When the sale is held
No statute fixes a month, and there is no statewide auction date. After foreclosure the municipality decides whether to sell back to the former owner, keep the property, or sell it. To sell to anyone else it must mail the former owner a notice at least 90 days before listing, then list with a broker, who has up to 12 months to sell. Listings appear on the open market (broker and MLS listings) at any time of year.
When taxes go delinquent
Each municipality votes the date or dates its property tax is due and the date interest begins, which is also the date the tax becomes delinquent. The interest rate is set in the same vote and may not exceed the Treasurer of State's annual maximum (the prime rate on the first business day of the year, rounded up, plus 3 points): 7.00 percent for 2026. The tax is secured by a lien on the real estate. After 8 months and within 1 year from the tax's commitment, the collector may serve a demand for payment within 30 days; if it remains unpaid, the collector records a tax lien certificate within the next 10 days. The resulting tax lien mortgage has priority over all other mortgages, liens and encumbrances. The lien procedure is in addition to other collection methods the law provides.
What sends a parcel to the sale
Automatic foreclosure: the tax lien mortgage, with interest and costs, not paid within 18 months after the lien certificate was filed in the registry of deeds. No court order and no sale is needed; title vests in the municipality. A municipality may instead waive the automatic foreclosure before it occurs and foreclose in court (944, 945). In the Unorganized Territory the State's mortgage forecloses if unpaid by March 30 of the year after the certificate is filed.
Leftover parcels between sales
There is no over-the-counter list of liens. Once a lien forecloses, a municipality that sells to anyone other than the former owner lists the property with a licensed broker, so buyers find it on the open market and make an offer through the listing agent like any other listing. If the listing fails, the municipality may sell by any method its legislative body authorizes. In the Unorganized Territory, Maine Revenue Services no longer publishes an annual sealed-bid packet and lists State tax-acquired land with a broker.
These dates are the statewide statutory schedule. The exact auction date, registration deadline, and platform are set county by county, so confirm them on the Maine county pages before you plan a bid. For the mechanics of the sale itself, see how to buy in Maine.
Verified Sep 28, 2026 against Maine statutes.
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.