Catoosa County, GA tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Catoosa County, seat of Ringgold: 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 Catoosa County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Catoosa County Tax Commissioner, acting as Levying Officer and Ex-Officio Sheriff
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- "Tax sales (when held) occur on the first Tuesday of the month between the hours of 10:00 am and 4:00 pm at the Courthouse. In the event that the first Tuesday of the month falls on a legal holiday, the sale may be held on the following day (Wednesdays)." No fixed annual sale month is published; sales are held only when properties are levied.
Registration and deposit
No advance bidder registration is published. Bidding is open outcry at the courthouse sale. Per the county guide, "Bidding on a piece of property is a binding agreement between the Levying Authority and the bidder/purchaser," the winning bidder signs a statement attesting to the purchase, and "The bid payment must be paid in full in the form of cash, certified check, or money order." The time to remit payment is determined the day of the sale.
Catoosa County sells a redeemable Sheriff's Tax Deed at an in-person courthouse auction. Properties are advertised in the county legal organ once a week for four consecutive weeks, and the owner gets a certified-mail notice at least 10 days before the sale. The opening bid is the tax due plus penalties, interest, and costs, and the property goes to the highest bidder. If no one bids the amount due, the Levying Officer treats it as a "No Bid" and may re-offer it that same day. After payment, the Levy Officer executes and records a Sheriff's Tax Deed within 30 days, and reserves the right to rescind a sale within 30 days with a full refund of the bid. The deed is not fee simple: state law bars the purchaser from taking possession or trespassing for 12 months after the sale, after which the purchaser may bar or foreclose the right of redemption. The Tax Commissioner also posts an excess funds list from prior tax sales. As of July 2026 the Tax Sales page's document feed returned no posted sale, so no specific upcoming sale date was published at the time of research. In person, public outcry at the Catoosa County Courthouse. No online auction platform is used.
County offices
Notes for Catoosa County
- The Tax Commissioner's office is the levying authority and acts as Ex-Officio Sheriff for tax sales, per O.C.G.A. 48-5-137 as cited in the county's own tax sale guide.
- Sales are in person on the courthouse steps. Catoosa does not use GovEase, Bid4Assets, RealAuction, or any other online platform.
- Main office: 796 LaFayette St., Ringgold, GA 30736. A satellite office at 205 Forrest Road, Ft. Oglethorpe, GA 30742 handles routine tax and tag business.
- The office website is catoosataxes.com (hosted by Government Window); the county portal at catoosacountyga.gov links out to it.
- The county publishes a Delinquent Tax Sales Information PDF covering fi. fa. issuance, levy, advertising, sale mechanics, payment, redemption, and barment.
- An Excess Funds from Prior Tax Sales spreadsheet is posted on the Tax Commissioner home page.
- Property tax bills are mailed around October 20 and are due December 20, which sets the delinquency clock that feeds later levies.
- Municipal tax sales in the county follow the same procedures as county tax sales, per the county guide.
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 Catoosa County, Georgia sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Catoosa County follows Georgia's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Catoosa 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.
Explore all 159 Georgia counties
Compare sale calendars, platforms, and rules across the state, or read the guides before you bid.