San Juan County, CO tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in San Juan County, seat of Silverton: 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 San Juan County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- San Juan County Treasurer and Public Trustee
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Held annually in November at the County Courthouse. The county's public notice for the most recent sale reads: "Notice is hereby given that I will, according to law, offer at Public Sale at the County Courthouse building 1557 Greene Street, San Juan County and State of Colorado, on the 19th day of November A.D., 2025, commencing at the hour of 10:00 a.m. of said day." The courtroom doors open at 9:00 a.m. and, per the county, "the sale begins promptly at 10:00 a.m." The page currently carries the header "Public Notice - All Properties Sold on 11/19/2025," so the next year's date is not yet posted. Confirm the current date with the Treasurer's Office.
- Next expected
- by the second Monday in December, 2026 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Registration and deposit
Bidders register in person on sale day at the courthouse. The county issues one investor number per account and hands each investor an updated list at registration. No deposit is required before the sale. Cash, cashier's checks and personal checks are accepted, and payment for all bids must reach the Treasurer's Office no later than 3:00 p.m. on the day of sale. A transaction is not complete until the bidder card is returned. Seating is capped at 100 participants with no reserved seats, first come first served. County officials, employees, immediate family members and their agents may not purchase a lien under C.R.S. 39-11-151.
San Juan County runs its tax lien sale as a live, in person auction in the County Courthouse courtroom at 1557 Greene Street, Silverton. There is no online bidding platform and no online registration portal, so treat any third party site that appears to offer online bidding for this county with caution and verify with the Treasurer's Office. Bidding is premium style: the county opens each parcel at the taxes due and states that "the highest bidder will get the lien," taking one property at a time in the published list sequence. The Treasurer's published notice set redemption interest for the 2025 sale at 14% per annum, and the county explains the annual rate is set by statute at nine points above the Federal Discount Rate as of September 1, with current rate information available from the office after September 1. Certificate holders may pay subsequent years' unpaid taxes at the same rate of return, with endorsement payments accepted annually after August 1 up to two business days before the annual sale. A certificate holder applying for a Treasurer's Deed pays a $75.00 application fee plus a $300.00 deposit for costs and fees, and the owner may redeem up to the date the deed issues. The county stresses that buying a lien conveys no right of possession, use, improvement or access, and that buyers must rely on their own inspection of the property records. Delinquent tax schedules are published in the Silverton Standard, posted on the county tax sale page, and posted in the County Courthouse building. In person, live oral auction in the courtroom at the San Juan County Courthouse
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)
San Juan County Treasurer and Public Trustee
County Courthouse, 1557 Greene St, Silverton, CO 81433. Mailing: PO Box 368, Silverton, CO 81433
Official websiteNotes for San Juan County
- San Juan County is Colorado's smallest county by population and its tax lien sale is a small, in person event; the courtroom seats 100 participants and no seats are reserved.
- The Treasurer and Public Trustee is a combined office. The same office handles Public Trustee foreclosure sales, which are held at 10 a.m. on Tuesdays on the east steps of the County Courthouse, so do not confuse those with the annual tax lien sale.
- Email for the office is [email protected]; the fax number listed on the Treasurer page is 970-387-8046.
- The Treasurer's page links investor education on the Colorado Treasurer's Deed process, including a slide deck titled "Treasurers Deed Process: What Investors Need to Know" and a video on the new Treasurer's Deed process for tax lien investors.
- Property tax payments run through a separate billing portal at billpay.forte.net/sanjuancocotax, which is for paying taxes, not for bidding at the lien sale.
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 San Juan County, Colorado sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- San Juan County follows Colorado's tax lien state system.
When is the San Juan County tax certificate sale?
- Held annually in November at the County Courthouse. The county's public notice for the most recent sale reads: "Notice is hereby given that I will, according to law, offer at Public Sale at the County Courthouse building 1557 Greene Street, San Juan County and State of Colorado, on the 19th day of November A.D., 2025, commencing at the hour of 10:00 a.m. of said day." The courtroom doors open at 9:00 a.m. and, per the county, "the sale begins promptly at 10:00 a.m." The page currently carries the header "Public Notice - All Properties Sold on 11/19/2025," so the next year's date is not yet posted. Confirm the current date with the Treasurer's 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 San Juan 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.
Explore all 64 Colorado counties
Compare sale calendars, platforms, and rules across the state, or read the guides before you bid.