What is the name of your state? Ma.
Can personal propery such as a car be sold (or traded in)if you have an IRS tax lien or does it just apply to real-estate?
thanks
Ma.
It depends....IRS tax liens are very broad on paper, but not necessarily broad in practice. The IRS is more interested in real property and liquid assets. Cars, for the most part don't tend to yield much and therefore the IRS tends not to mess with them much....they also tend to be complicated to attach....and complicated to dispose of, which is another reason why the IRS doesn't mess with them much.
If its a paid off newer Lexus (or any other luxury vehicle)....yes, the IRS is going to be interested. If its an old beater, that still has payments due, or isn't worth much, the IRS is unlikely to care. However, the loan companies absolutely WILL care in terms of granting a new loan, if there is an IRS lien on the person's credit report....so trading in is probably a moot point.