Franklin

County snapshot

Franklin County has grown 4% since 2020 and still shows positive net migration (419 people in 2024). Demand for housing usually means owners redeem rather than walk away — good for the interest, less good if you were hoping to take the deed.

By population, Franklin County is the 65th largest of Florida's 67 counties. It has grown more slowly than the state average (+8.2% across Florida) — often where the less contested certificates are, and also where the risk sits. Of the 2024 change, 419 came from people moving in and 68 from deaths outnumbering births.

Counties of similar size in Florida with a sale on our calendar: Glades County, Calhoun County, Hamilton County. Useful if this county's sale has already closed and you want the next comparable one.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Census population estimates. Population figures are estimates, not a count.

Property & tax profile

The median homeowner in Franklin County pays $1,728 a year in property tax — below the Florida median of $2,730 (U.S.: $3,119). That is roughly what a typical home here owes after one missed year — about the face value of a one-year certificate, before interest, fees and any premium. Homes with a mortgage pay a median of $1,914; homes owned outright, $1,502.

On a home with a mortgage, the lender has its own reason to pay a delinquent tax bill: the tax lien outranks the mortgage, and a tax deed can wipe out the loan. On a home owned outright, nobody but the owner — or the heirs — has that reason. In Franklin County, 61.8% of owner-occupied homes are owned outright (Florida: 43.7%, U.S.: 39.4%). That is more than the state as a whole, so a larger share of the delinquent bills here have no lender behind them.

42.2% of all housing units in Franklin County are vacant. 23.7% of all units are seasonal or vacation homes, empty by design rather than abandoned. The figure that matters for a lien buyer is the Census “other vacant” category — not for rent, not for sale, not a holiday home, but a catch-all that includes foreclosures, homes held up by legal proceedings or family reasons, homes needing repairs, and abandoned ones. Here it is 5.9% of all units (Florida: 2.8%, U.S.: 3.6%). That is above the state rate, so expect more empty properties on the delinquent list: the ones least likely to redeem, and the most likely to need work if the deed ends up yours. Drive by before you bid.

Half of the homes in Franklin County were built in or before 1988 (Florida: in or before 1988). The typical tax bill is 2.7% of the median household income of $64,105 (Florida: 3.7%).

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates (tables B25077, B25103, B25081, B25002, B25004, B25035, B19013) — see the figures on data.census.gov. Survey estimates with margins of error; anything too uncertain to state is left out.

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