Delinquent tax lists · Tennessee
Rhea County delinquent tax list
Short answer: Rhea County has two delinquent tax lists. The official one is published by the County Trustee before each scheduled sale, free to download, and it lists parcel numbers and amounts owed with no owner contact. The year-round one is the delinquency record underneath it, where 143 (estimated) owners near Rhea County currently carry a distress signal. Tennessee is a redeemable deed state, so a winning bid at the sale takes a deed the owner can still buy back.
Distressed owners near Rhea County
143
Within 25 miles of the county centre, refreshed daily. Rhea County is a rural county.
Top-deal discount target
~42% under market
Average start bid across the 20 strongest Rhea leads right now.
Avg. spread per top deal
$222,000
On a typical $529,000 estimated value.
Coverage centers on Rhea County and reaches 25 miles out, widening to 50 when the market runs thin.
Rhea County tax sale rules at a glance
The mechanics that decide what you are actually buying, and how long the owner keeps a way out. The full Tennessee rules, timelines and deficiency detail sit on the state page, since they apply to every county here.
| County | Rhea County, Tennessee. |
|---|---|
| Who publishes the list | The County Trustee for Rhea County. |
| What the sale transfers | Tennessee is a redeemable deed state. A winning bidder gets a redeemable deed, which is ownership subject to the former owner buying it back inside the redemption window. |
| Rate and cadence | County tax sales convey deeds subject to a redemption of up to 1 year at 12%. |
| Foreclosure path | Non-judicial, typically 2 to 3 months from filing to sale. |
The Tennessee delinquency clock
Where a Rhea owner sits on this line is what decides whether they will take a low cash offer today.
The Rhea list, ranked hardest-first
Representative profiles from our ranking model for the Rhea County area. The live list, with exact locations, photos and owner details, is one free scan away.
- #1Pre-foreclosure for 201 days. Owners in this spot often want out fast, before a foreclosure hits their credit.$284K start bid · ~45% under market
- #2Notice of default for 40 days. Owners in this spot often want out fast, before a foreclosure hits their credit.$246K start bid · ~45% under market
- #3Pre-foreclosure for 79 days. Owners in this spot often want out fast, before a foreclosure hits their credit.$264K start bid · ~43% under market
7 more ranked Rhea County deals behind the scan
Unlock the full Rhea County list freeFree scan · no card needed
What the Rhea list is made of
Most distressed owners carry more than one signal, so these bands overlap. Stacked signals rank highest.
How Rhea compares across Tennessee
Rhea County is the 45th largest of the 95 Tennessee counties covered here, and it runs denser in distressed owners than the Tennessee average, at 41.1 flagged properties per 10,000 residents against a state figure of 39.8. It accounts for about 0.5% of every flagged property across the Tennessee counties on this site.
| County | Seat | Flagged owners | Per 10k residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shelby County | Memphis | 4,138 | 45.2 |
| Davidson County | Nashville | 3,310 | 46.3 |
| Knox County | Knoxville | 1,821 | 37.2 |
| Rutherford County | Murfreesboro | 1,475 | 39.5 |
| Williamson County | Franklin | 1,384 | 53.2 |
| Montgomery County | Clarksville | 1,275 | 55.2 |
Density matters more than the raw count when you are choosing where to work. A smaller county with a high per-capita figure often has less competition per lead than the metro next door.
How far under market these close
The official Rhea list vs. this one
Both are worth having. They answer different questions.
| Rhea official sale list | The LowBaller list | |
|---|---|---|
| Who publishes it | The County Trustee | LowBaller, from county and public records |
| When it exists | Only in the run-up to each scheduled sale | Year round, refreshed daily |
| Format | A PDF or spreadsheet of parcel numbers and amounts owed | A ranked table with a map pin, photo and estimated value on every row |
| Owner contact | Not included | Phone and email on unlock, and no credit is spent when nothing verifies |
| Ranking | Alphabetical or by parcel number | Hardest situation first, by foreclosure stage, years behind and equity |
| Timing advantage | Everyone bidding sees the same list on the same day | Owners appear months before any auction, while a private sale still solves their problem |
Working the Rhea list
What actually matters in a county this size, at this level of distress, under Tennessee timelines.
Off the main road
Rhea County ranks 45 of 95 covered Tennessee counties and holds about 0.5% of the state's flagged properties. Most buyers never scroll this far down the state, which is the entire argument for working it.
