Cherokee County, SC tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •The opening bid is entered on behalf of the Forfeited Land Commission and equals all delinquent taxes, penalties and costs due plus the current year's taxes due. Parcels drawing no higher bid stay with the Forfeited Land Commission.
• •Redemption runs twelve months from the date of the sale and is handled through the Cherokee County Tax Collector's Office. Interest paid to the successful bidder steps up by quarter: 3% in months one to three, 6% in months four to six, 9% in months seven to nine, and 12% in months ten to twelve. The county page adds that the interest due must not exceed the amount of the bid submitted on behalf of the Forfeited Land Commission.
• •During the redemption period the successful bidder has no ownership rights, no right to enter the premises, and no right to contact the owner. Ownership transfers only if the property is not redeemed.
• •A tax deed is not a warranty deed. It conveys only the interest the county held, the title can be challenged, banks may not lend against it, and the buyer is responsible for quieting title. All sales are final and every parcel sells as is.
• •The buyer pays title search and deed preparation fees when the tax deed is issued, plus recording fees at the Register of Deeds under S.C. Code 12-51-130, and any current taxes due when the deed is ready.
• •A title search is not run until the last quarter of the redemption period. If the Tax Collector finds an error that could have hindered payment of the delinquent tax, the sale must be voided and the bidder is refunded the full bid amount plus interest under S.C. Code 12-51-150.
• •The Delinquent Tax Office states it will not provide research information for bidders, so due diligence on each parcel is entirely on the buyer.
• •Cherokee County taxes are payable between September 30 and January 15. A 3% penalty applies after January 15, an additional 7% after February 1, and an additional 5% plus a $5 fee after March 17, at which point taxes are delinquent with a 15% total penalty. After the execution notice, unpaid accounts draw a Notice of Seizure by certified mail if still unpaid after 30 days.
• •Delinquent mobile home, business personal property and certain boat and motor taxes are referred to third-party collector American Financial Credit Services rather than routed to the real property tax sale. Those accounts must be paid through the collection agency.
• •The county website has no separate Forfeited Land Commission page, so surplus and unsold parcel questions go to the Delinquent Tax Office directly.

South Carolina rules

Redemption

The redemption clock runs twelve months from the date of the sale. Neither more than forty-five days nor less than twenty days before it ends, the delinquent tax officer must mail a notice by certified mail, return receipt requested and restricted delivery, to the defaulting taxpayer and to any grantee, mortgagee, or lessee of record, stating the amount needed to redeem and the date the tax title passes. Certified mail returned undelivered is not grounds to withhold the tax title. If nobody redeems, the officer makes a tax title to the purchaser within thirty days or as soon after that as possible. Personal property sold at a delinquent tax sale has no redemption period at all. A mobile or manufactured home runs on the same twelve-month clock, but it must not be moved from its location during that year without notice to the purchaser and the delinquent tax collector, and the redeeming owner or lienholder also owes the purchaser rent of up to one twelfth of the last completed tax year's taxes for each month between sale and redemption, with a ten dollar monthly minimum. If the official in charge discovers before the tax title passes that a required step was not properly performed, the official may void the sale and refund the bidder the amount paid plus the interest the county actually earned on it.S.C. Code Ann. 12-51-90, the twelve-month redemption right and the quarterly interest scheduleS.C. Code Ann. 12-51-90Verified Aug 6, 2026

Deed deposit

South Carolina fixes no percentage deposit. The successful bidder pays the full amount of the bid on the day of the sale in legal tender, meaning cash, a cashier's check, a certified check, or a money order. If a defaulting taxpayer has more than one item advertised, the officer stops selling once enough has been raised to cover the delinquent taxes, assessments, penalties, and costs.S.C. Code Ann. 12-51-50, public auction of the advertised property and accepted tenderS.C. Code Ann. 12-51-50Verified Aug 6, 2026

Surplus proceeds

If the sale produces more cash than the taxes, assessments, penalties, and costs, the overage first pays any outstanding municipal tax liens on the property. What remains belongs to the owner of record immediately before the end of the redemption period, to be claimed or assigned according to law. Those sums are payable ninety days after execution of the deed unless another claimant files a judicial action inside that window, and they escheat to the general fund of the governing body if neither claimed nor assigned within five years of the sale. Once a tax deed has been issued, Section 12-51-60 requires the delinquent tax collector to notify the defaulting taxpayer and that owner of record in writing that an excess is due, mailed the same certified way the officer took possession, and the cost of that notice counts as a cost of the sale.S.C. Code Ann. 12-51-130, delivery of the tax title, purchaser-paid costs, and the overage rulesS.C. Code Ann. 12-51-130Verified Aug 6, 2026

Governing statute

S.C. Code Ann. Title 12, Chapter 51South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 12, Chapter 51 (Alternate Procedure for Collection of Property Taxes)S.C. Code Ann. Title 12, Chapter 51Verified Aug 6, 2026

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.

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