Alaska sells no tax lien certificates to investors. To buy an Alaska tax deed you bid on the property itself, at a borough sale of land the borough already owns through tax foreclosure. Review the sale terms, deed and applicable law to confirm the property interest conveyed.
New here? There is no certificate step in Alaska. You bid on the property itself, so the money is at risk on the parcel from day one and the research has to happen before the sale, not after. Not sure which is for you? Start with tax lien vs tax deed.
Step 1: Learn the timeline and lien priority
Understand this before you commit any money.
- Timeline and lien priority
- Alaska sets no statewide due or delinquency date. Each municipality fixes its rate of levy, equalization date and delinquency date by resolution, determines the levy before June 15, and mails tax statements by July 1. A municipality may add a penalty of up to 20 percent of the tax due to delinquent taxes, and interest of up to 15 percent a year accrues on unpaid taxes (not on penalty) from the due date until paid; where taxes are payable in two installments, penalty and interest on an unpaid installment run from its own due date. The actual penalty and rate are set locally within those ceilings. Property taxes with penalty and interest are a lien on the property that is prior and paramount to all other liens or encumbrances. Delinquent real property tax liens are enforced by annual foreclosure unless an ordinance provides otherwise.
Step 2: Know when the redemption right ends
- The redemption window
- Redemption runs against the municipality, before any investor is involved. The judgment transfers the parcel to the municipality, which must hold it for at least one year; during that time anyone with an interest may redeem. At least 30 days before the period ends the clerk publishes an expiration notice once a week for four weeks (or posts it where there is no newspaper) and mails it by certified mail to the record owner and, where the assessed value exceeds $10,000, to mortgage and lien holders; the right of redemption expires 30 days after the first publication. The former owner keeps possession during redemption unless waste is committed.
- What the owner pays
- To redeem before the borough takes title, the owner pays Redemption: the lien amount under the judgment and decree plus penalties, interest and costs, including the municipality's lienholder-search and notice costs; the property stays subject to all accrued taxes, assessments and liens. Repurchase: the full judgment amount plus interest of up to 15 percent a year from the judgment date, delinquent taxes as if privately owned, foreclosure and sale costs, and net costs of maintaining and managing the property.
- What it means for you
- That right ends when the borough takes title, before the borough offers the parcel to the public, so the former owner cannot redeem a parcel on the borough’s sale list, although the former record owner may still repurchase it until the borough sells it or contracts to sell it.
Full Alaska rule detail for step 2, Know when the redemption right ends
The redemption window, continued. After the clerk's deed, the record owner at foreclosure (or assigns) may still repurchase "within 10 years and before the sale or contract of sale" (the statute names no start date for the 10 years), so only until the municipality sells or contracts to sell the parcel, and the right ends if an ordinance retains it for a public purpose. A buyer at the municipality's sale therefore takes with no redemption or repurchase right outstanding.
Step 3: Learn what sends a parcel to the sale
- What starts it
- Taxes unpaid for a year go on the next annual foreclosure list; the municipality petitions the superior court, which enters a several judgment and decree of foreclosure against each parcel after a 30-day answer period, and the certified judgment transfers the parcel to the municipality for the lien amount.
Full Alaska rule detail for step 3, Learn what sends a parcel to the sale
What starts it, continued. After a redemption period of at least one year, which expires 30 days after the first publication of a redemption expiration notice, the clerk of court deeds unredeemed property to the borough or city. The municipality then decides by ordinance whether to keep each parcel for a public purpose; only property not needed for a public purpose may be sold.
Step 4: Buy at the tax deed sale
The borough sells the property by the method its own rules set, so read that seller’s terms before you bid.
Step 5: Or buy over the counter
You do not have to wait for an auction.
Full Alaska rule detail for step 5, Or buy over the counter
How it works, continued. The Matanuska-Susitna Borough, for example, offers tax-foreclosed parcels first at a competitive sale and may later offer unsold ones in over-the-counter land sales. Whether any inventory exists and how it is sold must be confirmed with the borough or city land management office.
What the deed conveys in Alaska
The clerk's deed gives the municipality clear title, "except for prior recorded tax liens of the United States and the state" (AS 29.45.450(b)). A deed is not invalid for irregularities, omissions or defects in the proceedings unless the former owner was misled so as to be injured, and two years after the date of the deed its validity is conclusively presumed and every claim of the former owner or other person having an interest is forever barred (AS 29.45.450(d)). The buyer takes from the municipality under the municipality's own conveyance on its sale terms, not a court deed.
Fold any title work into your maximum bid and read what you actually own after a tax deed and what survives a tax deed before you bid. A quiet title action is how a buyer clears a title an insurer will not accept.
Buying tax deeds in Alaska: common questions
How do you buy a tax deed in Alaska?
Can you buy Alaska tax deeds online?
More Alaska answers, including redemption and statute detail, are on the Alaska tax sale FAQ. New to this? Start with tax lien vs tax deed and the full Alaska walkthrough, then value a parcel with the due diligence guide.
Steps verified Sep 27, 2026 against Alaska statutes.
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 office that runs the sale before you bid.