Northwest Arctic Borough, AK tax sales

Borough offices

County notes

• •The Northwest Arctic Borough levies no property tax, so it holds no tax-foreclosure sale and publishes no sale list; its Charter (Section 11.03) requires voter approval for any Borough property tax.
• •The Borough is a home rule borough seated in Kotzebue that includes ten second-class cities (Ambler, Buckland, Deering, Kiana, Kivalina, Kobuk, Kotzebue, Noorvik, Selawik, Shungnak) and the unincorporated community of Noatak.
• •Investors seeking foreclosed property in the region should contact the individual city office, since any city-level tax or land sale is outside the Borough's records.
• •Borough offices: (907) 442-2500, or (800) 478-1110 within Alaska; fax (907) 442-2930.

Alaska rules

Redemption

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. 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.AS 29.45.400 - properties held by the municipality at least one year; any party having an interest may redeemAS 29.45.400Verified Sep 27, 2026

Deed deposit

Not set by statute. Deposit, bidder registration and payment form are fixed in each sale's terms. Example: the Matanuska-Susitna Borough requires in-person registration before bidding and accepts only money order, cashier's check or cash, with no financing.AS 29.45.460 - ordinance decides retention for public purpose; property not needed may be soldAS 29.45.460Verified Sep 27, 2026

Surplus proceeds

Sale proceeds, less collection costs, are divided between the borough and the city in proportion to their taxes at foreclosure. If the property was held by the municipality for less than 10 years after the close of the redemption period and was never designated for a public purpose, the former record owner is entitled to the proceeds above unpaid taxes, the taxes that would have accrued after foreclosure, penalty, interest, foreclosure and sale costs, and net carrying costs. The municipality must mail the former owner written notice of any excess and how to claim it, and a claim filed more than six months after the sale date is forever barred.AS 29.45.480 - proceeds split between borough and city; excess to former record owner if held under 10 years and never designated for public purpose; six-month claim barAS 29.45.480Verified Sep 27, 2026

What the deed conveys: 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.AS 29.45.450 - clerk of court deeds unredeemed property to the borough or city; clear title except prior federal and state tax liens; two-year barAS 29.45.450Verified Sep 27, 2026 See the due diligence guide.

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