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Colorado tax lien & tax deed sales

Colorado is a tax-lien state. Each year the county treasurer holds a public auction of tax liens on parcels whose prior-year taxes are still delinquent, and the auction must commence on or before the second Monday in December. Bidding is premium bid: the lien opens at the taxes, delinquent interest, and fees then due, and it goes to whoever pays the largest amount in excess of that figure. The premium is credited to the county general fund, so it is not part of the investor's return. The certificate earns redemption interest at a single statewide rate that the state bank commissioner resets every September 1, which is 14 percent for the rate year that began October 1, 2025. Three years after the sale the certificate holder may apply for a public auction of a certificate of option for treasurer's deed under Article 11.5, the process that replaced direct deed issuance on July 1, 2024.

Rules verified Jul 29, 2026 against Colorado Statutes.

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Tax lien certificates

You pay the overdue taxes and receive a certificate that earns a return set by statute. Bidders compete on price by bidding above the minimum, and a premium paid above that minimum changes what you actually earn. Compare bidding methods to see how that changes what you earn.

Bidding method: Premium bid
Maximum rate: 14% per year, set by statute (bidding is on price)
Minimum return: No statutory minimum return; what you earn is set by the price at the sale
Sale timing: The auction must commence on or before the second Monday in December each year. If the lien cannot be advertised and offered by then, the treasurer holds the auction on a later date that still allows time for the required published notice. Most counties schedule the sale during the autumn, so confirm the exact date with the county treasurer.
Next expected: by the second Monday in December, 2026 (window; exact dates post per county)
Certificate life: Expires 15 years after issuance

Colorado does not bid the interest rate down. Every certificate sold in a given rate year earns the same statewide rate, and competition happens through premium bidding instead. The lien opens at the taxes, delinquent interest, and fees due, and the bidder who pays the largest amount in excess wins. That excess is credited to the county general fund. It earns no interest, it is not added to the redemption amount, and it is not refunded when the owner redeems, so an aggressive premium directly reduces the investor's yield. Treasurers may also set a minimum total below which they will not accept competitive bids.

Tax deed sales

A tax deed sale auctions the property itself to the highest bidder. Win, and you can take ownership, but the deed is not clean, insurable title on its own.

Runs after: At least three years from the date of the tax lien sale, the lawful holder of the certificate of purchase may file an application with the treasurer for a public auction of a certificate of option for treasurer's deed. This is not a conventional tax deed sale of the parcel. What sells is the option to take the treasurer's deed, and the treasurer delivers the deed to the winning purchaser on demand once the property remains unredeemed. On and after July 1, 2024 this Article 11.5 process is mandatory and a treasurer may no longer issue a deed under Article 11, which is how Colorado answered Tyler v. Hennepin County on owner equity.
Auction method: premium bid (highest bidder)
Run by: County Treasurer
Deposit: The treasurer may require the applying lawful holder to post a deposit covering the recording fee plus the actual and reasonable cost of administering the auction, and all Article 11.5 fees and costs are chargeable as additional amounts owing under the tax lien. For bidders, the treasurer accepts cash, cashier's check, bank check, or electronic funds transfer subject to the treasurer's bidding rules. The statute sets no fixed bidder deposit percentage, so the deposit terms come from county bidding rules.
Balance due: The winning bidder pays at the time of sale or within the period the treasurer allows. If that bidder fails to pay, the treasurer awards the certificate of option to the next highest bidder who pays on time, and the treasurer may bar a non-paying bidder from future sales.
Surplus proceeds: Any overbid goes first to junior lienors in order of recording priority, measured as of the recording date of the application for public auction, who filed a notice of intent to redeem and whose liens are unredeemed, up to each lien's unpaid amount plus fees and costs. Whatever remains is paid to the property owner. The treasurer must post a public notice about these funds and mail the owner a notice within thirty calendar days of the auction. Unclaimed remaining overbids sit in escrow for six months without interest, then transfer to the state administrator under the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act. An agreement to pay someone to recover an owner's overbid is unenforceable, and inducing one is a class 2 misdemeanor.

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.

Redemption, delinquency, and over-the-counter at a glance

Redemption

Redemption may be made at any time before a treasurer's deed is executed, so the practical window runs well past the three-year mark and through the Article 11.5 auction process. The treasurer must hold that public auction between 110 and 125 calendar days after the known interested party notice is first published or mailed, which gives owners and junior lienors a further defined period to pay. A separate rule lets an owner who was under a legal disability when the deed was executed redeem within nine years of the deed being recorded, at 15 percent per year plus the present value of any improvements.

Pays: The taxes, delinquent interest, and costs for which the lien was sold, plus redemption interest from the date of sale at the rate in force, plus every subsequent tax the holder paid and had endorsed on the certificate with interest at the same rate, plus the statutory fees the purchaser paid. Portions of months count as whole months. The premium the investor bid above the taxes is not part of the redemption amount and is not returned.

Delinquency

Colorado property taxes may be paid in full or in two equal installments. The first installment is due by the last day of February and the second by June 15, or the full amount may be paid in a single payment by April 30. Delinquent interest runs at 1 percent per month from March 1 on a late first installment, from June 16 on a late second installment, and from May 1 on a late single payment. The treasurer must mail a delinquency notice to each owner no later than September 1, and the notice sets a payment date at least fifteen days out before the lien is advertised and sold. Parcels still unpaid go to the tax lien auction later that same year.

Over-the-counter

If a tax lien draws no bid, the treasurer strikes it off to the county, city, town, or city and county for the taxes, delinquent interest, and fees, and issues that government a certificate of purchase. A county holding certificates of purchase may then assign, sell, or transfer them in the manner, at the times, and on the terms set by resolution of its board of county commissioners, which is the mechanism Colorado counties use to sell county-held liens over the counter between annual sales. A sale of a certificate on real estate that owes more than ten thousand dollars in taxes is not valid until the property tax administrator approves the sale and its terms after published notice. Availability, pricing, and whether a county offers a public list at all vary by county, so check with the treasurer.

Colorado has no statewide lands-available list of the Florida type. Where a county obtained a tax deed under the pre-July-2024 process, the board of county commissioners lists that real property for sale and may repair and insure it in the meantime. Unclaimed Article 11.5 overbids, not properties, are what escheat: they move to the state unclaimed property administrator six months after the auction.

All 64 Colorado counties

Sales are organized by county. Search your city or county, or filter by whether the tax deed sale runs online or in person. Each row shows the certificate-sale platform for quick comparison.

Frequently asked questions

Does Colorado sell tax liens or tax deeds?: Colorado sells tax liens. The county treasurer auctions liens on delinquent parcels and issues the winner a certificate of purchase. There is no separate tax deed auction of the property at the delinquency stage. The only deed path runs through Article 11.5, where a certificate holder who has waited three years applies for a public auction of a certificate of option for treasurer's deed.
What interest rate do Colorado tax liens pay?: One statewide rate applies to every certificate sold in a given rate year, and it is not bid down. C.R.S. 39-12-103(3) sets it at nine percentage points above the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank discount rate, rounded to the nearest full percent, and the commissioner of banking establishes it each September 1 to take effect October 1. The rate effective October 1, 2025 is 14 percent. Confirm the current rate with the Colorado Division of Banking before you bid.
How does bidding work at a Colorado tax lien sale?: Bidding is premium bid. The lien opens at the taxes, delinquent interest, and fees due, and it goes to whoever pays the largest amount in excess. That excess is credited to the county general fund. It earns no interest and it is not returned when the owner redeems, so the premium is a real cost against the investor's return, not a deposit.

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