The short answer
2 years from the execution of the real estate tax lien, until the collector deeds the land to the lienholder
New Hampshire runs 5 different redemption windows
Which one applies is decided by the parcel, not by the state, so read the condition before trusting the headline figure.
How the clock works
Redemption 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. 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.
Who can redeem
Any person with a legal interest in the land. A part owner whose share is separately recorded may redeem that share alone.
What the owner pays to redeem
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.
What sends a parcel to the sale
The 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). 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(by majority vote) or the city council has authorized the governing body to do so, for one year or 'indefinitely, until rescinded' (80:80 I, IV); a town may also vote to keep the land for public use (80:80 V), and nothing obliges it to sell (80:91).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.
What the deed conveys
No action may contest the lien's execution or the collector's deed after 10 years from the deed's recording (80:78), so a title examiner will look closely at the notice steps within that period: without the mortgagee notices of 80:65 and 80:66, no collector's deed based on the lien is valid against the mortgagee. After the tax deed the town may treat the land as its own (80:91). The statute does not prescribe what warranties, if any, the town's deed carries; read each town's terms, and order a title search and budget for a possible quiet-title action.
In New Hampshire the owner's ordinary redemption right closes before the city or town offers the parcel rather than running against the winning bidder; check the rule above for any exception, and note that a federal tax lien can carry its own 120-day IRS redemption right. See how redemption periods work across states. What winning the tax deed sale conveys is set by statute, in the card above; budget for a quiet title action if an insurer will not accept that title.
Verified Sep 28, 2026 against New Hampshire 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 office that runs the sale before you bid.