The attorney you call when a federal tax lien shows up on title.
Send your client here before the closing date. We handle the Certificate of Discharge, the Subordination, and the Withdrawal. You keep the commission.
No cost consultation. Confidential. 32 years of federal tax practice.
The Problem
The title company calls on a Thursday.
You've been working the file for weeks. Inspection done. Appraisal in. Closing scheduled for Friday. And then the call comes.
Your client knows there's a federal tax lien on the property, right?
of agents treat a lien as a deal killer because they don't know the alternatives exist.
days is the typical timeline for a properly-packaged Certificate of Discharge under §6325(b).
is sometimes the actual amount owed to the IRS to release a specific property from the lien.
is the federal collection statute. Old liens age out entirely if timing is right.
What We Do
Five ways to clear a lien and save the deal.
The IRS has formal procedures for removing or working around a federal tax lien. Which one fits depends on the numbers, the timing, and the transaction structure. Figuring that out is our job.
Certificate of Discharge
IRC §6325(b)
Removes the lien from one specific property so the sale can close free and clear. The flagship tool for saving an active closing.
Lien Subordination
IRC §6325(d)
Moves a new loan ahead of the federal lien in priority. The tool that unlocks a blocked refinance.
Lien Withdrawal
IRC §6323(j)
Removes the Notice of Federal Tax Lien from the public record as if it had never been filed. Critical for credit and future transactions.
Lien Release
IRC §6325(a)
The formal release that issues when the underlying debt is satisfied — by payment, accepted OIC, or expiration of the collection statute.
Full Payment at Closing
Simplest path
When the lien is small enough to pay from proceeds, the title company disburses to the IRS at settlement. Almost no extra time to close.
Collection Alternatives
IA · OIC · CNC
For the underlying tax debt: installment agreements, offers in compromise, and currently-not-collectible status. Shaped to fit the transaction.
Built for Real Estate Agents
The agents who call us keep commissions other agents lose.
Federal tax liens surface on listings constantly — on estate sales, on transplants from other states, on self-employed sellers who fell behind. Most agents watch these deals die because they don't know the IRS has formal procedures for exactly this situation.
The agents who build the habit of calling a tax attorney the day a lien surfaces — not the day before closing — close more deals, protect more commissions, and build the reputation in their market for handling the complicated files other agents can't.
The Field Guide for Agents
A 14-page working manual on IRS problems in real estate transactions.
How to spot a lien before the title company does. The five procedures that clear one. The buyer-side DTI trap. The six-year filing rule. How agents stay out of their own IRS trouble.
- Florida-specific guidance on transplant sellers and county-line traps
- Form numbers, publication citations, and realistic timelines
- The 30-second intake script you can use on your next listing
- Pre-transaction screening questions that prevent closing-day disasters
How It Works
From the title company's call to a cleared closing.
Most liens can be cleared in time to save the scheduled closing, or with a minimal contract extension. The process moves fastest when the attorney is brought in early.
Initial Call
Free consultation. Review the lien, the transaction, and the timeline. Identify the right procedure.
Transcript Pull
Full account transcripts from the IRS. Confirm the balance, accrued penalties, and collection statute expiration date.
Application Packaging
Form 14135, 14134, or 12277 with supporting documentation. Filed with the IRS Advisory Group covering the property location.
Closing
IRS issues the certificate. Title company receives documentation. Closing proceeds on schedule.
The Attorney
32 years resolving IRS problems. Over $100 million in tax debt handled.
Darrin T. Mish is a federal tax attorney who has practiced IRS resolution exclusively since 1993. He is licensed in Florida, Colorado, and Texas, and represents taxpayers before the IRS throughout the United States.
His practice covers the full range of federal tax controversy — installment agreements, offers in compromise, penalty abatement, innocent spouse relief, collection due process appeals, Tax Court litigation, and the procedural mechanics of lien release, discharge, subordination, and withdrawal.
Darrin hosts The IRS Solution Attorney podcast and has been interviewed as a tax resolution authority by publications including the Wall Street Journal, CNN Money, and Fox Business.
Credentials & Admissions
- Bar Admissions
- Florida, Colorado, Texas
- U.S. Tax Court
- Admitted
- Federal District Courts
- Multiple jurisdictions
- Practice Focus
- IRS Tax Resolution
- Years in Practice
- Since 1993
- Location
- Tampa, Florida
Common Questions
What agents and sellers ask first.
How long does a Certificate of Discharge take?
Typically 30 to 60 days when the application is packaged correctly, per IRS Publication 783. Faster when the Advisory Group is responsive, slower on complex files. Rarely long enough to kill a deal that was handled early.
Will the client have to pay the full lien amount?
No. Under §6325(b)(2)(A), the client pays the value of the government's interest in the property — not the face amount of the lien. On underwater or near-underwater sales, that number is often small. Sometimes zero.
Can the lien be removed if the seller still owes the IRS?
Yes. The Certificate of Discharge removes the lien from one specific property, even while the underlying tax debt remains. The sale closes clean. The lien stays on the seller's other assets until resolved.
What if the title company already flagged the lien?
Call us immediately. The deal is still saveable in most cases. The factor that matters most is how much runway remains before the closing date — more time means more procedural options.
When a lien surfaces, move fast.
The first conversation is free. The second one usually saves the deal.