Summit County, CO tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Summit County, seat of Breckenridge: 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 Summit County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Summit County Treasurer and Public Trustee
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- October. The Treasurer's property tax page states: "Unpaid taxes on real property are sold in October at our Tax Lien Sale." The most recent sale named on the Treasurer's tax lien page is quoted as "Wednesday, October 29th, 2025 at 10:00 AM."
- Next expected
- by the second Monday in December, 2026 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Registration and deposit
Bidders register and sign in on GovEase. The Treasurer's tax lien page sends registrants to the Summit County user list on GovEase at https://liveauctions.govease.com/CO/cosummit/1392/CountyUsers, which opens a GovEase account sign-in. The county page does not publish a bidder deposit amount, a W-9 requirement, or a registration cutoff, so confirm those with the Treasurer's office or GovEase bidder support before the sale.
Colorado sells tax lien certificates at this sale rather than deeds. The Treasurer's tax lien page states the interest rate set under C.R.S. 39-12-103 for the 2024 tax lien sale was 14 percent. Delinquent amounts also carry county interest of 1 percent per month plus advertising fees. An owner may redeem at any time by paying the sale amount plus accrued investor interest, calculated monthly, in certified funds. A certificate holder may apply for a Treasurer's Deed once the certificate is more than three years old by submitting an application with a $1,000 deposit to the Treasurer, and the office says that process runs about six months and issues the deed if the owner does not redeem first. When checked in late July 2026 the Treasurer's tax lien page still showed the October 2025 sale as the most recent one, so verify the current year's sale date directly with the office.
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)
Summit County Treasurer and Public Trustee
208 East Lincoln Avenue, Breckenridge, CO 80424 (mailing: PO Box 289, Breckenridge, CO 80424)
Official websiteNotes for Summit County
- The Treasurer's tax lien page points bidders to GovEase, an online auction platform, for registration and bidding, so the sale is not run as a walk-in courthouse auction.
- The delinquent list page posts dated spreadsheets covering real property, personal property, mobile homes, and active tax liens, and the files are refreshed during the year.
- The same office serves as both Treasurer and Public Trustee and handles Treasurer's Deed applications on matured certificates.
- Property tax due dates published by the Treasurer are February 28 for the first half, June 15 for the second half, and April 30 for a single full payment.
- The county mailing address for Treasurer correspondence is PO Box 289; a different PO Box appears in the general county website footer, so use PO Box 289 for Treasurer and tax lien matters.
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 Summit County, Colorado sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Summit County follows Colorado's tax lien state system.
When is the Summit County tax certificate sale?
- October. The Treasurer's property tax page states: "Unpaid taxes on real property are sold in October at our Tax Lien Sale." The most recent sale named on the Treasurer's tax lien page is quoted as "Wednesday, October 29th, 2025 at 10:00 AM.". 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 Summit 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.