Washington County, AL tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Washington County, seat of Chatom: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
Verified Jul 27, 2026 against official county and state sources.
New here? Read how Alabama tax sales work, the difference between a lien and a deed, and redemption periods.
How Washington County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Washington County Revenue Commissioner (the office brands itself the Washington County Revenue Office; Mary Ann Dees, Revenue Commissioner). The Alabama Department of Revenue county directory lists the same official title, Revenue Commissioner, for Washington County.
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- No sale month, date, or time is published. Neither the Revenue Commissioner's own site, the county government site, nor the county GIS site carries a tax sale page, a sale notice, or a sale calendar. The only delinquency timing the office publishes is on its About Us page: "Taxes are due every October 1 and are delinquent after December 31st." Confirm the current year's sale date and format directly with the office at 251-847-2915 before planning to bid.
- Next expected
- between March 1 and June 15, 2027 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Registration and deposit
No bidder registration process, deposit requirement, or bidder packet is published on any Washington County site. Call the Revenue Commissioner at 251-847-2915 for registration instructions. Buyers of state-held (sold to state) parcels do not bid: the Alabama Department of Revenue takes an electronic price quote application, emails the quote, and the applicant then has 10 calendar days from the date on the price quote to remit payment, postmarked no later than the 10th calendar day.
No online auction platform was verified for Washington County, so none is claimed here. The county publishes nothing about its tax sale or tax lien auction online: the Revenue Commissioner's site (washingtoncopropertytax.org) carries only Home, Manufactured Homes, FAQ, Exemptions, About Us, Email Us, Forms, and a property tax calculator, and its Forms page lists only homestead, current use, and personal property forms with no bidder registration document. Washington County does not appear on GovEase's published Alabama county contact list, and it is not among the counties shown on Ingenuity Auctions, so there is no evidence of an online sale. Treat the sale as locally administered by the Revenue Commissioner and call before assuming online bidding exists. The only official Washington County parcel list found is the Alabama Department of Revenue state-held transcript; the DOR sales page links Washington to WWW_TRANS_65.PDF, and as fetched on the transcript's own printed date of 07/20/2026 that file contained the header "STATE OF ALABAMA-DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE-PROPERTY TAX DIVISION" and "TRANSCRIPT OF TAX DELINQUENT LAND AVAILABLE FOR SALE" with zero parcel rows, meaning no state-held inventory was available at that moment. The transcript refreshes weekly, so recheck it. Per the Department of Revenue, a state-held certificate held under three years conveys an assignment and one held over three years conveys a tax deed, and neither gives clear title.
From lien to deed
- Run by
- Circuit court of the county; the circuit clerk executes the deed
- Frequency
- none (court action, not a scheduled auction)
- Typical timing
- Not scheduled. A certificate holder may file no earlier than four years after the tax lien auction and no later than ten years after it
Alabama counties on the tax lien auction method hold no separate tax deed auction. Title passes only through a circuit court action to foreclose the right to redeem and quiet title, which ends in a circuit clerk's deed. A person entitled to redeem can answer that action by demanding a public auction instead, in which case the court sets a minimum bid equal to the redemption amount plus back taxes and allowed costs, and any surplus goes to the owner. A county that instead elects the Article 1 property tax sale sells the land itself at the courthouse and the judge of probate issues a deed after three years. Confirm which method your county uses.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
Liens that draw no bid at the auction stay with the county. At any time after the auction date the tax collecting official may sell an unsold lien at private sale for no less than all taxes, interest, penalties, costs and fees due, plus any amount owed to a prior certificate holder. The rate is agreed with the tax collecting official and cannot exceed 12 percent, so over-the-counter liens often carry the full rate. Ask the county for its list of unsold liens.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work.
