Background

In order to manage the cash flow of the escheated lots sale, Sarasota County established a separate fund, or account, specifically for that purpose. The Board of County Commissioners took action on April 13 to create the fund, stipulating that a starting balance of $800,000 be transferred from the general Fund (upon completion of the escheated lots sales, the general fund will be reimbursed this amount from the county’s share of the sales proceeds.) These dollars were placed in the specified fund to support anticipated expenses incurred by the county prior to any lot sale transactions. You can click on the links below to view the escheated lot fund.  

Process

Pursuant to the Interlocal Agreement between the city of North Port and Sarasota County that was approved by both Board of Commissioners on Dec. 7, 2004, 55 percent of the net sales revenue from the escheated lots sales will be distributed to the city of North Port and Sarasota County will receive 45 percent of the net sales revenue.

The decision to distribute net sales proceeds rather than gross sales proceeds was based on stipulations in the Interlocal Agreement specifying that certain deductions should occur prior to distribution of the proceeds to the city of North Port and Sarasota County. In calculating the net proceeds, all costs relating to the closing process will be deducted prior to either government receiving the sales proceeds from any parcels. After deducting closing costs, Sarasota County is entitled to subtract the sum it has expended and tax monies lost in connection with the lots, up to a total of $800,000.  This will include the amount of lost tax revenue for the parcels from the time they were escheated through Dec. 31, and appraisal costs incurred by the county. The net amount remaining will be disbursed according to 55/45 percent allocation.

Reporting of Financial Data

The process of managing the cash flow of the escheated lots sale will be as transparent as possible. As part of that process, periodic updates (the timing of which will depend on the timing and amount of closing transactions) will be made to this Web site, showing all debits and credits as well as the current balance of the specified escheated lot fund under the Financial Status link. As sales occur, detailed sales data will be displayed along with a list of associated parcel ID numbers.

Contact Information

Direct any questions or inquiries regarding the financial management of the escheated lots sale to Fiscal Planning and Systems General Manager Jeff Seward at (941) 861-5422 or e-mail jseward@scgov.net.