Sherburne County, MN tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •What sells here is state tax-forfeited land, not a lien and not a Florida-style tax deed. Title already passed to the State of Minnesota when the redemption period ran out, and the Sherburne County Auditor / Treasurer is disposing of it under Minn. Stat. Chapter 282.
• •Budget past the hammer price. On top of the bid the county collects a 5 percent buyer premium, a 3 percent state assurance fee on the total sale price of land, timber and structures, a $25 deed fee, a $46 recording fee set by the County Recorder plus $50 more for a well disclosure if the parcel has a well, and deed tax of 0.0033 times the purchase price.
• •Parcels still unsold after the subsequent sale stay available over the counter on a first come, first served basis, so ask the Auditor / Treasurer what is left rather than waiting for the next auction cycle.
• •Non-platted parcels containing non-forested marginal land or wetland carry a restrictive covenant in the deed that bars enrolling the land in a state-funded program paying for conservation of marginal land or wetlands. The county performs no wetland delineation and issues no refunds over wetlands, and it will provide notice of marginal land or wetlands to bidders on request.
• •Sales carry every existing lien, lease, easement, deed restriction, dedication and right-of-way, and the county makes no representation about legal access to the land. Unpaid special assessments can also follow the parcel, so check with the city or town clerk before bidding.
• •Zoning is a separate approval. For parcels in townships call Sherburne County Planning and Zoning at 763-765-4450, and for parcels inside a city call that city's zoning administrator. No structure may be built, moved or altered and no land use may change until the local zoning authority issues a land use permit.
• •Parcels with insurable structures require annual proof of insurance, supplied to the county within 30 days of purchase and within ten days of any cancellation.
• •Under Minnesota law a former owner can apply to repurchase forfeited land, which can pull a parcel back before or after it reaches the auction block. Confirm a parcel's status with the Auditor / Treasurer before committing money to due diligence.
• •Because sale dates are irregular, the Auditor / Treasurer keeps a Forfeited Land Sale Notification Form that puts you on the email list for the next sale.
• •If a forfeited parcel sells for more than the taxes, assessments, penalties, interest and costs charged against it, the surplus belongs to the former owner and other interested parties, who have six months from the mailed notice to claim it. That money is not part of what a buyer recovers.

Minnesota rules

Redemption

Redemption in Minnesota runs BEFORE forfeiture and there is no redemption after a tax-forfeited land sale. The clock starts on the second Monday in May, when the county auditor bids the parcel in for the state, and it runs three years for most property. Once the parcel is unredeemed 120 days before that period ends, the county auditor gives notice of expiration of redemption, which is posted in the auditor's office, published for two successive weeks in the official county newspaper, mailed by certified mail to taxpayers, fee owners, and anyone who filed an address under Minn. Stat. 276.041, and personally served on anyone in possession of an occupied parcel. Redemption ends on the later of the end of the statutory period and 60 days after that notice is given and proof of it is filed with the auditor, and the Department of Revenue's manual states the exact forfeiture date the same way. On that date absolute title vests in the state of Minnesota. A district court can cut the period to five weeks on a city or county petition for abandoned or certain vacant property, so a parcel can reach forfeiture far sooner than three years. Forfeiture extinguishes redemption rights along with almost everything else, with one carve-out that Minn. Stat. 282.005, subd. 10 preserves in terms: rights of redemption provided under federal law, which is where an unreleased federal tax lien can still reach a parcel after the sale. The right to REPURCHASE after forfeiture, under Minn. Stat. 282.241, is a separate remedy and not a redemption right.Minnesota Statutes 281.17 - the three-year redemption period and the one-year exceptions for targeted-community and qualified solid waste facility landMinn. Stat. 281.17Verified Aug 24, 2026

Deed deposit

Minnesota fixes no statutory bidder deposit and no statutory registration deadline. Terms are set locally, and the Department of Revenue's manual treats a cash-only initial sale as best practice because everything above the minimum bid has to stay available for surplus claims. On a Chapter 282.01 sale, parcels are sold for cash only unless the county board has adopted a resolution allowing terms. Where terms are allowed, at least 10 percent of the purchase price is due at the time of purchase and the balance runs in no more than ten equal annual installments, or under a county board policy of no more than 12 installments a year over a term of no more than ten years. Confirm the county's published terms before registering.Minnesota Statutes 282.005 - the required initial public auction of tax-forfeited land, the estimated-market-value initial price, the minimum bid, the six-month deadline, surplus claims, and what forfeiture extinguishesMinn. Stat. 282.005Verified Aug 24, 2026

Surplus proceeds

Minnesota built a surplus claim process in response to Tyler v. Hennepin County, and the Revisor's note under Minn. Stat. 282.08 records that decision. It applies to forfeitures occurring after December 31, 2023. The minimum bid goes into the county's forfeited tax sale fund and everything above it is available to interested parties, meaning any party with an interest in the real estate, including the owner, a lienholder, and anyone who filed their name under Minn. Stat. 276.041. Within 60 days of the sale the county auditor must send notice and a claim form by certified mail to every interested party of record, mail a second notice by first class mail between 90 and 120 days if no claim has been filed, mail notice to the occupants unless the land is vacant, and publish a list of sales with unexpired claim periods on the county website. A claim must be filed within six months of the date the first notice is mailed. Multiple claims are divided in proportion to each claimant's interest, and a disputed claim can be deposited with the district court. Unclaimed surplus returns to the county's forfeited tax sale fund. A separate claim process covers iron-bearing stockpiles, minerals, and mineral interests, which are sold to the state for $50 at forfeiture and valued by the commissioner of natural resources if a claim is filed.Minnesota Statutes 282.005 - the required initial public auction of tax-forfeited land, the estimated-market-value initial price, the minimum bid, the six-month deadline, surplus claims, and what forfeiture extinguishesMinn. Stat. 282.005Verified Aug 24, 2026

Governing statute

Minn. Stat. Chapter 279Minnesota Statutes 279.05 - the county auditor files the delinquent list with the district court by February 15 and the filing acts as a complaint against each parcelMinn. Stat. 279.05Verified Aug 24, 2026

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.

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