To buy a redeemable tax deed in Massachusetts you bid on the property at a county auction run by the Each city or town, never the county or the state. The deed does not issue at the sale: the former owner keeps a statutory window to redeem by paying you a premium, and your deed issues only after that window closes unredeemed.
Each step below is drawn from Massachusetts statute, not general advice. The exact sale dates, platform, and deposit amounts are set county by county, so confirm the specifics on your county page before you register.
New here? There is no certificate step in Massachusetts. You bid on the property itself, so the money is at risk on the parcel from day one and the research has to happen before the auction, not after. Not sure which is for you? Start with tax lien vs tax deed.
Learn the timeline and lien priority
The tax is a lien on the land from January 1 of the assessment year. Real estate tax bills are due July 1 for the fiscal year, but most cities and towns have accepted quarterly (August 1, November 1, February 1, May 1) or semi-annual payment under M.G.L. c. 59, s. 57C, so due dates vary by municipality. Overdue tax bears interest at 14 percent a year. Before selling or taking, the collector must mail a demand; if the tax is still unpaid 14 days after the demand, the collector may sell or take the land after 14 days' notice. No statute fixes a minimum delinquency age, and the lien lapses if the parcel is transferred and no sale or taking is recorded within three years and six months after the end of the fiscal year. Understand this before you commit any money.
Learn what sends a parcel to the auction
A real estate tax unpaid 14 days after the collector's demand (ss. 16, 37). The collector then either SELLS at a collector's sale after published and posted notice (ss. 40, 42, 43) or TAKES the land for the town after 14 days' notice (s. 53), recording an instrument of taking within 60 days (s. 54). The taking is not a sale: no one bids, the town becomes the tax title holder, and newspaper 'notice of tax taking' lists should not be read as auction notices. For residential (Class one) property, notices since November 1, 2024 must be mailed, posted on the property, published on the municipal website, and carry a DOR uniform notice in the seven most common languages. A tax title becomes title to the land only through a Land Court foreclosure petition filed at least 12 months after the sale or taking (s. 65). Treasurer's tax title auction (s. 52): not less than the amount necessary for redemption, to the highest bidder, individually or bundled. Collector's sale (s. 43): the price is fixed at the tax, interest and necessary intervening charges, and the winner is the bidder who will take the smallest undivided part of the land for that amount; the whole is sold only if no one offers to take a part, and if no bid equals the tax the collector purchases for the town (s. 48). Low-value land sold without foreclosure (s. 79): highest bidder, and the treasurer may reject any bid he deems inadequate. Foreclosed land a town elects to sell (s. 64A): first listed with a licensed broker within 180 days; if unsold after 12 months, auctioned by a licensed auctioneer at not less than two-thirds of the appraised value.
Bid at the tax deed auction
The Each city or town sells the property at public auction to the highest bidder. At a collector's sale, the purchaser must make an immediate deposit of whatever sum the collector considers necessary to show good faith, or the sale is void (s. 43). No statute sets a deposit for a treasurer's tax title auction or a custodian's auction; each municipality sets it in its terms of sale. Not fixed by statute for a tax title auction; set by each municipality's terms. At a s. 79 sale, a buyer who does not pay the bid within ten days loses the sale and the town is deemed the purchaser (s. 80). A collector's deed must be recorded within 60 days after a collector's sale (s. 45), and an instrument of assignment within 60 days of its date (s. 52).
