Plain English
What is a tax deed?
A tax deed is a document that transfers ownership of a property to you because the owner did not pay their property taxes. Unlike a tax lien, you are buying the property itself, not the debt against it.
Prepared by the TaxLienSimple Research Team. Reviewed October 4, 2026. The figures on this page come from inventory we hold and refresh nightly, and each one names the county it came from. See our verification policy.
How is this different from a tax lien?
With a lien you buy the debt and hope to be repaid. With a deed you buy the property and the previous owner is finished. It is the difference between being a creditor and being an owner.
States pick one system or the other. A few run a hybrid, where you get the deed at the sale but the former owner can still buy it back for a period by repaying you plus a penalty.
What do I actually own afterwards?
The property, with whatever problems it has. The county has collected its tax and its interest in you ends there. Nobody is going to tidy up the title, clear the rubbish, or tell you about the neighbour's fence.
In most states the tax sale wipes out the mortgage, because a property tax claim sits ahead of almost everything else. It does not reliably wipe out everything: some government claims, some assessments and some easements survive.
Can I buy a tax deed without bidding at an auction?
Often yes. When a property draws no bid at the auction, the state or county keeps it and sells it afterwards. Alabama holds unsold land and sells it by application. Arkansas offers it statewide thirty days after the sale. Texas calls it struck off, which means the taxing authority kept the property because nobody bid on it.
These are the parcels nobody competed for, so the price is often the taxes and fees owed rather than a market figure. That is the attraction and also the warning.
Why do some tax deeds cost almost nothing?
Because nothing is what they are worth to the people who looked. A 100 dollar opening bid is not a bargain hiding in plain sight. It is a number that survived a room full of people deciding to pass.
Sometimes they passed for a reason you can fix, like a title that needs a lawyer. Sometimes they passed because the lot is unbuildable. Working out which is the entire job.
Is the opening bid what I pay?
Rarely. It is a floor. At an auction other people bid it up, and in many places the fees are charged on top and do not count towards the purchase.
East Baton Rouge Parish in Louisiana spells this out on its own notices: the administrative fees are payable in certified funds and do not go toward the purchase price. A parcel with a 100 dollar initial bid can carry $1,550 of fees.
Do I have to clear the title myself?
Usually, yes, and usually at your own cost. A tax deed often does not give you the clean marketable title a normal buyer or a mortgage lender expects. The fix is a legal process called quiet title, meaning a court action that settles who owns what.
Budget for it before you bid. It is the cost that turns a cheap deed into a normal one.
Putting real numbers on it
A real parcel, with every cost shown
- Item 1 on East Baton Rouge Parish's 21 October 2026 auction of adjudicated property, meaning parcels the parish took over because the taxes went unpaid. Peerless Street.
- Initial bid: $100.00
- Administrative fees, certified funds, not credited to the price: $1,550.00
- Taxes due on the parcel, adjudicated in 1998: $1,770.68
- Assessed value: $1,200.00
The initial bid is $100 and the real outlay before you own anything is over 1,650. The assessed value is 1,200. This is a parcel the parish has held since 1998, and the notice also names an applicant who has already bid, so anyone else has to outbid them in the room.
What goes wrong
- You read the opening bid as the price. Fees, back taxes and competing bidders all sit on top, and in some places the fees do not count towards what you pay.
- You buy a title you cannot sell or mortgage. Quiet title work takes months and costs real money, and until it is done your exit is limited to a cash buyer who does not mind.
- You assume the sale cleared everything. Most mortgages go, but some government claims, assessments and easements survive and become yours.
- You never saw the parcel. Deed lists are addresses and numbers. They do not show you the slope, the access, the condemnation notice or the occupant.
- You are buying in a redeemable state without realising. Georgia, Texas and Tennessee use a redeemable deed, which means the former owner can take the property back for a period by repaying you plus a penalty, so you may own it only briefly.
See it for yourself
Every figure above is taken from inventory we track across 22 states and 280 counties, refreshed nightly from nine county and state sources. You can look at the same rows.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a tax deed and a tax lien?
A tax deed transfers the property to you. A tax lien gives you the county's claim for the unpaid tax and the right to be repaid with interest. Deed states sell property, lien states sell debt, and a few states run a hybrid of both.
Does a tax deed give me clear title?
Usually not immediately. The sale normally removes the mortgage, because the tax claim ranks ahead of it, but the title is often not marketable until a court action called quiet title is completed. Expect that cost before you bid.
Can the previous owner get the property back after a tax deed sale?
In some states, yes, for a set period. Georgia, Texas and Tennessee use redeemable deeds, where the former owner repays you plus a statutory penalty and takes the property back. In pure deed states there is no such right once the sale is confirmed.
What happens to the mortgage when a property is sold at a tax deed sale?
In most states the property tax claim outranks the mortgage, so the sale extinguishes it. That is why tax sales can look so cheap. It is not universal, and other claims can survive, so check the state's rules rather than assuming.
Where can I buy tax deeds without an auction?
From the inventory that went unsold. Alabama holds state land and sells it on application, Arkansas lists post-auction parcels statewide, Texas holds struck-off property for resale, and several county land banks sell directly from a published list.
Why would a property get no bids at a tax deed auction?
Because the bidders who looked at it decided it was not worth the opening figure. Vacant or landlocked lots, mobile homes, awkward title history and parcels too small to build on all end up unsold. The low price is the market's verdict, not an oversight.