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New Hampshire Tax Deed Sales and Auctions

New Hampshire sells the deed itself, so no statutory investor interest rate applies under N.H. RSA 76:13. Tax Sale Atlas holds the sale calendar, auction platform and list locations for all 10 New Hampshire counties, each read from the county’s own official pages and checked against the statute on Sep 28, 2026.

New Hampshire does not sell tax lien certificates, and unless a town has voted otherwise no investor buys anything when taxes go delinquent. Read more…

Taxes unpaid on December 1 after assessment carry 8 percent a year interest; the town or city tax collector then gives 30 days' notice and executes a real estate tax lien to the municipality itself, which takes priority over all other liens. Anyone with a legal interest may redeem for two years by paying the lien plus 14 percent a year on the whole recorded amount, plus costs and any later taxes the town paid with the same 14 percent. If the lien is not redeemed, the collector, after 30 days' notice to the owner and mortgagees, deeds the land to the town (a town may refuse the deed, which leaves the lien and the right to redeem open indefinitely). The investor sale comes after that: with authority voted at town meeting or by the city council, the town sells tax-deeded land by public auction or advertised sealed bids, at a minimum and on terms its governing body sets, or by another method it finds in the public interest, such as listing with a broker. At least 90 days before offering it, the town must notify the former owner, who may repurchase by paying the back taxes, interest, costs and a penalty. From the sale price the town keeps only those amounts and pays any excess into superior court for the former owner and lienholders, a duty that ends three years after the tax deed is recorded. A town that votes for it may also auction its liens during the two-year redemption period under 80:80 II-a; that is uncommon and each town decides for itself.

Rules verified Sep 28, 2026 against New Hampshire Statutes.

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Sale type: Tax deed
Redemption: 2 years
Auction method: premium bid
Over-the-counter: Not available

Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Sep 28, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify

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Tax deed sales

The deed process can lead to property ownership. Confirm the steps below, the interest conveyed, and the title and possession requirements for the parcel. If the parcels you are bidding on are vacant land rather than houses, see what buying land at a tax sale hands you.

Auction method: premium bid

Runs afterThe land must first be DEEDED TO THE TOWN: the collector executes the tax deed to the lienholder two years after the lien was executed if it has not been redeemed, after mailing 30 days' notice to the current owner and to each mortgagee (80:76, 80:77, 80:77-a). More…

The governing body may refuse the deed for environmental liability or other stated reasons, in which case the lien and the owner's right to redeem continue indefinitely and no sale follows (80:76 II, II-a, III). Once the town holds the deed, it may convey the land only if the annual town meeting (by majority vote) or the city council has authorized the governing body to do so, for one year or 'indefinitely, until rescinded' (80:80 I, IV); a town may also vote to keep the land for public use (80:80 V), and nothing obliges it to sell (80:91). At least 90 days before offering the land, the town must send the former owner, and any mortgagee notified of the deed, a certified-mail notice of the terms of the offering and the right to repurchase (80:89 I). The execution of the tax lien and the tax deed to the town are NOT investor sales; see lien.zero_bid_rule.

Run byThe town or city that took the tax deed, acting through its governing body (the selectboard in a town, the council or its designee in a city). More…

No county or state office runs, schedules or publishes these sales. The governing body may run the auction itself, hire an auctioneer, take advertised sealed bids, or, on an affirmative public-interest finding, list the property with a real estate broker (80:80 II, III, VI(a)). A town may hire a private auction company, and one auctioneer's calendar may list several towns' tax-deeded sales side by side; a date read from such a calendar belongs only to the town named beside it. No specific contractor was verified from a primary page in this run.

Deposit

No statewide deposit rule; the governing body sets deposit, registration and payment terms under 80:80 II. Read the town's terms of sale.

Balance due

Not fixed by statute; set in each town's terms of sale.

