is declared the purchaser at the Upset Price
Purchasing a property
  • The highest bid will be recorded
  • The successful bidder is required to have their social insurance number or business number if the bid is on behalf of a company
  • Payment is to be in the form of guaranteed funds (cash, certified cheque or bank draft) for the full bid amount
  • The payment must be received by 12:30 p.m. on the day of the Tax Sale
  • At 12:45 the day of the auction we will either adjourn or close the auction
  • If the highest bidder does not pay by 12:30 p.m. we will conduct another auction the next day at 10 am
  • NOTE: It’s recommended to make arrangements with your financial institution to ensure you can provide guaranteed funds by the deadline
Notifying charge holders

The Collector is required by law to complete a title search on any property sold at Tax Sale and, within 90 days after Tax Sale, notify all registered charge holders shown on each property.

Redemption
  • The original owner has one year after the property is sold at Tax Sale to pay the taxes and fees and buy back their property. This is called redemption.
  • All registered charge holders have full right to redeem the property
  • To redeem the property, the charge holder must remit the full upset price, plus interest on the purchase price at a rate set by the Province, within one year of the Tax Sale
  • If the property has been sold at Tax Sale and the City has been declared the purchaser, 50 per cent of the upset price, plus interest, may be paid as an instalment, thus extending the redemption period by 11 months and 21 days. This applies only to property having improvements.
  • If the property is redeemed, the Collector will refund to the Tax Sale purchaser the purchase price, plus interest to the date of redemption
  • For information regarding rights during redemption period, please see the Local Government Act - Section 665
Property not redeemed
  • If the property isn’t redeemed during the one-year period, the Collector registers the new owner at the provincial Land Titles Office, thus cancelling all previous registered charges, except for those matters set out in Section 276(1) (c) to (g) of the Land Title Act and any lien of the Crown, an improvement district or a local district.
  • The new owners are required to pay the property transfer tax to the Provincial Sales Tax Administrator after application has been made to register in the Land Titles Office