Huerfano County, CO tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Huerfano County, seat of Walsenburg: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
Verified Jul 30, 2026 against official county and state sources.
New here? Read how Colorado tax sales work, the difference between a lien and a deed, and redemption periods.
How Huerfano County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Huerfano County Treasurer and Public Trustee
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Held annually in November. The Treasurer's most recent published notice, covering 2024 delinquent taxes, reads "PUBLIC SALE: NOVEMBER 21, 2025" at "10:00 A.M." The same notice adds that taxes paid "on or before November 20, 2025, in cash or certified funds" avoid the sale. The county had not yet posted the following year's notice as of late July 2026, and the state treasurers association 2026 calendar lists no date for Huerfano, so confirm the current year's date with the office.
- Next expected
- by the second Monday in December, 2026 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Registration and deposit
Registration is done on site at the sale. The Treasurer's published rules state "WE REQUEST THAT BIDDERS ARRIVE EARLY TO REGISTER FOR THE SALE." Bidders must complete an IRS Form W-9 at registration or have one on file with the Treasurer's office, and must provide a copy of their driver's license to participate. Bids must be covered by check, certified funds, or online e-check carrying a $2.30 fee. Purchases are billed and sent by email or mail, and buyers get one week to remit payment, with the notice warning that failure to do so may result in loss of the liens purchased. Under C.R.S. 39-11-151(1)(b) no tax lien may be sold to a Huerfano County employee or a member of that person's immediate family.
Huerfano County runs its tax lien sale in person, not through an online auction platform. The Treasurer's notice sets the venue as the Huerfano County Community Center, 928 Russell St, Walsenburg, CO 81089. Bidding is premium based: each parcel is first offered for the amount of taxes, advertising, penalty interest and costs, then sold to the bidder "who shall further pay the largest amount in cash in excess of said taxes, penalty interest and costs." The notice states the buyer earns interest at 14% per annum and that redemption must occur within three years or a Treasurer's Deed may be issued to the certificate holder. The published sale sequence is followed as closely as practicable, and an updated copy of the list with paid parcels removed is posted outside the Treasurer's office for several days before the sale. The Colorado County Treasurers and Public Trustees Association 2026 calendar lists Huerfano with no date and no auction service, while it annotates online counties with SRI, RealAuction or GovEase, which is consistent with the in person format. Several third party listing sites publish Huerfano parcels but none of them conducts this sale, so treat the Treasurer's office as the only venue. Confirm the current year's date, time and venue with the Treasurer before making plans. In person (Huerfano County Community Center, Walsenburg)
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- County Treasurer
- Frequency
- on application
- Typical timing
- There is no fixed calendar. A public auction is scheduled only when a certificate holder applies for one, at least three years after the tax lien sale, and the treasurer must hold it between 110 and 125 calendar days after the known interested party notice is first published or mailed.
Registration and deposit
What sells is a certificate of option for treasurer's deed, not the parcel outright. The treasurer may only accept bids above the combined amount owed to the lawful holder plus the treasurer's fees and costs. County officials, county employees acting in their individual capacity, and their immediate family members may not bid. Payment is by cash, cashier's check, bank check, or electronic funds transfer subject to the treasurer's bidding rules. Any overbid goes to junior lienors who filed a notice of intent to redeem and then to the property owner. Confirm the notice, the bidding rules, and the auction venue with the county treasurer.
This Article 11.5 process replaced direct deed issuance on July 1, 2024. Colorado does not hold a routine calendar tax deed sale, so treat this as an occasional, application-driven auction rather than a recurring event.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
Liens that draw no bid are struck off to the county and the treasurer issues the county a certificate of purchase. The county may then assign, sell, or transfer those certificates in the manner, at the times, and on the terms set by resolution of the board of county commissioners, which is how county-held liens are sold between annual auctions. A certificate on property owing more than ten thousand dollars in taxes needs the property tax administrator's approval after published notice. Whether a county maintains a published county-held list, and on what terms, varies. Contact the county treasurer.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work.
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Notes for Huerfano County
- The sale is conducted in person. The Treasurer's notice sets the venue as the Huerfano County Community Center, 928 Russell St, Walsenburg, CO 81089, at 10:00 A.M.
- Bidding is by premium. Each parcel opens at the amount of taxes, advertising, penalty interest and costs, then goes to the bidder paying the largest additional amount in cash.
- The 2024 delinquent tax notice states buyers earn interest at 14% per annum and that a Treasurer's Deed may be issued to the certificate holder if the taxes are not redeemed within three years.
- Delinquent taxpayer names run in the World Journal for three consecutive weeks. The notice lists October 30 and November 6 and 13, 2025 for the November 21, 2025 sale.
- Payment terms: check, certified funds, or online e-check with a $2.30 fee. Purchases are billed after the sale by email or mail with one week to pay.
- The item number and tax amount for each parcel are read only once by the Treasurer, all successful bids are final, and no changes or cancellations are allowed after a parcel is struck off.
- Certificates of Purchase are retained by the Treasurer in safekeeping and the buyer receives a copy for their records.
- The Treasurer separately publishes a Treasurer's Deed Auctions current list, which is a different process from the annual tax lien sale.
- Office hours are Monday through Thursday, 7:30 am to 5:30 pm. Debra J. Reynolds is the Treasurer and Public Trustee.
- Third party aggregator sites carry Huerfano parcel listings but do not run the sale. Verify everything against the Treasurer's own notice.
Colorado statewide rules
- 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.
- Deed 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.
- 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.
Frequently asked questions
Does Huerfano County, Colorado sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Huerfano County follows Colorado's tax lien state system.
When is the Huerfano County tax certificate sale?
- Held annually in November. The Treasurer's most recent published notice, covering 2024 delinquent taxes, reads "PUBLIC SALE: NOVEMBER 21, 2025" at "10:00 A.M." The same notice adds that taxes paid "on or before November 20, 2025, in cash or certified funds" avoid the sale. The county had not yet posted the following year's notice as of late July 2026, and the state treasurers association 2026 calendar lists no date for Huerfano, so confirm the current year's date with the office.. 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 Huerfano County hold tax deed sales?
- on application. 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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