Delinquent tax lists
County delinquent tax lists
Short answer: every county keeps a delinquent tax list, and publishes a free version before each sale through its tax office. That document gives you parcel numbers and amounts owed, and nothing else. This section covers 358 counties in all 50 states: who publishes the official list where you live, whether your state sells liens or deeds, how long the owner has to redeem, and the year-round ranked list of owners already under pressure, with an offer on each.
Counties covered
358
Across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Lien vs deed states
20 / 22
Plus 7 redeemable deed states and the rest set county by county.
Refresh cadence
Daily
Distress signals recompiled from public records every day.
Pick your state
What a winning bid buys, how long the owner keeps a way out, and how many counties we cover in each.
| State | Sale type | Owner redemption | Counties |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | lien | Yes: up to 1 year after the sale (180 days for many homesteads). | 7 |
| Alaska | deed | None after a non-judicial trustee sale. | 3 |
| Arizona | lien | None after a trustee sale. | 7 |
| Arkansas | deed | None after a non-judicial sale; limited in judicial cases. | 5 |
| California | deed | None after a trustee sale. | 17 |
| Colorado | lien | None for owners after the sale; junior lienholders get short windows. | 10 |
| Connecticut | redeemable deed | Handled through court-set law days rather than a post-sale window. | 8 |
| Delaware | deed | None once the court confirms the sheriff sale. | 3 |
| District of Columbia | lien | None after the sale. | 1 |
| Florida | lien | Owners can redeem up to the certificate of sale, not after. | 20 |
| Georgia | redeemable deed | None after a mortgage foreclosure sale. | 11 |
| Hawaii | deed | None once the court confirms the sale. | 3 |
| Idaho | deed | None after a trustee sale. | 4 |
| Illinois | lien | Yes, but BEFORE the sale: generally 7 months from service for homeowners. | 11 |
| Indiana | lien | Only before the sheriff sale. | 8 |
| Iowa | lien | Yes, typically 6 to 12 months; lenders often waive deficiency to shorten it. | 6 |
| Kansas | deed | Yes: 3 to 12 months after the sale depending on equity. | 5 |
| Kentucky | lien | 6 months, but only if the property sells for less than two thirds of appraised value. | 6 |
| Louisiana | redeemable deed | None after the sheriff sale. | 7 |
| Maine | deed | A 90 day redemption runs during the process rather than after the sale. | 3 |
| Maryland | lien | Owners can redeem until the court ratifies the sale. | 8 |
| Massachusetts | lien | None after the foreclosure sale. | 8 |
| Michigan | deed | Yes: 6 months after the sale for most homes (1 year for agricultural or low-balance cases). | 8 |
| Minnesota | deed | Yes: 6 months after the sale for most homes, 12 in some cases. | 6 |
| Mississippi | lien | None after the trustee sale. | 5 |
| Missouri | lien | Only if the lender wins the bid and the owner posts bond within statutory deadlines; rare in practice. | 7 |
| Montana | lien | None after a trustee sale. | 4 |
| Nebraska | lien | None after a trustee sale; short windows in judicial cases. | 4 |
| Nevada | deed | None after a trustee sale. | 4 |
| New Hampshire | deed | None after the sale. | 3 |
| New Jersey | lien | 10 days after the sheriff sale. | 12 |
| New Mexico | deed | 1 to 9 months after the sale; contracts commonly shorten it to 1. | 4 |
| New York | varies | None after the auction; owners can redeem any time before it. | 12 |
| North Carolina | deed | A 10 day upset-bid period follows every sale instead of redemption. | 9 |
| North Dakota | deed | 60 days after the sale. | 3 |
| Ohio | varies | Until the court confirms the sale, not after. | 10 |
| Oklahoma | deed | None after confirmation. | 5 |
| Oregon | deed | None after a trustee sale. | 7 |
| Pennsylvania | deed | None for mortgage sales (limited local exceptions exist for tax sales). | 13 |
| Rhode Island | redeemable deed | None after the sale. | 3 |
| South Carolina | lien | None; a deficiency demand opens a 30 day upset-bid window instead. | 8 |
| South Dakota | lien | Typically 180 days after the sale (60 for abandoned homes). | 3 |
| Tennessee | redeemable deed | A 2 year right exists on paper but is waived in nearly every deed of trust. | 8 |
| Texas | redeemable deed | None for mortgage foreclosures. | 18 |
| Utah | deed | None after a trustee sale. | 5 |
| Vermont | redeemable deed | 6 months by default, and courts commonly shorten it. | 3 |
| Virginia | deed | None after the trustee sale. | 10 |
| Washington | deed | None after a trustee sale. | 8 |
| West Virginia | lien | None after the trustee sale. | 5 |
| Wisconsin | deed | Runs BEFORE the sale: usually 6 months (shorter if the lender waives deficiency). | 7 |
| Wyoming | lien | 3 months for owners after the sale, plus short lienholder windows. | 3 |
Every county, A to Z by state
358 counties, each with its own list, sale rules and ranked owners.
Delinquent tax list FAQ
What is a delinquent tax list?
It is the county's record of property owners who have not paid their property taxes. Every county keeps one year round, and publishes a formal version, often as a PDF, before each scheduled tax sale. The published version lists parcel numbers and amounts owed. It does not tell you who the owner is, how to reach them, what the property is worth, or which owners would actually take a cash offer.
How do I get my county's delinquent tax list for free?
Go to the office that collects property tax in your state, which is the county treasurer in most states, the tax assessor-collector in Texas, the tax commissioner in Georgia, the treasurer-tax collector in California, and the town or city collector in the New England states and New Jersey. The pre-sale list is free to download. Pick your county below and the page names the exact office and what its list does and does not include.
Is a tax lien or a tax deed better to buy?
Neither is better in general, they are different trades. In the 20 lien states you buy a certificate that pays interest if the owner redeems, which behaves like a fixed-income position with a chance of ownership. In the 22 deed states a winning bid transfers the property, so you are buying real estate at auction with limited inspection. The 7 redeemable deed states sit in between: you get a deed the former owner can buy back at a penalty.
Can I buy a tax-delinquent property before it goes to auction?
Yes, and it is usually the better route. Delinquency shows up in public records months before a sale is scheduled, and during that window the owner still holds title and can sell normally. You can inspect the house, run title, and negotiate one on one instead of bidding against a room. An owner with equity who sells early clears the debt and keeps the difference.
How current is the list on this site?
The distress signals are compiled from public records and refreshed daily. Sold, pending and listed properties are removed automatically, so a house that already changed hands never appears. Official sale schedules and parcel lists always come from the county itself, and every county page says so.
Keep going
The county list tells you who owes. This one tells you who will sell.
Ranked hardest-first, with the owner, the phone number and the number to open with. Browsing is free and unlimited, and a credit is only spent when a verified contact comes back.
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