San Miguel County, CO tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in San Miguel County, seat of Telluride: 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 Miguel County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- San Miguel County Treasurer's Office
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Late October. The county page states: "We will be holding our annual tax lien sale online, on October 27th at 10:00 am MDT." The page does not print the year alongside that date, so confirm the current year's date with the Treasurer's Office before planning around it.
- Next expected
- by the second Monday in December, 2026 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Registration and deposit
Register through GovEase. The Treasurer directs prospective bidders to the GovEase website to "review the rules, register for the sale, see the parcels to be auctioned, and watch training videos." Accounts are created at the GovEase live auction portal, then bidders register for the specific county auction. GovEase bidder support is 769-208-5050 ext. 2 or [email protected]. The county page does not publish a deposit amount or a registration cutoff date, so confirm those on GovEase or with the Treasurer's Office.
The sale is conducted online through GovEase, not at the courthouse. The Treasurer's Office also serves as Public Trustee and can be reached at [email protected]. The county page warns bidders about "the element of risk involved in the purchase of tax liens," naming FDIC properties, DEA-affected properties, and bankruptcies, and states that the office cannot identify potential problems and that buyers should conduct their own investigation. On the version of the page reviewed, the county also states "There are currently no County held tax liens," so no over-the-counter inventory was available at that time. The Treasurer Deeds page likewise showed no treasurer's deed documents posted. Bidding method, premium handling, and deposit terms are not stated on the county page; verify with the Treasurer's Office or the GovEase auction rules.
Register on GovEaseTax 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 Miguel County Treasurer's Office
305 W Colorado Avenue, Suite 105, Telluride, CO 81435 (mailing: P.O. Box 488, Telluride, CO 81435)
Official websiteNotes for San Miguel County
- The county seat is Telluride; the Treasurer's Office is at 305 W Colorado Avenue, Suite 105, with mail directed to P.O. Box 488, Telluride, CO 81435.
- Office hours listed by the county are Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
- The Treasurer also serves as Public Trustee, so foreclosure and tax lien functions share the same office and phone number.
- The county tax lien sale page reviewed did not include the sale year next to the October 27 date, and it did not link a separately published delinquent tax list; parcel data is presented through GovEase.
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 Miguel County, Colorado sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- San Miguel County follows Colorado's tax lien state system.
When is the San Miguel County tax certificate sale?
- Late October. The county page states: "We will be holding our annual tax lien sale online, on October 27th at 10:00 am MDT." The page does not print the year alongside that date, so confirm the current year's date with the Treasurer's Office before planning around it.. 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 Miguel 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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