I've called the county assessor, the IRS, and basically every government office in sight—only to be told the exact same thing: the state takes precedence. It doesn't matter that I bought this house before the foreclosure was even finalized; they just tell me there's nothing to be done. They won't even let me pay the back taxes on behalf of the previous owner, and they refuse to even give me the breakdown of what's owed.
In a functional country, this kind of mess shouldn't even be possible—why wouldn't they let you settle the tax debt for the prior owner?
Here in the States, we actually have something called "State Farm" title insurance that you pay for when you close on a home. It usually runs around $1,000, and it essentially guarantees your ownership. If some Indian or whoever else suddenly shows up claiming the land or the house belongs to them, that insurance covers your losses. For that $1,000, they perform a deep "title search" to make sure every single piece of paperwork regarding ownership is airtight. It’s a very straightforward process.