Wait out the redemption window, then take the deed
Simple interest of 8 percent a year. For a collector's sale purchaser, it runs on the original sum and on intervening taxes and costs the purchaser paid, from the date of sale. For an assignee under s. 52, the redemption amount is the figure stated in the instrument of assignment (principal plus interest accrued to the assignment date, stated separately) plus 8 percent a year on the principal only, from the date of assignment. The treasurer can accept redemption on the holder's behalf and pays it over less a $10 fee. Redemption also covers up to $3 for title examination and release plus recording costs. The rate was 16 percent until St. 2024, c. 140, s. 88 replaced it with 8, effective November 1, 2024. Anyone with an interest in the land may redeem at any time before a foreclosure petition is filed, and a holder generally cannot petition until 12 months after the sale or taking, so the owner usually has at least a year and there is no fixed outer deadline. After a petition is filed, a party may still redeem through the Land Court by filing an answer and paying on the terms the court fixes, until a judgment forever bars redemption. The treasurer may extend the no-foreclosure period by up to 2 years when accepting a partial payment, and a town may by bylaw or ordinance offer payment agreements of up to 10 years during which it may not foreclose. Shorter routes apply where buildings on town-held land are found abandoned or the redemption amount exceeds the assessed value. To redeem, the owner pays From a collector's sale purchaser: the original sum plus intervening taxes and costs the purchaser paid, with interest on the whole at 8 percent a year. From an assignee of a town-held tax title: the amount stated in the instrument of assignment plus 8 percent a year on the principal amount from the assignment date. From the town: the tax title account (the taking amount plus later taxes certified under s. 61 and charges) with 8 percent a year on the original sum from the sale and on each certified sum from its certification. In each case add up to $3 for title examination and release plus recording costs, and $10 more if paid through the treasurer. After a petition, the Land Court adds the costs of the proceeding and a reasonable counsel fee. The rate was 16 percent before November 1, 2024. A collector's sale buyer receives a collector's deed that must be recorded within 60 days; a tax title auction buyer receives an instrument of assignment that must be recorded within 60 days. Neither conveys possession: the title is held as security until redemption or foreclosure. After 12 months from the original sale or taking (an assignee is treated as a purchaser at the original sale or at the taking, so an older title may already be ripe), the holder petitions the Land Court to foreclose all rights of redemption; title becomes absolute only on the court's judgment (ss. 64, 65, 69). Land sold by a town after it has foreclosed passes by the town's deed; land sold under s. 79 is absolute on recording of the treasurer's deed without any foreclosure. If they redeem, that payoff is your return. If the window closes without a redemption, the deed issues to you only then, so the parcel is not yours at the auction.
Or buy over the counter
You do not have to wait for an auction. There is no standing over-the-counter list and no statute requiring one. Tax titles held by a city or town can be assigned only after a public auction with 14 days' published and posted notice and at least 10 days' mailed notice to the owner (s. 52), so there is no private over-the-counter assignment. Separately, a town may assign its tax receivables in bulk to a registered purchaser through a public sale judged on price and qualifications (s. 2C), after publishing the list at least 60 days ahead. Once a town has foreclosed, it may sell the land at public auction through a custodian (s. 77B), through the s. 64A broker-then-auction process, or in any other lawful manner, subject to the excess equity accounting. Ask each treasurer what it holds and how it disposes of it. No statewide list. Each city or town treasurer holds its own tax titles and tax possession property; some post a list of properties in tax title or of upcoming auctions on the treasurer's page (Springfield's collector-treasurer links a 'Properties with Tax Liens' page and posts its foreclosed-property auction notice, parcel list pointer and terms on its Tax Foreclosure Auction page).
One more step: clear the title
Winning a tax deed does not hand you marketable title. Before you can resell to a normal buyer or insure the parcel, you will usually need a quiet title action, which takes months and costs money. Fold that cost into your maximum bid and read what you actually own after a tax deed before you bid. A tax deed also does not wipe out everything: select governmental and municipal liens can survive, and a federal tax lien carries a 120-day IRS redemption right, so check what survives a tax deed too.
Buying redeemable tax deeds in Massachusetts: common questions
How do you buy a redeemable tax deed in Massachusetts?
Can you buy Massachusetts redeemable tax deeds online?
More Massachusetts answers, including redemption and statute detail, are on the Massachusetts tax sale FAQ.
New to this? Start with tax lien vs tax deed and the full Massachusetts walkthrough, then value a parcel with the due diligence guide.
Steps verified Sep 28, 2026 against Massachusetts 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.