There are many kinds of liens and assessments. These are the type of liens you may have put on your property if you had a delinquency with the City of Oakland.
· Garbage Liens (refuse liens)
· Business Tax Liens
· Real Estate Transfer Tax Liens
· Sidewalk Liens
· Sewer Lateral Liens
· Vegetation Management Liens (rubbish or fire inspection)
If you need to request a payoff demand for a lien or assessment you must:
- Complete the CITYWIDE LIENS DEMAND REQUEST FORM
- Submit $175 Upfront Processing Fee
- Copy of the Lien (for business tax and RETT liens, only submit the first page with the recordation number and property reference page)
To obtain a copy of the lien, please contact the Alameda County Recorder’s Office at 1106 Madison St., Oakland, CA 94607, or visit their online portal: Alameda County Property Search
or type https://www.acgov.org/auditor/clerk/propertysearch.htm
For questions, call the Recorder’s Office toll-free at 1-888-280-7708
Payment Submission Methods:
- Mail in check/money order payable to “City of Oakland” with full demand request
- In Person at 150 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza #5342 Oakland, CA 94612.
- Email the full demand request with a credit card authorization form to citywideliens@oaklandca.gov
It can take up to five business days to process the demand request. Incomplete submissions (missing payment, copy of the liens, or request form) will be rejected.
Important Notes:
- Each Demand request qualifies for only one property address (APN) and one type of lien. Separate requests are required for each property and each lien type.
- We do not expedite requests. Demand requests are processed in the order received.
- Demands are valid for 30 days. After expiration, a new demand request must be submitted with an additional $175 upfront processing fee, demand letter request form, and copy of the liens.
- Once the demand payoff has been paid, we will mail the notarized Release of Liens to the address provided on the demand letter request form. You must record the Release of Liens with the County of Alameda Recorder’s Office at 1106 Madison St., Oakland, CA 94607, to remove them from the property.