When a real estate owner does not pay their property taxes, 27 states and 1,152 cities and counties sell tax lien certificates to investors. The government gets its property tax money immediately. The investor buys a tax lien, which is then secured by the real estate.

Tax lien certificate yields vary, according to state law. Arizona’s top rate is 16 percent, Florida pays as much as 18 percent, but in Michigan, the rate goes up to 50 percent in the second year. If the property owner doesn’t redeem the property from the investor by paying the back taxes plus the high-interest rate, the investor gets the title and possession of the property.