Broker & REALTOR®
Wendy Brown
A Florida native who came to real estate through nursing and investing — and who wants every client to feel like the only client.
More about Wendy →
New Book
The Florida Tax Deed Playbook
Smart Strategies for Building Wealth — Buy smart. Bid with confidence. Build wealth through Florida tax deeds.
What is The Florida Tax Deed Playbook?
A start-to-finish guide to buying property at Florida tax deed auctions, written by two licensed Florida real estate brokers who research parcels, attend the auctions, and help investors buy and sell tax deed property.
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Every year, properties across Florida's 67 counties are sold at public auction to recover unpaid property taxes. Most people never learn how it works. The investors who do find opportunities sitting in plain sight, in county records anyone can access.
A start-to-finish guide to buying property at Florida tax deed auctions, written by two licensed Florida real estate brokers who research parcels, attend the auctions, and help investors from across the country buy and sell tax deed property.
This isn't theory or a get-rich-quick pitch. It's the practical roadmap Wendy and Taylor built through years of driving back roads, pulling county records, and learning what actually separates a bargain from an expensive mistake.
Tax deed investing isn't about buying the cheapest property. It's about making the smartest decision.
With Every Copy
A Free 30-Minute Consultation
Buy the book and get half an hour with the authors — no charge, no obligation, no pitch.
Bring a parcel you are watching, a county you are trying to make sense of, or an auction you are thinking about sitting in on. Wendy and Taylor will tell you what they would check before bidding, and what would make them walk away.
Already bought it? Book a time and mention your order when you do — that is all we need.
Inside the Book
What You'll Learn
- Understand Florida's two-step system, from tax certificate to tax deed under Chapter 197
- Find upcoming auctions through the Clerk of the Circuit Court in any Florida county
- Research a parcel before you bid: GIS mapping, zoning, flood zones, wetlands, legal access, HOA and POA obligations
- Know which liens are extinguished at sale, and which ones survive to become your problem
- Filter a list of hundreds of properties down to the few worth real attention
- Use proxy bidding and set a maximum bid you'll actually stick to
- Weigh the real benefits and the hidden pitfalls of buying vacant land
- Handle everything after you win: paperwork, deadlines, and next steps
- Choose between tax deed certification and a quiet title action to reach marketable title
- Prepare, market, and resell your property for profit
- Avoid the mistakes that cost new investors money
- Budget accurately for every cost, from bidder deposits to closing
- Build a long-term strategy instead of chasing one-off deals
Not Just Reading
Tools You Can Use at Your Next Auction
The book includes worksheets and checklists built for actual use, not appendices you skim once.
- Pre-Auction Property Evaluation Worksheet
- Post-Auction Action Plan
- Tax Deed Investment Tracker
- Due diligence checklists
- Process flowcharts
Real "From the Field" notes from both authors run throughout — the auctions they have sat through, the parcels they walked away from, and why.
Who It Is For
Written for curious first-timers, land investors, and real estate professionals who want to add tax deeds to what they already do. No prior auction experience required.
If you already invest in land, it fills in the part of the market most investors skip. If you are a working agent or broker, it is a service you can offer clients who keep asking about auctions. And if you have simply watched a parcel go for a fraction of its value and wondered how, it explains what you were looking at.
The Authors
Written by Two Working Florida Brokers
Broker / Owner
Taylor Hodges
Three decades as a pastor before real estate — listen first, tell the truth, and never rush anyone toward a decision they are not ready to make.
More about Taylor →This is not a course being sold by someone who has never bid. Wendy and Taylor research parcels, attend the sales, and help investors from across the country buy and sell tax deed property in Northeast Florida — which is also what they do for clients, if you would rather have company at your first auction.
Questions & Answers
Florida Tax Deed Questions
What is a Florida tax deed sale?
When property taxes go unpaid in Florida, the county sells a tax certificate against the parcel. If that certificate is not redeemed, the process can move to a second stage: a tax deed sale, where the property itself is auctioned publicly to recover what is owed. The two-step system is governed by Chapter 197 of the Florida Statutes, and the book walks through how one stage leads to the other.
Where do Florida tax deed auctions actually happen?
They are run at county level through the Clerk of the Circuit Court, and Florida has 67 counties each running its own. The book shows you how to find upcoming sales in any of them, which is the step most people never get past.
Do I need experience to use this book?
No. It is written for curious first-timers as much as for land investors and working real estate professionals adding tax deeds to what they already do. No prior auction experience is assumed — just patience, curiosity, and a willingness to do the research.
Do all liens disappear when you buy at a tax deed sale?
No, and this is where new investors lose money. Some claims against a property are extinguished at the sale and others survive it to become the new owner's problem. Knowing which is which before you bid is one of the things the book spends real time on.
Does a tax deed give me clear, marketable title?
Not on its own. Reaching marketable title generally means a further step, and there is more than one route — tax deed certification or a quiet title action. The book explains how the two differ so you can decide which fits your situation, and budget for it before you bid rather than after.
What comes with the book besides the chapters?
Ready-to-use tools you can take to your next auction: Pre-Auction Property Evaluation Worksheet, Post-Auction Action Plan, Tax Deed Investment Tracker, Due diligence checklists, and Process flowcharts. "From the Field" notes from both authors run throughout.
What is the difference between a tax lien and a tax deed in Florida?
A tax certificate — what people usually mean by a tax lien — is a claim against the property for the unpaid taxes. You are effectively lending the owner the money and earning interest if they redeem. A tax deed is the property itself, sold at auction after the certificate goes unredeemed. Certificates are an income play; deeds are how you end up owning real estate.
Can you really buy a house for back taxes in Florida?
Properties do sell at tax deed auction for a fraction of market value, and that is a real thing that happens. It is also how people end up with a landlocked strip of wetland they cannot build on, resell, or insure. The gap between those two outcomes is research done before the auction, which is what most of this book is about.
What happens to a mortgage when a property is sold at a tax deed sale?
Florida law treats different claims differently at a tax deed sale: some are extinguished and some survive to the new owner. Which category a particular claim falls into depends on the type of lien and on the facts of the parcel, and getting it wrong is one of the more expensive mistakes available to a new bidder. The book works through the categories; for a specific parcel, check the title work and ask a Florida attorney.
Do I need a real estate licence to bid at a tax deed auction?
No. Tax deed auctions are open to the public, and you do not need a licence to bid or to own what you win. A licence is not the barrier — knowing what you are bidding on is.
Can Beaches to River help me buy or sell tax deed property?
Yes. Wendy Brown and Taylor Hodges research parcels, attend the auctions, and help investors from across the country buy and sell tax deed property in Northeast Florida. Call 904-377-1747 or use the form on this page.
Northeast Florida
Thinking About Bidding?
We research parcels and attend these auctions. If you want a second opinion on a property before you bid, or help reselling one you have already won, start here.
- Licensed Florida brokers who buy and sell tax deed property
- Parcel research — access, zoning, flood, and what the photos do not show
- Straight answers, including when a parcel is not worth your money
This book and this page are educational. Neither is legal, tax, or investment advice, and neither substitutes for your own research or for advice from a Florida attorney on a specific parcel. Statutes, county procedures, and auction rules change. Verify current requirements with the county before you bid.
Keep Exploring
Related Reading
Investing in Northeast Florida
Land & Acreage
The Brokerage
Buy Smart. Bid With Confidence.
Get the book, or talk to the brokers who wrote it about a parcel you are watching.