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How to start investing in real estate with $140. A higher return than a landlord, with no tenants.

These are real certificates on real homes in Palm Beach County, Florida, on the Tax Collector's own list as of 2026-10-20. Every one passed our screen. The cheapest costs less than a dinner, pays 18 percent a year by law, and never calls you about a broken water heater.

What you are buying

When a Florida homeowner does not pay property tax, the county sells the debt as a tax certificate. You pay the tax. The county owes you that money back, plus interest, and your claim sits ahead of the mortgage, ahead of the HOA, ahead of everyone. That is state law, section 197.122. The owner, or their bank, pays you off when they redeem. If nobody pays for two years, you can force the property to auction. On a $140 certificate that will never happen. On a homesteaded house worth $265,000, someone always pays $160.

The cheapest safe ones today

69 MONACO B, DELRAY BEACH, FL, 33446

condominium · homestead · 883 sq ft · built 1974

$108.85 buys certificate #6400 (tax year 2025) at 18.0% a year. The property is on the county roll at $79,582.00, about 731x what is owed.

Why it passed our screen: homestead; value 79,582 vs debt 109 (731x)

If you buy it on

325 SHEFFIELD N, WEST PALM BEACH, FL, 33417

condominium · homestead · 570 sq ft · built 1971

$123.77 buys certificate #2259 (tax year 2025) at 18.0% a year. The property is on the county roll at $60,304.00, about 487x what is owed.

Why it passed our screen: homestead; value 60,304 vs debt 124 (487x)

If you buy it on

8 SHEFFIELD A, WEST PALM BEACH, FL, 33417

condominium · homestead · 684 sq ft · built 1971

$123.77 buys certificate #2232 (tax year 2025) at 18.0% a year. The property is on the county roll at $77,435.00, about 625x what is owed.

Why it passed our screen: homestead; value 77,435 vs debt 124 (626x)

If you buy it on

Create a free account to see all ten, with the buy links, the appraiser record and the map for each. Free, no card.

Why these are safe, in plain words

There is a real house. Our screen throws out every certificate on vacant land, drainage strips, common areas and slivers. Those are where beginners lose money.
The house is worth hundreds or thousands of times the debt. Nobody walks away from a $265,000 home over $160.
Homestead. The owner lives there. They redeem.
One year owed, not a chain. A parcel with five unpaid years is a story. A parcel with one is a late bill.
Held by the county at the maximum rate, 18 percent. The June auction skipped these because they are too small to bother with. Small is exactly what you want the first time.

How to buy one, step by step

Register once at the county's auction site, RealAuction for Palm Beach. Free.
Pick a certificate from the list above. Open the appraiser record and the map. Look at the house.
Email the Tax Collector's tax sale desk with the certificate number and ask if it is still available and the exact payoff today.
Pay by certified funds or wire. You now own the certificate.
Do nothing. Do not contact the owner; Florida law forbids it for two years. When they pay, the Tax Collector sends you face plus interest.
Track it in your Playbook on this site. We remind you of every date that matters.

Start slow, then work up

Your first certificate is tuition. At 18 percent on $140 you earn about $25 in a year. What you actually buy is the experience of the full cycle, purchase to payout, with no way to get hurt. The second time, buy the $2,000 one on the same screened list. The tenth time, the $20,000 one. Same rules, same screen, same safety, real money.

Compared with the other places your money could go

	Tax certificate	Rental property	Stock market
What backs your money	A first lien on a real house, ahead of the mortgage	Equity, behind the mortgage	A share price
Who deals with tenants, repairs, insurance	Nobody. You hold a certificate.	You do, every month	Nobody
Money needed to start	$140	Tens of thousands	Any amount
Return	Interest set by law, 5% minimum, up to 18%	Rent minus everything that goes wrong	Whatever the market does
Can the value go to zero	Only if the property is worthless, which our screen removes	Yes, with leverage	Yes
Your time	An hour to buy, then waiting	Ongoing	Ongoing if you trade

None of these is risk-free, and the last row is the one that matters: the screen is what makes a certificate different. Without it you are buying land nobody wants at 18 percent you will never collect.

See today's screened list Open the Playbook

Disclaimer: KB Software LLC provides this information for general informational purposes only. All records are derived from public sources and are subject to change without notice; their accuracy and completeness are not warranted. Nothing on this site constitutes legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Independently verify all information with the applicable county clerk, tax collector, and property appraiser, and consult a licensed professional before making any investment decision.