Occasionally there are properties located in rural areas that are brought to our attention, usually by neighbors or community members, that we would not seek to acquire through our usual processes. The potential end-user must fill out our Purchaser Qualification Form and an Application to Acquire Property so they may be qualified as an approved applicant per our ordinary process. If the property is determined to meet our acquisition criteria, the qualified applicant may choose to engage our Rural Acquisition (or “Pay-in-advance”) program.
The property must be accepted by our Board of Directors as a Land Bank project. The qualified applicant will enter a contract with the Athens County Land Bank and will pay a refundable deposit to cover the cost of the foreclosure. The deposit amount often varies due to several factors surrounding the foreclosure. The sales agreement will also include an agreed-upon purchase price for the property. The foreclosure will then be facilitated by a private attorney.
At the end of the foreclosure process, the property will likely need to go through two sheriff sales. If the initial qualified applicant chooses to bid on the property at sheriff sale and wins, the funds paid-in-advance are refunded to them at the end of the process. If another buyer bids on the property at sheriff sale and wins, the funds paid-in-advance are refunded to the initial qualified applicant. If nobody purchases the property at sheriff sale, it will be transferred to the Athens County Auditor’s forfeited lands list from which we petition to claim the property. The property would then be listed on our Properties page.
At this point, other qualified applicants may apply for the property. If there are two or more qualified applicants, the Board of Directors may vote to dispose the property to the applicant with the best end-use. If a different end-user is chosen by the Board of Directors, the initial qualified applicant is refunded the funds paid-in-advance. If there are several qualified applicants, the Board of Directors may choose to have them submit sealed bids with the minimum bid amount being the initially agreed-upon purchase price. If the initial qualified applicant is outbid, they will be refunded the funds paid-in-advance.
If the initial qualified applicant is the final end-user, they will not be refunded the pay-in-advance amount and will proceed to purchase the property for a) the initially agreed-upon purchase price or b) their winning bid amount should the property have been put up for sealed bids by the Board of Directors.
