Skip to content
Tax Sale Atlas

Wells County, ND tax sales

Tax Sale Atlas maps the Wells County, ND tax sale, one of 2,606 counties in 31 states. North Dakota sells the deed itself, so no statutory investor interest rate applies. Sale office, calendar and list locations read from state rules plus what the county publishes on Sep 4, 2026.

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

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

Announcements
That is the window for collecting the notice of sale or buying an unsold parcel at private sale.
Format
In person
County office
(701) 547-3521
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Sep 4, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Wells County sells delinquent taxes

No tax lien certificate sale

North Dakota sells no tax lien certificate to investors. Under N.D.C.C. 57-28-09 the county auditor issues the tax deed to the county itself once the lien is foreclosed, so the county is the only party ever holding the delinquency.

Tax deed sale

In person
Run by
Wells County Auditor
Frequency
annual
When it runs
The annual auction of land Wells County took by tax deed opens on the third Tuesday of November, the date North Dakota law fixes for every county, at the county auditor's office or the usual place of holding district court. Wells County posts no sale calendar of its own, so confirm the hour with the auditor at 701-547-3521.
Registration and deposit

Bidding happens in person at the Wells County Courthouse in Fessenden, and North Dakota sets no statewide bidder registration form or deposit. Each parcel goes to the highest qualified bidder at or above the minimum sale price fixed before the sale, payable in cash or one quarter down with the balance in equal annual installments over as much as ten years under a contract for deed. Call the auditor at 701-547-3521 for the terms the county commission adopts for the current sale.

Sale format and venue
Wells County publishes no delinquent property list and no tax deed sale list online. The auditor's notice of sale carries the description, any street address and the minimum sale price for every parcel, and it appears in two places: posted at the auditor's office in the Wells County Courthouse at least 15 days before the sale, and printed once in the county's official newspaper at least 10 days before it. Bidders get the list by calling the auditor at 701-547-3521 or asking at the courthouse counter. A parcel that draws no bid in November stays available from the auditor at private sale, for no less than its minimum sale price, until the next November auction.
Source: N.D. Cent. Code 57-28-13 - Time and place of annual sale· Verified Sep 4, 2026

Wells County tax sale list and auction calendar

For Wells 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. If the parcels on this list are vacant land rather than houses, what buying land at a tax sale hands you is the place to start.

  1. Get the advertised list

    Wells County publishes no tax sale list online. The Wells County Auditor advertises the parcels ahead of the sale rather than posting them, so the list reaches bidders through the county legal newspaper and the office itself. Call (701) 547-3521 to ask for the current advertisement.

  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

    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 Wells County Auditor as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.

Before you bid in Wells County

  1. Start with the live sale list

    There is no online list to price against. Wells County advertises the parcels before the sale rather than posting them, so get the advertisement from the office on (701) 547-3521 and price from the parcel numbers it carries.

  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    Bidding happens in person at the Wells County Courthouse in Fessenden, and North Dakota sets no statewide bidder registration form or deposit. Each parcel goes to the highest qualified bidder at or above the minimum sale price fixed before the sale, payable in cash or one quarter down with the balance in equal annual installments over as much as ten years under a contract for deed. Call the auditor at 701-547-3521 for the terms the county commission adopts for the current sale.

  3. Check the state rules that change the bid

    Read the North Dakota due-diligence checklist before bidding. Redemption, liens that survive a tax deed, title cleanup, and payment deadlines can change what a parcel is worth. Which liens survive is state law, so read what survives a tax deed in North Dakota before you price the title work.

  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

Any parcel that does not sell at the November auction may be bought from the county auditor at private sale before the next annual sale, for not less than its minimum sale price. Some boards also list unsold parcels through licensed real estate brokers.

New to this path? Read how over-the-counter purchases work. Every state has its own name for what goes unsold, so check what North Dakota calls its leftover tax-sale inventory.

Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.

County offices

Tax sale office

Wells County Auditor

(701) 547-3521

700 Railway St N #37, Fessenden, ND 58438

Official website

County notes

  • The Wells County Tax Equalization office puts no property cards, maps or tax statements on its website, so parcel research before a bid runs through that office at 701-547-3220 or a visit to the courthouse in Fessenden.
  • The Wells County Courthouse is open Monday through Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to noon and 12:30 to 4 p.m., and Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. That is the window for collecting the notice of sale or buying an unsold parcel at private sale.
  • The auditor and the treasurer share the courthouse at 700 Railway St N in Fessenden. The auditor forecloses the tax lien, takes the deed for the county and runs the November auction, and the treasurer takes the money, whether the buyer pays cash or the first installment on a contract for deed.

North Dakota rules

Redemption
There are two distinct windows and neither is a redemption against a private buyer. Up to October 1, paying the amount in the foreclosure notice stops the process. After the tax deed vests in the county, the former owner, the former owner's executor or administrator, or a parent, spouse or child of the former owner may repurchase the property so long as the county still holds tax title, for cash or on a contract for deed. A city holding a delinquent special assessment has a prior right to buy at the appraised value, exercisable within 30 days of the auditor's notice. Once the county sells at the annual auction, the purchaser's deed is not subject to any of this.
Deed deposit
None. Chapter 57-28 sets no bidder deposit and no registration fee. Each parcel is sold at auction to the highest qualified bidder for no less than the minimum sale price, and the terms are settled at the sale: the full amount in cash paid promptly to the county treasurer, or one quarter of the purchase price in cash with the balance in equal annual installments over not more than ten years under a contract for deed. A bidder who owes delinquent property taxes in any North Dakota county is disqualified from purchasing.
Governing statute
N.D.C.C. ch. 57-28

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 North Dakotarules and every county →

Frequently asked questions

Does Wells County, North Dakota sell tax liens or tax deeds?

Tax deeds. North Dakota sells no tax lien certificates to investors; the County Auditor sells the property itself at a public tax sale.

How often does Wells County hold tax deed sales?

Wells County holds its tax deed sale once a year. 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. North Dakota's redemption rule: None after the county's annual sale. Before that, the owner may satisfy the tax lien up to the October 1 foreclosure date, and after the county takes the deed a statutory right of repurchase runs for as long as the tax title remains in the county. Call the Wells County Auditor 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.

Verified Sep 4, 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.

More North Dakota counties

Browse all 53 North Dakota counties

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

North Dakota tax salesDue diligence guide
Call Wells County Auditor