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Tax Sale Atlas

National reference

Tax lien interest rates by state

Tax Sale Atlas holds a top statutory rate for 19 of the 20 lien and hybrid states it has mapped, from 9% to 24%. The remaining lien state publishes no single statewide figure, and deed states pay no investor interest at all. Checked Oct 12, 2026.

The maximum interest a tax lien certificate can earn, and how that rate is set, varies by state. Some states fix the rate by statute, others let bidders bid it down at the sale, and a few leave it to county law. This table lists the top rate, the mechanism, and any statutory minimum, each cited to the source.

StateMax rateHow it is setMinimumSource
Alabama(hybrid)12%Bid down at auctionNo floorMobile County Revenue Commission, Tax Lien FAQs (citing Code of Alabama Sections 40-10-186 and 40-10-197(j)); deed-path rate per Code of Alabama Section 40-10-122 and Ala. Admin. Code r. 810-4-6-.02
Arizona16%Bid down at auctionNo floorA.R.S. 42-18053, 42-18114
Colorado13%Fixed rateNoneColorado Division of Banking, Interest Rates set by the Bank Commissioner: 39-12-103 C.R.S. redemption interest is 13 percent effective October 1, 2026. Checked October 1, 2026.
District of Columbia18%Fixed rateNoneD.C. Code § 47-1348(a)(10), D.C. Law Library
Florida(hybrid)18%Bid down at auction5%Fla. Stat. 197.172, 197.472
Illinois9%Bid down at auctionNo floor35 ILCS 200/21-215
Indiana15%Flat penalty10%Ind. Code 6-1.1-25-2. Official host iga.in.gov is JavaScript-rendered (no fetchable per-section text);. A 2026-07-25 browser pass confirmed iga.in.gov renders the Code only through a client-side app (section content served via an internal API, not a fetchable per-section URL or static PDF), so the verified FindLaw mirror is retained for this non-live state; re-verify at iga.in.gov on state launch.
Iowa24%Fixed rateNoneIowa Code §447.1 (Redemption, terms)
Kentucky12%Fixed rateNoneKRS 134.125 (Interest on Certificates of Delinquency); KRS 134.452 (Third-Party Purchaser)
Louisiana12%Bid down at auction8.4%La. Const. art. VII, §25 (interest/penalty ceilings) and La. R.S. 47:2154 (auction-rate mechanics)
Maryland20%Set by county law6%Montgomery County, MD Dept. of Finance, Tax Sale Information and Procedures (citing Tax-Prop. §14-820); corroborated by Baltimore City Code Art. 28 §8-1
Mississippi18%Fixed rateNoneMiss. Code Ann. § 27-45-3 (redemption amount) and § 27-45-27 (purchaser's lien interest), Unannotated Mississippi Code hosted by LexisNexis (state-designated official publisher); retrieve the cited sections by section number (no per-section deep link).
Missouri10%Fixed rateNoneRSMo § 140.340 (Missouri Revisor of Statutes)
Montana10%Fixed rateNoneMont. Code Ann. § 15-16-102 (Time for payment -- penalty for delinquency)
Nebraska14%Fixed rateNoneNeb. Rev. Stat. § 77-1824 (rate incorporated from § 45-104.01)
New Jersey18%Bid down at auctionNoneN.J.S.A. 54:5-32 (Sale in fee subject to redemption), New Jersey Legislature statutes database
Ohio(hybrid)18%Bid down at auctionNo floorOhio Rev. Code 5721.32, "Sale of tax certificates by public auction" (see also 5721.30 definitions) - codes.ohio.gov
South Dakota10%Bid down at auctionNoneSDCL 10-23-8; 10-23-25; 54-3-16 (South Dakota Legislature)
West Virginia12%Fixed rateNoneW. Va. Code § 11A-3-56(a) (redemption interest, 1% per month); see also § 11A-3-58(a)
Wyoming15%Fixed rateNoneWyoming Statutes § 39-13-109(e)(iv)(A) (Redemption, penalty + interest owed)

Most of these rates are a statutory ceiling, but not all. Where the mechanism reads "Set by county law" the statute sets only a default and counties may go above it, so the figure is the highest confirmed county rate rather than a cap. In bid-down states the rate you earn is set at the auction and is often well below the headline. Confirm the figure with the county before you bid, and see realistic tax lien returns for why the effective yield differs from the headline rate.

Estimate what a certificate actually pays

Plug a rate and redemption timeline into the yield calculator to see the real return, floor included.

Open the yield calculatorSee all tax lien states