Data updated October 12, 2026 · Santa Cruz County, California
Santa Cruz County Delinquent Tax List (Tax-Delinquent & Tax-Defaulted Properties)
1,993 Santa Cruz County properties are behind on their property taxes — #35 of California's 58 counties and 0.5% of the statewide total. Nothing about tax delinquency is public-facing: no filing, no listing, no sign in the yard. But five years of it makes a property eligible for the county tax sale, and owners on this list disproportionately hold real equity with a cash-flow problem a sale would solve. This is the Santa Cruz County delinquent property tax list as it stands today — the county's delinquent tax roll with the owner, loan and equity records attached — not the once-a-year tax-defaulted notice.
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Sample Records
10 Real Tax-Delinquent Properties In Santa Cruz County
Ten records pulled from the database, picked from the highest AI distress scores in the county. Click a pin or a row to light it up on the map, double-click to open the same property profile subscribers see. Owner names, mailing addresses, parcel numbers, and contacts are shown in the free trial (no credit card required).
Showing: List. Switch to AI Distress Score to see how our AI ranks these ten by urgency.
| Property | Type | Value | Equity | Taxes Owed | Lien Position | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1144 PALO VERDE TER SANTA CRUZ · 1 bd / 1 ba · 960 sf | Condo | $817K | $437K54% | $47K Since 2021 | Senior | 81 |
2226 BUENA VISTA AVE SANTA CRUZ · 2 bd / 2 ba · 1,143 sf | Single Family | $1.60M | $1.60M100% | $120K Since 2019 | Senior | 67 |
3226 SURFSIDE AVE SANTA CRUZ · 3 bd / 2.5 ba · 2,416 sf | Single Family | $1.79M | $1.40M78% | $7K Since 2024 | Senior | 60 |
41800 SEASCAPE BLVD APTOS · 3 bd / 2 ba · 1,534 sf | Condo | $1.19M | $1.19M100% | $36K Since 2022 | Senior | 60 |
56904 HIGHWAY 9 FELTON · 2 bd / 1 ba · 1,524 sf | Single Family | $956K | $447K47% | $31K Since 2022 | Senior | 58 |
672 VISTA VERDE CIR WATSONVILLE · 4 bd / 4.5 ba · 2,173 sf | Single Family | $954K | $689K72% | $22K Since 2022 | Senior | 54 |
71049 38TH AVE SANTA CRUZ · 3 bd / 2 ba · 1,480 sf | Multi-Family | $2.43M | $573K24% | $140K Since 2021 | Senior | 51 |
8950 CLUBHOUSE DR APTOS · 3 bd / 2 ba · 1,577 sf | Single Family | $1.37M | $1.37M100% | $120K Since 2019 | Senior | 51 |
9189 WOODLAND DR BEN LOMOND · 2 bd / 2 ba · 1,286 sf | Single Family | $960K | $592K62% | $120K Since 2018 | Senior | 51 |
10312 SEASCAPE RESORT DR APTOS · 1 bd / 1 ba · 488 sf | Condo | $603K | $173K29% | $9K Since 2024 | Senior | 50 |
Want all 1,993 tax-delinquent properties in Santa Cruz County?
These ten are the sample. Owner names, mailing addresses, parcel numbers, lenders, trustees, one-click skip tracing, and direct mail are shown in the free trial (no credit card required).
The Profile
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The Tax Auction House
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With every property attached to a full due diligence profile — owner, liens, equity, comps, and the full recorded history — so you can vet each sale before you bid, not just track it.
Every sale date. Tax auctions and trustee sales statewide, on one calendar.
Every parcel. Auction properties linked to full records, equity, and comps.
Every contact. Trustee names, sale numbers, and phone numbers to verify.
The Full Santa Cruz County Distress Pipeline
Santa Cruz County At A Glance
Santa Cruz County is home to about 266,021 people and is tracked parcel by parcel across every city and unincorporated community inside it. Across Santa Cruz County the platform is tracking 1,993 tax-delinquent, 74 in pre-foreclosure and 56 under a notice of default.
