Tax-foreclosed property: how it works
Negotiated sale of county-owned tax-foreclosed property
New York has no statewide over-the-counter list. RPTL 1166 lets a tax district that took title through foreclosure sell with or without advertising for bids, so a parcel left unsold at auction may later be sold by negotiated or sealed-bid sale, but any sale other than a public auction to the highest bidder takes effect only after the county governing body approves it by majority vote. Unsold parcels may also go to a land bank or other public entity. Whether a county holds any such inventory must be confirmed with the county treasurer or real property office.
Does New York publish a lands-available list?
No statewide Lands Available list. Unsold tax-foreclosed inventory stays with each county.
This route skips the live auction, which means these are the parcels nobody bid on, so the due diligence matters even more. Every state names this inventory differently, and the state-held and struck-off land table maps each local name to the same mechanism. The over-the-counter guide has the cross-state playbook.
Verified Sep 27, 2026 against New York 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.