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Tax Sale Atlas

Thomas County, NE tax sales

How tax lien sales work in Thomas County, seat of Thedford: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.

New to tax sales? Read how Nebraska tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.

Next sale
Nebraska holds no tax deed auction.
Format
In person
County office
308-645-2262
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Aug 24, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Thomas County sells delinquent taxes

From lien to deed

Nebraska holds no county tax deed auction. A certificate holder reaches title down one of two roads, and which road is available depends on how much equity is in the parcel. Three years after the date of the tax sale, and after serving the Neb. Rev. Stat. 77-1831 notice at least three months in advance, the holder may apply to the county treasurer for a tax deed. That road is open only where 110 percent of the parcel's assessed value at the time of the application, less the amount that would be needed to redeem it, is twenty five thousand dollars or less. Where the equity is larger the holder must instead foreclose the certificate in the district court of the county where the land lies, in the same manner as a real estate mortgage foreclosure. Either step has to be taken within nine months after the expiration of three years from the date of sale, or nine months after two years where the holder is a land bank and the parcel qualifies as vacant and abandoned. Missing the window voids the certificate.

Tax certificate sale (lien)

In person
Run by
Thomas County Treasurer's Office
Frequency
annual
Next expected
on the first Monday in March, 2027 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Sale list
Thomas County delinquent real property advertising list on Nebraska Taxes Online
When it runs
First Monday in March at 9:00 a.m. The Treasurer states that "the county Tax Sale is held the first Monday in March each year at 9:00 A.M. at the County Courthouse" and that the "Public sale closes when all parcels are offered for sale, then all delinquent taxes are offered for sale under Private Tax Sale." The delinquent list is advertised in the local paper for three consecutive weeks in February before the sale.
Registration and deposit

A $25.00 registration fee must accompany a county Tax Lien Sale registration form, and both must reach the Treasurer no later than the Thursday before the first Monday in March. One bidder cannot bid for more than one company. Request the form from the Thomas County Treasurer at 308-645-2262 or PO Box 227, Thedford, NE 69166. Purchases by fax or telephone are not accepted.

Sale format and venue
The sale runs live at the Thomas County Courthouse in Thedford and is not conducted on an online auction platform, and the Treasurer does not accept purchases by fax or telephone. Nothing is bid down and no premium is paid: the rate is fixed at 14 percent, and certificates are allocated by rotation. Registered investors draw numbers, and "the number drawn shall represent the order in which each investor may bid." Each round gives every bidder one choice, to purchase or pass, and a passed parcel is offered to the next bidder in turn until it is purchased, continuing parcel by parcel until all parcels are sold. Position in the rotation, not price, decides who gets which lien. Investors buy the delinquent tax amount plus interest and advertising costs, together with any other delinquent tax assessed against the parcel. Payment is by cashier check or money order, or by personal check only where the investor holds a letter of credit from their bank; a buyer paying by check is asked to provide a blank check, and the office fills in the purchase total and mails back a copy. A $20.00 fee applies to each certificate sold, with a further $20.00 for any reassignment, and a returned payment carries a $30.00 fee that can be charged again on each re-presentation. Advertised tax amounts exclude interest, which is figured to the date the certificate is taken out. The Treasurer will hold certificates in the office for safekeeping and forward payment on redemption if the buyer asks. Redemption runs three years, and subsequent taxes must be paid as they become delinquent for the life of the certificate. Once the public sale closes, remaining delinquent taxes are offered under private tax sale, so parcels stay available after the March sale, and public, private and county certificates may all be assigned. The office states that it will not provide guidance or legal advice on tax sale certificates, that the purchaser must do their own research, and that Neb. Rev. Stat. 77-1801 through 77-1941 governs buying and foreclosing on certificates. In person at the Thomas County Courthouse
Source: Public Tax Sale Information, Thomas County Treasurer· Verified Aug 24, 2026

Thomas County tax sale list and auction calendar

For Thomas County tax sale 2026 searches, use the county-run sources below rather than a copied parcel list, and confirm the parcel, registration cutoff, deposit, and payment deadline against the county before you bid.

  1. Get the advertised list

    Use Thomas County delinquent real property advertising list on Nebraska Taxes Online for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.

  2. Register to bid

    Ask the county office how and when to register; many counties close registration days or weeks before the sale.

  3. Sale day

    Nebraska holds no tax deed auction. The sale is live and in person; there is no online bidding platform. Confirm the venue and hour with the county office before you go.

  4. Confirm with the office

    If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use County Treasurer for the administrative deed, or the sheriff under a district court decree as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.

Before you bid in Thomas County

  1. Start with the live sale list

    Pull the current advertised parcels from Thomas County delinquent real property advertising list on Nebraska Taxes Online. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.

  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    A $25.00 registration fee must accompany a county Tax Lien Sale registration form, and both must reach the Treasurer no later than the Thursday before the first Monday in March. One bidder cannot bid for more than one company. Request the form from the Thomas County Treasurer at 308-645-2262 or PO Box 227, Thedford, NE 69166. Purchases by fax or telephone are not accepted.

  3. Check the state rules that change the bid

    Read the Nebraska due-diligence checklist before bidding. Redemption, liens that survive a tax deed, title cleanup, and payment deadlines can change what a parcel is worth.

  4. Set a walk-away number

    Work out what the parcel is actually worth with the rural land value estimator, then turn it into a ceiling with the tax deed max-bid calculator.

Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases

Two routes reach parcels outside the March sale, and both run through the county treasurer. Any parcel that stayed unsold at the public sale for want of bidders must then be sold at private sale at the treasurer's office to any person who pays the taxes, penalty, and costs; the certificate issued that way is marked sold for taxes at private sale. Separately, where the county board bought a parcel in the county's name because it drew no bidder, the treasurer holds that certificate and may assign it at any time to anyone willing to pay the face amount plus 14 percent interest from the date of the certificate, with the county clerk endorsing the assignment and the twenty five dollar issuance fee due from the buyer. If the parcel lies inside a municipality that has created a land bank, the treasurer must give the land bank the first opportunity to acquire the county's certificate. Ask the county treasurer which parcels are open to private sale and which county held certificates are available for assignment.

New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work.

Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.

County offices

Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)

Thomas County Treasurer's Office

308-645-2262

PO Box 227, Thedford, NE 69166; courthouse at 503 Main St, Thedford, NE 69166

Official website

County notes

  • The Treasurer is Andrea Thomas. The office is open 8:00 to 12:00 and 1:00 to 4:00 Monday through Thursday, 8:00 to 12:00 and 1:00 to 3:00 on Friday, and is closed weekends and holidays.
  • Registration closes the Thursday before the first Monday in March, so an investor who waits until sale week cannot take part that year.
  • Choice order is set by a drawn number rather than by price, so arriving registered and on time matters more than bidding strategy in this county.
  • Parcels still unsold when the public sale closes move to a private tax sale through the Treasurer's office, a second route to the same liens outside the March sale date.
  • The Treasurer's tax sale page warns that a certificate buys the delinquent taxes and not the property, that subsequent taxes must be paid each year for three years, and that the window to act once redemption expires is short. It directs investors to Neb. Rev. Stat. 77-1801 through 77-1941 and to their own attorney at certificate maturity.
  • The courthouse is at 503 Main St in Thedford; registration forms and payments go to PO Box 227, Thedford, NE 69166.

Nebraska rules

Max interest rate
14% per year, fixed by statute (nothing is bid)
Minimum return
No statutory floor; every certificate earns the same statutory rate
Redemption
Nebraska does not run a redemption clock that simply expires. The right to redeem stays open until the certificate holder files the application for a tax deed with the county treasurer, and the treasurer may not accept a redemption after the close of business on the day that application arrives. Because the holder cannot apply until three years after the sale, and must first serve a notice at least three months before applying that says in sixteen point type UNLESS YOU ACT YOU WILL LOSE THIS PROPERTY, the ordinary parcel carries a redemption window of about three years and three months and the owner gets a written warning inside it. Several conditions of the parcel or of its owner change that window, and they are recorded as tracks below. On the foreclosure road the window is different again: redemption stays open until the district court confirms the sheriff's sale.
Surplus proceeds
Nebraska returns the owner's equity on both roads. On the administrative road, within thirty days after the deed is recorded the grantee must pay the surplus to the previous owner. The surplus is the resale price if the grantee has already sold the parcel, or the assessed value shown in the county assessor's records at the time of the deed application if the grantee has not, less the amount that would have been needed to redeem the parcel, less the amount needed to pay all encumbrances on it, and less an administrative fee of five hundred dollars, or reasonable attorney fees in the case of a judicial foreclosure, which the grantee may keep to offset the cost of getting the deed. On the foreclosure road, any surplus remaining after all costs and taxes on a parcel are satisfied is applied the way surplus is applied in a mortgage foreclosure, and proceeds from one parcel may not be applied to the taxes on another except as the decree directs.
Governing statute
Neb. Rev. Stat. Chapter 77, Article 18 (77-1801 et seq.)

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.

See the full Nebraskarules and every county →

Frequently asked questions

Does Thomas County, Nebraska sell tax liens or tax deeds?

Tax lien certificates. In Nebraska investors buy the lien, not the property; the County Treasurer runs the sale.

When is the Thomas County tax certificate sale?

First Monday in March at 9:00 a.m. The Treasurer states that "the county Tax Sale is held the first Monday in March each year at 9:00 A.M. at the County Courthouse" and that the "Public sale closes when all parcels are offered for sale, then all delinquent taxes are offered for sale under Private Tax Sale." The delinquent list is advertised in the local paper for three consecutive weeks in February before the sale. The sale is held in person. Always confirm the exact date with the County Treasurer before the sale.

How often does Thomas County hold tax deed sales?

Thomas County holds its tax deed sale none. Nebraska holds no tax deed auction. Each sale is scheduled and advertised in advance, so check the county's tax deed calendar for the next posted date.

I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?

Often yes, by paying the overdue taxes, interest, and costs before the deadline. Nebraska's redemption rule: 3 years from the tax sale before the holder may apply for a treasurer's tax deed, and the owner may redeem right up to the day that application is filed. Call the County Treasurer for the administrative deed, or the sheriff under a district court decree as early as possible for your exact payoff and options; deadlines are strict. Free help: lawhelp.org lists legal aid programs, and consumerfinance.gov lists HUD-approved housing counselors.

Where can I find the Thomas County tax sale list?

Thomas County posts its tax sale list at nto.us. Lists go up ahead of each sale and keep changing until the sale date, so confirm every parcel against the county's legal advertisement before you bid.

Verified Aug 24, 2026 against official county and state sources.

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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Compare sale calendars, platforms, and rules across the state, or read the guides before you bid.

Nebraska tax salesDue diligence guide
Call Thomas County Treasurer's Office