Above the state norm
Rhea runs 41.1 flagged properties per 10,000 residents against 39.8 statewide. More pressure per capita than the typical Tennessee county, and more owners carrying two or three signals at once.
All of Rhea County
The scan centres on Rhea County and reaches 25 miles out, widening to 50 when the list runs thin. In a county this size that usually spans several towns, each with its own price level, so read the estimated value on each row rather than the discount alone.
The Tennessee clock
Foreclosure here typically runs 2 to 3 months from filing to sale. The tax clock and the mortgage clock run independently, so check both before you decide how hard a deadline an owner is actually facing.
Why Rhea investors work it before auction day
No bidding war
At the sale you are one of a room full of bidders on the same parcel. Months earlier you are the only person who called.
You can see the house
A private sale means an inspection and a clean title search. Lien auctions in Tennessee rarely give you either.
The owner keeps something
An owner with equity who sells early clears the tax debt and walks away with money. At the sale, they usually walk away with nothing.
Rhea County delinquent tax list FAQ
How do I get the Rhea County delinquent tax list?
Two lists exist and they are not the same. The official one comes from the County Trustee, is published as a PDF or spreadsheet before each scheduled sale, and disappears between sales. The year-round one is the delinquency record itself, which is what LowBaller compiles: roughly 143 properties around Rhea County currently carry at least one distress signal, ranked by how much pressure the owner is under.
Is there a free Rhea delinquent property tax list PDF?
Yes. The County Trustee publishes the pre-sale list free of charge, usually as a PDF or a downloadable spreadsheet tied to a specific sale date. It gives you parcel numbers and amounts owed. It does not give you owner contact details, an estimated value, or any indication of which owners would actually take a low cash offer.
When is the Rhea County tax sale?
Rhea County publishes its own schedule, and it moves. The Tennessee pattern is the thing that holds steady: County tax sales convey deeds subject to a redemption of up to 1 year at 12%. Check the county's pre-sale notice close to the date, because the list shrinks daily as owners redeem.
Can I buy Rhea tax-delinquent property before the auction?
Yes, and it is usually the better trade. There is no bidding war, the owner clears the debt with a clean sale instead of a forced one, and you are not buying blind. The window is the months between the delinquency appearing in the record and the sale being scheduled, which is exactly the period this list covers.
What does a winning bid actually get you in Tennessee?
Tennessee is a redeemable deed state, so a winning bidder takes a redeemable deed, which is ownership subject to the former owner buying it back inside the redemption window. County tax sales convey deeds subject to a redemption of up to 1 year at 12%. That difference matters more than the discount: in a lien state you are buying a debt with a yield, and in a deed state you are buying a house.
How far below market do Rhea deals close?
The strongest current leads near Rhea County support start bids around 42% under estimated value. Across the whole list, hard distress such as a scheduled auction or a stacked tax lien closes 20 to 40% under market, while softer signals like long-distance ownership land closer to 15 to 30% under. Rhea runs denser in distress than the Tennessee average, so stacked-signal owners, the ones who accept the widest discounts, turn up more often here than in a typical county in this state. Equity sets the ceiling, because an offer cannot go below what clears the owner's mortgage.
How many tax-delinquent properties are there in Rhea?
About 143 properties within 25 miles of Rhea County currently show at least one motivation signal in public records, and tax delinquency is among the most common. That works out to 41.1 flagged properties per 10,000 residents, against 39.8 across Tennessee as a whole, and makes Rhea the number 45 of the 95 Tennessee counties covered here by population. That figure moves daily as owners pay, redeem or fall further behind.
Do I need a Rhea address to search, or can I search the whole county?
Either. Run the scan on any Rhea ZIP and you get the full ranked list for the surrounding area, or check one specific address to see whether that owner carries a distress signal. The scan is free; the full list opens with a 7-day trial, and credits are only spent when an owner's phone number comes back.
More on Rhea County
Delinquent tax lists nearby
Keep going
The Rhea owners who will sell cheap are on this list today.
Not in 2026 sale season. Now, months before the auction, while a quiet private sale still solves their problem. Scan free and browse every one.
Scan Rhea freeInformational summary, not legal or investment advice. Rates, redemption periods and sale formats are summarized at the Tennessee state level and can be changed by statute or applied differently by Rhea County. The County Trustee and the county's own pre-sale notices control every schedule, deposit and bidding rule. Verify before you bid.