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you split it up between owners. Take, for example, a property that sits on quite a bit of land. One owner could get the house with a small amount of land while the two other owners share the balance of the undeveloped land. In this situation, each owner ends up with his or her separate piece of land and he or she can pay the real estate taxes that are due for that particular remaining property.

If you end up with your own separate piece of the pie coming from a larger property, you can pay the taxes on your share. In some cases, some jurisdictions could even allow you to pay the back taxes for prior years on the part of the property that you end up owning. If you are able to pay the unpaid taxes from the larger share of the taxes and allocate them to the property that you end up owning after the split up, you could end up avoiding any tax sale from prior years and control your destiny going forward.

For more information on real estate taxes where you live, you can start by determining if your local taxing authority has a website that gives useful information on delinquent tax payments and issues that may relate to your situation. You should also call them and discuss your situation and your options.

Ilyce R. Glink’s latest book is “Buy, Close, Move In!” If you have questions, you can call her radio show toll-free (800-972-8255) any Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. EST. Contact Glink through her website, www.thinkglink.com.