"If the tax can be paid off within a 60-month period, it's a rather simple process to get this approved," says Crystal Stranger, an enrolled agent in Honolulu, Hawaii. "Lack of income and having assets can be a dangerous IRS situation, though, as when collections gets wind of this they are likely to escalate the process of attaching liens."
A lien is a public notice, filed in your local courthouse, that you owe money to the IRS. It can cost 30 points on your credit score and will make obtaining credit more difficult. If you try to sell an asset, you will need to pay off your IRS debt first before accessing any of those funds.
A levy is the next step after a lien and can be imposed through your employer -- clawing back a portion of every paycheck or contractual payment -- or your bank, freezing your assets to repay your unpaid taxes. Once the IRS has served notice of a levy, you have 21 days to respond and negotiate terms with them.