Catron County, NM tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •Catron County's tax deed sale is run by the New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department, Property Tax Division, not by the county; recent sales have been held at the Catron County Courthouse, 100 Main St., Reserve.
• •After the due dates, a minimum $10 penalty applies to unpaid balances, and interest of 1% accrues after the 10th of each month.
• •First-half taxes are due November 10 and delinquent after December 10; second-half taxes are due April 10 and delinquent after May 10.

New Mexico rules

Redemption

The pre-sale window is long even though there is no post-sale redemption: taxes go delinquent thirty days after each due date, the account transfers to the state after two years, the property cannot be sold until three years after the first delinquency date on the list, and the owner must receive certified-mail notice twenty to thirty days before the sale, as must each recorded lienholder whose address is reasonably ascertainable. Installment agreements run up to thirty-six months at one percent a month and cannot be entered on or after the date of the initial sale. After the sale the only exposure is the former owner's two-year window to challenge the conveyance in district court, and, where a federal tax lien is recorded, the 120-day federal redemption right the Property Tax Division's terms warn about.NMSA 1978, 7-38-65, sale after three years, offer within four years, annual sale in each countyNMSA 1978, 7-38-65Verified Sep 25, 2026

Deed deposit

None. The statute sets no bidder deposit and no registration fee. Bidders register in person on the day of the sale, registration opening at 8:00 a.m. and closing when the 10:00 a.m. auction starts, and bid orally in person or through an agent carrying a notarized authorization. A personal or business check is accepted only with a letter of guarantee from the issuing bank presented at registration.NMSA 1978, 7-38-67, public auction in the county, minimum price, payment in full, land grant-merced match rightNMSA 1978, 7-38-67Verified Sep 25, 2026

Surplus proceeds

Sale money goes first to the department's costs, then to penalties and interest, then to the delinquent taxes, which are remitted to the county treasurer. Since July 1, 2026, a fourth step comes next: if the former owner is a delinquent taxpayer to the Taxation and Revenue Department on any tax program it administers, the department keeps enough to satisfy that debt. The balance is then paid to the former owner, or to anyone a court orders, after the department may first apply it to other property taxes that person owes, and the department may require proof of former ownership. If no former owner claims the balance within two years of the sale after a reasonable search, it is treated as abandoned property under the Uniform Unclaimed Property Act.NMSA 1978, 7-38-71, sale proceeds waterfall and excess to the former ownerNMSA 1978, 7-38-71Verified Sep 26, 2026

Governing statute

NMSA 1978, Chapter 7, Article 38 (7-38-60 through 7-38-74)NMSA 1978, 7-38-65, sale after three years, offer within four years, annual sale in each countyNMSA 1978, 7-38-65Verified Sep 25, 2026

What the deed conveys: A tax deed executed and delivered by the Property Tax Division once payment is received. If the sale was made substantially in accordance with the Property Tax Code, the deed conveys all of the former owner's interest as of the date the state's tax lien arose, January 1 of the tax year, subject only to perfected interests existing before that date. A proper sale extinguishes only the delinquent tax lien; the department's terms state that no other liens are extinguished, that the state warrants no title, and that the buyer has no right of entry until the deed is received.NMSA 1978, 7-38-70, deed to purchaser and the two-year limit on challengesNMSA 1978, 7-38-70Verified Sep 25, 2026 See the due diligence guide.

See the full New Mexico rules and every county →