Brooks County, GA tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Brooks County, seat of Quitman: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
Verified Jul 27, 2026 against official county and state sources.
New here? Read how Georgia tax sales work, the difference between a lien and a deed, and redemption periods.
How Brooks County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Brooks County Tax Commissioner (Becky P. Rothrock, acting as Ex-Officio Sheriff)
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- No fixed annual date. Sales run only when a levy has been advertised: "Properties scheduled for sale are advertised in the Quitman Free Press for four consecutive weeks prior to the sale. The sales are conducted on the first Tuesday of any given month immediately following the final week of advertising." "Sales are held during the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m." The most recent advertised sale was the April 2026 sale, held "on the first Tuesday in April 2026, the same being April 7, 2026."
Registration and deposit
Bidders must register with the Tax Commissioner before bidding. The county posts a Tax Sale Registration form (individual bidders complete Part A, corporate bidders Part B, all bidders Part C) collecting name, address, phone, email, driver's license or state ID, the name to be placed on the tax deed, payment type (cash or certified funds), and total bid funds available. The form states that "only approved and registered bidders will be able to bid on parcels" and that the signer is "authorized to bid and am ready, willing and financially able to consummate each sale at the price bid." At the sale the purchaser must show photo identification and sign a property purchase form. Winning bids are binding under O.C.G.A. 9-13-170.
Brooks County runs its redeemable tax deed sale IN PERSON, not on an online auction platform. No online bidding portal is offered. The county moved the venue off the courthouse steps: the Tax Commissioner's page states "Tax sales are held at the Brooks Co Administration Building at 610 S Highland Rd Quitman" and flags "**New Location for Tax Sales** No longer held on Courthouse Steps**". The advertisement is styled a Sheriff's Sale under tax fi. fa.s issued by the Tax Commissioner, sold "for cash or certified funds at public outcry" between the legal hours of sale of 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM. The opening bid includes all applicable taxes, penalties and costs, and property goes to the highest and best bidder. Payment is due fast: the procedures sheet says "Payment must be made for the amount of the bid within one hour of the sale" in cash or a cashier's or certified check drawn on an FDIC or FSLIC insured institution, while the April 2026 advertisement says that at the Tax Commissioner's discretion "payment will be required within two (2) hours after the completion of the tax sale," and an unpaid bid causes the parcel to be re-offered at 2:00 PM the same day. The county issues a redeemable tax deed, not a fee simple deed: "Properties are sold under the power of a tax sale deed with specific rights of redemption," the deed is executed 4 to 6 weeks after the sale, and the purchaser gets no possession, no access and no rent for at least 12 months. The record holder may redeem for no less than twelve months from the sale date, after which the purchaser may begin the foreclosure process to bar the right of redemption. This is a buyer beware sale with no warranty of title, subject to all recorded covenants, easements and rights of way, and mobile homes do not convey with the land. Separate mobile home tax sales are advertised. Excess funds are administered by outside counsel (Weissman PC). Confirm the current list and sale date with the office before travelling, since a sale happens only in months with an advertised levy. In person, public outcry at the Tax Commissioner's office
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Notes for Brooks County
- In-person only. No online auction platform. The sale is cried at public outcry at the Tax Commissioner's office, 610 S Highland Rd, Quitman, GA 31643, between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
- Venue changed. The county states tax sales are "No longer held on Courthouse Steps" and now take place at the Brooks County Administration Building at 610 S Highland Rd.
- Sales are event-driven, not calendar-driven. They land on the first Tuesday of a month only after four consecutive weeks of advertising in the Quitman Free Press, so many months have no sale.
- Becky P. Rothrock signs the advertisement as Ex-Officio Sheriff, the standard Georgia arrangement where the Tax Commissioner levies and cries the sale.
- Pre-registration is required and payment is due almost immediately: within one hour per the procedures sheet, or within two hours at the Tax Commissioner's discretion per the April 2026 advertisement. Unpaid parcels are re-offered at 2:00 PM the same day.
- Cash or certified funds only. A cashier's or certified check must be drawn on an FDIC or FSLIC insured institution.
- Redeemable deed mechanics confirmed locally: no possession, access or rent for the purchaser for at least one year, deed executed and recorded 4 to 6 weeks after the sale, and barment of redemption available after twelve months.
- The published sale list is a PDF advertisement linked from the Tax Sales page. The April 2026 list carried seven parcels, mostly small Quitman city lots, with amounts due between roughly $583 and $2,855.
- Mobile home tax sales are advertised separately, and mobile homes do not convey with the land at a real property tax sale.
- Excess funds from Brooks County tax sales are administered by Weissman PC, with claim forms and an open records search on the firm's site.
Georgia statewide rules
- Redemption
- The right to redeem runs for 12 months from the date of the sale and does not end there. It continues after the year until the tax deed purchaser forecloses it by serving and publishing the statutory barment notice, which cannot be started until 12 months have passed. The purchaser delivers the notice to the sheriff at least 45 days before the redemption deadline named in it, and publishes it once a week for four consecutive weeks in the six months immediately before that deadline. Redemption puts title back in the defendant in fi. fa. subject to the liens that existed at the sale, and the purchaser must execute and record a quitclaim deed. Title under a tax deed recorded on or after July 1, 1996 ripens by prescription four years after recording. Judicial in rem foreclosures under Article 5 run on a different clock: the owner has 60 days after the sale to redeem by paying the minimum bid price into the superior court.
- Deed deposit
- Georgia sets no statewide percentage deposit. A purchaser at a judicial sale may tender cash or a cashier's or certified check drawn for the purchase price and issued or certified by a federally insured financial institution. Counties publish their own payment terms, and many require payment in full at the close of the sale, so confirm the terms with the tax commissioner before bidding.
- Surplus proceeds
- Excess funds left after taxes, costs, and the expenses of the sale belong to the former owner and to recorded lienholders in order of priority. The officer who sold the property must mail notice of the excess funds by first-class mail within 30 days to the record owner at the time of the sale, to the holder of each security deed, and to every other party with a recorded equity interest or claim, and may file an interpleader action in superior court. Funds still unclaimed five years after the sale are paid over to the Georgia Department of Revenue, after which only a court order from an interpleader action releases them.
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 Brooks County, Georgia sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Brooks County follows Georgia's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Brooks County hold tax deed sales?
- annual. 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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