Each parish or city in the state of Louisiana annually places the properties that are behind on their property taxes into tax lien auctions. The reason is simple. Our government needs to pay its bills. Without the tax auction, each year millions of vital tax dollars would go unpaid. The tax lien system motivates buyers for the revenue that comes over time. Property owners are motivated to not lose their property. Tax lien market aims to match lien buyers with those who want to sell their liens.