Tax Sales

If property taxes remain unpaid for two years on a vacant or improved land, the City of Cornwall will register a Tax Arrears Certificate on the property's title. This certificate gives you one year to pay all outstanding taxes, penalties, interest, and City costs. If the full amount is not paid within that year, we sell the property to recover the debt through a public tender process.

Current tax sales

We advertise tax sales on our website and in local print media.

Before tendering

Before you submit your tender, note that we sell all properties "as is." This means you are fully responsible for researching the property before you bid. We do not guarantee its value, its condition or its suitability for your needs. Please be aware that we cannot provide access for property tours, and we do not hold keys. The property may be occupied at the time of sale, and we cannot guarantee vacant possession.

It is your responsibility to conduct all necessary due diligence, including investigations into zoning, work orders, building restrictions, title searches, easements, environmental conditions and physical access to the land.

Research contacts:

Zoning and planning: Planning Services, 100 Water St E., 2nd Floor or call 613-937-2787 ext. 2312
Work orders: Building Permits and Bylaw, 100 Water St E., 2nd Floor or call 613-937-2787 ext. 2323
Title searches: Stormont Land Registry Office, 720 14th St W, Unit 2

The Sale Process

The highest bidder wins the right to purchase the property.
The City is not obligated to achieve fair market value.
Only the two highest bids are kept. If the highest bidder fails to pay, the second-highest gets the opportunity.

Submitting your tender

Please mail your completed Tender to Purchase Form and deposit in the envelope to:

Treasurer
City of Cornwall
360 Pitt St
Cornwall ON K6H 5T9

We must receive your submission at the Treasurer's office by 3:00 pm of the closing date. Please note we do not accept faxed, emailed, or late submissions. Make sure to mark the front of your envelope with: "Tax Sale for [Property Address/Brief Description]".

Sample tender

To:

Name: City of Cornwall

Address: 360 Pitt St, Cornwall ON K6H 5T9

613-930-2787 ext. 2315

Re: Sale of: Description of Property inserted here

I/we hereby tender to purchase the land described above for the amount of $XXX.00 (XXX dollars) in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Municipal Act, 2001 and the Municipal Tax Sales Rules.

I/we understand that this tender must be received by the Treasurer’s office not later than 3:00 pm local time on (insert date here) and that in the event of this tender being accepted, I/we shall be notified of its acceptance.

I/we enclose a deposit in the form of a certified cheque/bank draft/money order for the sum of $XXX.00 (XXX dollars) in favour of the City of Cornwall representing 20% or more of the tendered amount which will be forfeited if I/we are the successful tenderer(s) and I/we do not pay the balance of the tendered amount, any land transfer tax and any accumulated taxes within 14 days of notification that I/we are the highest tenderer.

This tender is submitted pursuant to the Municipal Act, 2001 and the Municipal Tax Sales Rules.

Dated at Cornwall, ON, this xx th day of xxxxx , 20__.

Name of tenderer, address of tenderer

Tender Envelope Information

After submission

After the submission deadline, the Treasurer will publicly open all bids. In the event of two identical bids, the one that was received first will be considered the higher bid. The bidder who submits the highest tender will then have 14 days to pay the remaining balance of their bid, along with the applicable land transfer tax and any accumulated taxes.

Should this highest bidder fail to make the full payment within the 14-day period, they will forfeit their deposit. At that point, we will offer the opportunity to purchase to the second-highest bidder, who will also have 14 days to complete the transaction. We return all deposits to other unsuccessful bidders in full.

Withdrawing a bid

To withdraw your bid, you must submit a written request to the Treasurer before 3:00 PM on the tender deadline. Your deposit will be returned.

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