Rabun County, GA tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Rabun County, seat of Clayton: 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 Rabun County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Rabun County Tax Commissioner (Lauren Benfield), acting as Ex-Officio Sheriff
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- First Tuesday of the sale month, at public outcry on the Rabun County Courthouse steps in Clayton, between the legal hours of sale of 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM. The November 2024 notice reads: "There will be sold for cash or certified funds at public outcry, on the Courthouse steps, in Clayton, Rabun County, Georgia, between the legal hours of sale, on the first Tuesday in November 2024, the same being November 5, 2024." It adds: "The following property will be sold between the legal hours of sale, 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM." Rabun does not post a sale every month; as of July 2026 the Tax Sales page carries only the November 2024 notice.
- Sale list
- Tax Sales (sale notices, PDF)
Registration and deposit
No online pre-registration is published on the Tax Commissioner site. Bidding is in person at the courthouse steps and bids are paid in cash or certified funds. The sale notice states: "At the discretion of the Tax Commissioner's office, payment will be required within two (2) hours after the completion of the tax sale." If a bid is not properly paid, the parcel is re-offered at 2:00 PM the day of the sale or the following day. Confirm current bidder requirements with the Tax Commissioner's office at (706) 782-3613.
Rabun County runs a traditional in-person Georgia redeemable tax deed sale. There is no online auction platform. The notice is styled a Sheriff's Sale and is issued by Lauren Benfield as Ex-Officio Sheriff under tax fi. fa.'s issued by the Tax Commissioner of Rabun County in favor of the State of Georgia and County of Rabun. The notice states properties "are sold under the power of a tax sale deed with specific rights of redemption," that it "is a buyer beware sale and all property will be sold as is," that the Tax Commissioner "makes no warranty, neither expressed nor implied, as to title," and that all properties are subject to recorded covenants, easements and rights of way. The purchaser pays for title, all transfer cost, all taxes, advertising cost and recording fees. The November 2024 list carried 11 parcels with tax years due mostly 2022-2023. Because the county posts a notice only when it has a sale, check the Tax Sales page or call the office before planning a trip. In person, public outcry on the Rabun County Courthouse steps in Clayton
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Notes for Rabun County
- Sale mechanics verified from the county's own November 2024 Tax Sale notice PDF linked off the Tax Commissioner's Tax Sales page. Recency caveat: as of July 2026 that November 2024 notice is the only sale document posted, so timing should be treated as the county's pattern rather than a scheduled upcoming date.
- The Tax Sales page body is loaded by client-side script, so the sale notice links do not appear in the raw page HTML. The rendered list currently contains one item labeled "November 2024 Tax Sale."
- Sale location in the notice is given only as "the Courthouse steps, in Clayton, Rabun County, Georgia." No street address for the courthouse appears in the notice, and the Tax Commissioner's office address (19 Jo Dotson Circle) is a separate building.
- The county's Search and Pay Taxes portal is hosted by Government Window and is a payment and tax-record lookup tool, not an auction platform. It was not reachable for verification (Cloudflare challenge), so it is not cited.
- The main Rabun County government site at rabuncounty.ga.gov returned HTTP 403 to automated fetches and was not used as a source.
- FAQ page confirms real estate and business personal property taxes are due December 1, that unpaid taxes over 90 days past due result in a fi. fa. recorded with the Clerk of Superior Court, and that the Tax Commissioner may then levy on the property.
- Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, excluding major holidays. The site posted a 2026 holiday closure schedule, confirming it is actively maintained.
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 Rabun County, Georgia sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Rabun County follows Georgia's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Rabun 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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