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Washington County Revenue Commissioner (Washington County Revenue Office), Mary Ann Dees
45 Court Street, Chatom, AL 36518 (mailing: P.O. Box 847, 45 Court St, Chatom, AL 36518)
Official websiteNotes for Washington County
- Office confirmed on three official sources: the Revenue Commissioner's own site, the county government site (wcalabama.com), and the Alabama Department of Revenue county directory, which lists Mary Ann Dees, Revenue Commissioner, P.O. Box 847, Chatom, AL 36518, phone 251-847-2915, appraisal 251-847-3886, fax 251-847-3944.
- Street address discrepancy across official sources: the Revenue Commissioner's own site and its About Us page give 45 Court Street, Chatom, AL 36518, while the county government site and the county GIS site give 401 Court Street, Chatom, AL 36518. Use the P.O. Box for mail and confirm the street address by phone before visiting.
- Office hours published by the office and the county site are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM Central Time.
- Washington County publishes no tax sale page, no sale notice, no bidder registration form, and no delinquent list of its own. Its FAQ covers mailing address, millage, due dates, assessment, business personal property, current use, deeds, and manufactured homes, with no tax sale question at all.
- Washington County does not appear on GovEase's Alabama county contact list, and it is not shown on Ingenuity Auctions. No online platform is asserted here because none was verified.
- Because Alabama counties elect their collection method under Code of Alabama 1975 section 40-10-180, confirm with the Revenue Commissioner whether Washington County runs the traditional tax sale or the tax lien auction. The county publishes no election notice online.
- The Alabama DOR transcript of state-held tax delinquent land for Washington County (WWW_TRANS_65.PDF) was header only, with no parcel rows, as of the 07/20/2026 date printed on the file. Recheck weekly rather than treating the empty file as permanent.
- Property research support: the county's public parcel viewer is at https://washington.alabamagis.com/washington/, hosted by Flagship GIS and linked from the Alabama Department of Revenue directory.
Alabama statewide rules
- Redemption
- A tax lien can be redeemed at any time before the circuit court enters judgment in a foreclosure action, and the holder cannot file that action until four years after the auction or the tax official's private sale. If the holder does not commence a foreclosure action within ten years of the auction or sale, the certificate expires and the lien becomes void. A certificate holder has no right to enter or possess the property, make repairs, or charge rents before it receives the circuit clerk's deed. In a county that uses the Article 1 property tax sale instead, land sold to a purchaser other than the state may be redeemed within three years from the date of sale, and land bid in for the state may be redeemed at any time before title passes out of the state.
- Surplus proceeds
- In a court-ordered auction the proceeds pay the cost of the auction first, then the certificate holder up to the redemption amount plus taxes it paid before filing and the court-allowed costs and fees. Any surplus goes to the owner or the owner's heirs or successors as the court determines, and Alabama's unclaimed property law applies to whatever is left. In a county that instead uses the Article 1 property tax sale, the excess over the decree is held in a separate county account for three years for a party who redeems, and Section 40-10-28 opens later windows in which the owner or a redeeming party can claim it.
A tax deed does not convey marketable title. Most buyers file a quiet title action before they can resell or insure the property. See the due diligence guide.
Frequently asked questions
Does Washington County, Alabama sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Washington County follows Alabama's tax lien state system.
When is the Washington County tax certificate sale?
- No sale month, date, or time is published. Neither the Revenue Commissioner's own site, the county government site, nor the county GIS site carries a tax sale page, a sale notice, or a sale calendar. The only delinquency timing the office publishes is on its About Us page: "Taxes are due every October 1 and are delinquent after December 31st." Confirm the current year's sale date and format directly with the office at 251-847-2915 before planning to bid.. Registration and bidding happen on the county's online platform. Always confirm the exact date with the Tax Collector before the sale.
How often does Washington County hold tax deed sales?
- none (court action, not a scheduled auction). Each sale is scheduled and advertised in advance, so check the county's tax deed calendar for the next posted date.
Tax Sale Atlas publishes educational information about public tax sale processes. This is not legal, financial, or investment advice. Rules, dates, and fees change; confirm with the county office before you bid.
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