Hamilton will open tenders on 19 tax-arrears properties at City Hall on November 17

The sale

The City of Hamilton has published its public notice for a sale of land for tax arrears. Tenders are invited until 3 p.m. local time on Tuesday, November 17, 2026, at the Citizen Service Centre on the first floor of City Hall, 71 Main Street West. They will be opened in public the same day at 3:10 p.m. in Rooms 192 and 193 of City Hall.

The notice numbers its entries 1 to 27. Eight of them are marked CANCELLED, and the City's page does not say why, so 19 properties remain open for tender. The sale is governed by the Municipal Act, 2001 and the Municipal Tax Sales Rules made under it. The General Issues Committee's September 28, 2026 agenda also lists an information report titled Tax Sale Properties (November 17, 2026), which has a confidential appendix.

The City's page gives each property's roll number, legal description and a map. It describes the minimum tender amount, which it calls the Cancellation Price, as the total of the tax arrears, current taxes, interest, penalties and the City's reasonable costs once it could register a tax arrears certificate. The addresses beginning with 0 are shown that way on the City's list.

How a tender works

• Each property needs its own tender on the prescribed Form 7, Tender to Purchase. The City says substitutes are not accepted and that a bid covers only the property identified by roll number, address and PIN.
• The tender must come with a deposit of at least 20 per cent of the amount bid, not of the minimum, as a money order, bank draft or certified cheque payable to the City of Hamilton.
• The City supplies an envelope label for returning the sealed tender. It must be time-stamped by 3 p.m. on November 17.
• Equal bids go to the one time-stamped earlier.
• The successful bidder is the highest bidder with a complete tender and correct deposit who pays the balance, land transfer tax and other applicable taxes within 14 calendar days of being notified by mail. A bidder who does not pay forfeits the deposit, and the property is then offered to the second-highest bidder on the same terms.

What the City says buyers should know

The City describes the process as buyer beware and puts the due diligence on the bidder.

• Site visits are not available. Bidders may drive past a property. The City does not conduct tours or provide access.
• There is no vacant possession and no key. If the property is occupied, the buyer is responsible for any eviction process, which the City says may need a court application at the buyer's cost.
• Federal or provincial liens on title may remain and may become the buyer's responsibility, and the City recommends a title search. Bidders should check zoning, planning and building restrictions, work orders and any environmental concerns.
• The City is not required to provide a survey, to find out a property's value beforehand or to obtain fair market value. It recommends bidders retain a lawyer.
• A tax deed gives the purchaser the land subject only to easements and restrictive covenants, interests of the Crown in right of Canada or Ontario, and any adverse possession interests of abutting owners. Anyone registered on title, other than provincial or federal liens, loses their interest after the sale.

If no one buys

If there is no successful bidder, the City says it may, within two years of the failed sale, advertise the property for tax sale again, take title to it, or consider requests for proposals from the public about potential uses. The notice also says the City reserves its right to submit a tender itself before the deadline, under section 379(11) of the Municipal Act, 2001.

Questions go to Clayton Pereira, Director of Revenue Services, at 71 Main Street West, 905-546-2424 ext. 6196, with the attention line Rob Divinski, Tax Billings and Collections Administrator, as printed on the notice. Questions about zoning, access, work orders, water and hydro arrears, or building restrictions can be put to the City at 905-546-2489.

How a property gets here

The City's page says it can register a lien on title when property taxes are two calendar years in arrears, after reminder notices and a final letter. The taxpayer then has one year from registration to make a payment arrangement, and without one the City can put the property up for sale. Before a sale, a final letter tells the owner the property will be advertised, and the City notifies mortgage holders.