Surplus proceedsFor land acquired by tax deed, the town may keep from the sale only its 'back taxes, interest, costs and penalty' (80:88 I), defined in 80:90 to include the unpaid taxes and interest, the taxes and interest that would have accrued while the town owned the land, statutory fees, the town's legal costs, its costs of owning and selling the land (insurance, maintenance, repairs, marketing), and a penalty equal to 10 percent of the assessed value at the date of the tax deed, adjusted by the equalization ratio. More…

Any excess must be paid into the superior court for the county within 60 days of the buyer's settlement by a bill of interpleader naming the former owners and everyone with a recorded interest; the court divides it by ownership and lien interests at the time of the tax deed, and money no one validly claims goes to the town. Where there were no record lienholders and the owners are easily identified and located, the town pays them directly without a court filing. The town's duty to distribute proceeds, and the former owner's repurchase right, end three years after the tax deed is recorded (80:89 VII), so a sale made later than that owes nothing under 80:88.

Confirm marketability and insurance requirements with a title professional. Budget any title-clearing work and delays before relying on a resale. See the due diligence guide, or check what survives a tax deed in New Hampshire.

Redemption, delinquency, and over-the-counter at a glance

Redemption

How longRedemption is open until the collector's deed is given, which cannot happen before two years from the lien's execution and requires 30 days' prior notice to the owner and mortgagees. More…

Partial payments are accepted and are refunded if the deed issues before full redemption. If the town refuses the tax deed, the right to redeem continues indefinitely with interest still running. Once the deed issues, redemption ends; the former owner keeps only the repurchase right of 80:89, which is not redemption and costs more.

What the owner pays

The recorded lien amount, plus interest at 14 percent a year on the whole recorded lien from the date of execution to payment in full (on the unpaid balance where partial payments were made), plus redemption costs and the costs of identifying and notifying mortgagees, plus any later taxes the lienholder paid with 14 percent a year interest from each payment, plus the notice fees of 80:77 and 80:77-a where deeding notices have gone out.

Delinquency

How it startsProperty tax not paid on or before December 1 after its assessment draws interest at 8 percent a year from that date; where a tax bill goes out on or after November 2 and before April 1, interest starts 30 days after the bills are mailed, and the collector states the start date on the bill. More…

From December 1 the real estate is subject to the tax lien procedure in any town or city that has adopted RSA 80:58 to 80:86. The collector sends the owner at least 30 days' notice by certified or registered mail stating the last date and time payment will be accepted and the amount of tax, interest and costs, and executes the lien to the municipality the day after that deadline. The lien covers a 100 percent common and undivided interest in the parcel, is reported to the county register of deeds within 30 days, and has priority over all other liens. The municipality notifies recorded mortgagees within 60 days of execution; without that notice the lien process is void as against the mortgagee.

Over-the-counter

How to buyNew Hampshire has no over-the-counter sale of tax liens or certificates. More…

Unredeemed land becomes town property by tax deed, and any later disposal is the town's own sale under 80:80: by public auction, advertised sealed bids, or, where the governing body finds it in the public interest, another method such as listing with a broker or selling an undeveloped lot to an abutter (80:80 III, VI). A broker-listed parcel can be bought at any time it is listed, but that is a town property sale on the town's terms, not a statutory counter sale.

What is available

No statewide list. Ask each town's selectboard office or city assessor for its tax-deeded property list, or watch the town's website and newspaper notices.

All 10 New Hampshire counties

Sales are organized by county. Search your city or county and compare the available sale details. Where deed-sale formats are listed, filter for online or in-person sales. Certificate platforms appear where that sale type is available.

Frequently asked questions

Does New Hampshire sell tax lien certificates?

No. The town or city tax collector executes the tax lien to the municipality itself, and only the municipality, the county or the state may hold it. A town may vote to auction its liens during the redemption period under RSA 80:80 II-a, but that is a local option and uncommon.

How long is the redemption period in New Hampshire?

Two years from the execution of the tax lien. Redemption stays open until the collector deeds the land to the town, which requires 30 days' notice to the owner and mortgagees. If the town refuses the deed, the right to redeem continues indefinitely.

What interest does a New Hampshire tax lien carry?

14 percent a year on the whole recorded lien from the date of execution, plus 14 percent a year on any later taxes the lienholder paid. The lienholder is normally the town, so that interest is paid to the town, not to an investor.

See all New Hampshire FAQ

Learn before you bid

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Start with a New Hampshire county

Open any county for its sale calendar, auction platform, registration rules, and office contacts.

Belknap County Read the guides