The County of Los Angeles sells properties for which property taxes have not been paid: 3 years or more for non-residential properties, and 5 or more years for residential properties. The auctions are open to the public, and take place once or twice a year. A large number of properties are typically made available - over 3,000 at the most recent Auction 2012A held in October 2012.

This sums up both the challenge and the opportunity. There are buried diamonds here, but finding these is another matter entirely. Prior to the Apex-Austin L.A. County Enhanced Tax Sales Catalogs, discovery...