The pressure is not spread evenly. Watsonville, Santa Cruz, Boulder Creek, Aptos and Soquel carry 78% of it between them, out of 13 communities in the county.
By ZIP, 95076, 95006, 95060 and 95003 run heaviest. Pajaro Valley Joint Unified School District and San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District contain the largest shares.
Santa Cruz County Tax Sale
California is a tax-deed state: counties don't sell lien certificates, they sell the property itself, and each county sets its own tax sale calendar rather than a statewide date. A home only reaches that sale after five years of default — and the owner can redeem it right up until it happens. That runway is the point of this page: the 1,993 properties above are the pipeline those auctions are eventually drawn from, at the stage where the owner still controls the outcome. See California tax auctions →
When the county sells: Santa Cruz County tax sale — dates, how bidding works, and every past and upcoming sale →
What's on Every Property Record
The list carries each property's delinquent amount and first delinquent year, payment activity, the owner's record and mailing address, every recorded loan, and true equity — so "behind on taxes with equity and no mortgage" is a two-filter search in this county.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many tax-delinquent properties are there in Santa Cruz County?
Properant tracks 1,993 tax-delinquent properties in Santa Cruz County as of October 12, 2026 — ranked #35 of California's 58 counties — counted from recorded county documents with releases and cancellations removed.
Why are tax-delinquent owners in Santa Cruz County considered motivated sellers?
Because delinquency compounds: penalties accrue, and after five years the county can sell the property at its tax auction. Owners with equity but no cash flow — heirs, absentee owners, owners in transition — frequently prefer a clean sale over losing the property to the tax sale.
When is the next Santa Cruz County tax sale?
California counties set their own tax sale calendars rather than following a statewide date, and a home only reaches one after five years of default — with the owner able to redeem it right up to the sale. The 1,993 Santa Cruz County properties on this page are the pipeline those auctions are drawn from, years before a sale date exists.
Does Santa Cruz County sell tax liens or tax deeds?
Tax deeds. California is a tax-deed state: there are no tax lien sales and no tax lien auctions here, because Santa Cruz County never sells lien certificates to investors — so there is no interest rate to bid down and no lien position to hold. After five years of default the county can sell the property itself at a tax deed sale, and the buyer receives a recorded deed. Almost everyone searching for tax lien properties in California is looking for that sale, and the 1,993 properties on this page are the pipeline it is drawn from.
Where can I find the Santa Cruz County delinquent tax roll?
The delinquent tax roll is public record, and it changes every time an owner pays. This page carries the current Santa Cruz County total, read daily. The address-level list — every tax-delinquent property with the owner of record, how long the taxes have gone unpaid, other recorded liens, open loans and an equity estimate — is inside Properant and starts with a free trial.
Can I download the Santa Cruz County list?
Yes. Inside Properant you can filter Santa Cruz County by city, equity, owner type, and every other signal, save the list, and export it — or upload your own list for matching and enrichment. The trial is free and requires no credit card.
More California Tax-Delinquent Property Lists
County and city lists people are reading right now, each one counted from recorded documents and refreshed daily.
Work Santa Cruz County Like You Live at the Recorder's Office
This page is one slice of it. Properant connects every parcel in California to its owner, open loans, liens and foreclosure stage — then scores and skip-traces the ones worth calling.
Want to search these 1,993 tax delinquent properties?
Explore the live Santa Cruz County tax-delinquent database in Properant.
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Nearby County Rankings
Tax-Delinquent Properties By City In Santa Cruz County
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Watsonville (276) · Santa Cruz (270) · Boulder Creek (145) · Aptos (111) · Soquel (62) · Scotts Valley (61) · Felton (55) · Capitola (44) · Ben Lomond (35) · Freedom (17) · Davenport (14) · Brookdale (13) · Mount Hermon (7)
Number in parentheses = properties behind on property taxes today. Each city page carries its own pre-foreclosure count alongside.