Hill County, TX tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Hill County, seat of Hillsboro: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
Verified Jul 27, 2026 against official county and state sources.
New here? Read how Texas tax sales work, the difference between a lien and a deed, and redemption periods.
How Hill County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Hill County Tax Office (Hill County Tax Assessor-Collector, Krystal A. Hightower, PCC), with the auction held at the courthouse steps and the winning bidder receiving a Sheriff's Deed. Delinquent tax suits and bid sheets are handled by the county's delinquent tax law firm, McCreary, Veselka, Bragg & Allen, P.C.
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- First Tuesday of the month at 10:00 a.m. on the east steps of the Hill County Courthouse in Hillsboro. The tax office sale page states: "Our next Tax Sale will be held on February 3, 2026 at the Hill County Courthouse - East Steps, Hillsboro, Texas, at 10:00 a.m." The MVBA upcoming-sales list places Hill County under "August Tax Sales (Tuesday, August 4, 2026)", and the county bid sheet is headed "August 4, 2026 at 10:00AM" at the "Courthouse Steps". Recent sales fell on October 7, 2025, February 3, 2026, and August 4, 2026, all statutory first Tuesdays, so Hill County holds sales periodically rather than every month.
Registration and deposit
Register in person with the officer conducting the sale before bidding opens. The county notice states: "Prior to the beginning of the tax sale, a person intending to bid is required to register with the person conducting the sale and present a valid driver's license or identification card issued by a state agency or the United States government." A person bidding for a corporation or entity must provide documentation showing authority to bid for it, and the deed grantee must be the same person or entity as the successful bidder (Texas Tax Code Section 34.015). The bidder or entity must not be barred from acquiring Texas real property under Texas Property Code Section 5.253. Payment is due in cash or by cashier's check payable to Hill County Tax Office; a bidder who fails to pay is liable for 20 percent of the property value plus costs under Rule 652 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure.
Texas sells redeemable tax deeds, not certificates, so this is a deed sale with a statutory right of redemption. Hill County runs the sale IN PERSON on the courthouse steps and does not use an online auction platform. On the same MVBA sale date, Comal and Harrison are flagged "(MVBA Online Sale)" and McLennan "(GovEase Online Sale)", while Hill County is listed only with a PDF bid sheet, which confirms the in-person format. Bidding is oral to the highest bidder, and the minimum bid printed beside each tract is the floor; lower sums cannot be accepted. Buyers receive an ordinary Sheriff's Deed without warranty, title is not guaranteed, and title insurance may be difficult to obtain. Property sells by legal description, "AS IS" with all faults, and all sales are final. Purchases may still be subject to city or POA liens for demolition, mowing, or maintenance. Redemption runs from the date the purchaser's deed is recorded: two years for homestead property, agricultural-use land, and mineral interests, and 180 days for all other property, at a 25 percent premium in the first year or 50 percent in the second. Minimum bid sheets are available at the tax office or from MVBA. The county sale page directs questions to McCreary, Veselka, Bragg & Allen, P.C., Waco office at (254) 756-7755; the August 2026 bid sheet lists the Round Rock office at (512) 323-3270 or (512) 323-3272. Note the tax office sale page still headlined the February 3, 2026 date when checked in July 2026, so treat the MVBA upcoming-sales list as the fresher calendar. In person, oral-bid auction on the Hill County Courthouse steps. No online auction platform.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
Texas has no over-the-counter certificate list. Parcels that draw no sufficient bid are struck off to the taxing unit that requested the order of sale, and that unit may resell them at any time by public or private sale. A public resale requested through the sheriff or constable may be sold for any amount. A private sale generally may not go below the lesser of the market value stated in the judgment or the total judgments against the property, unless every taxing unit entitled to proceeds consents. Ask the county or its delinquent-tax law firm for the current struck-off inventory.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work.
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Hill County Tax Office (Hill County Tax Assessor-Collector)
Physical: 126 S Covington Street, Hillsboro, TX 76645. Mailing: P.O. Box 412, Hillsboro, TX 76645. Office hours Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Official websiteNotes for Hill County
- The county's own tax sale page (https://www.hilltax.org/tax-sale/) carries the full bidder notice, redemption terms, and archived sale notices and results by year.
- Hill County is an in-person sale. Do not attach an online bidding platform to this county; MVBA runs its online auctions at mvbataxsales.com only for the counties it explicitly labels as online sales, and Hill is not one of them.
- Two different phone numbers appear on official pages: the tax office's own site lists (254) 582-4000, while the county government directory page lists 254-582-4069 for the County Tax Assessor-Collector. The tax office site number was used.
- The county government directory lists the office holder as "Krissi Hightower" while the tax office site lists "Krystal A. Hightower, PCC, CTOP". The tax office site is the more current source.
- The bid-sheet URL is month-specific (https://mvbalaw.com/wp-content/TaxUploads/0826_Hill.pdf for August 2026) and rotates, so the durable list target is the MVBA Monthly Tax Sales index.
- The county's Notice of Foreclosure Sales page on co.hill.tx.us covers mortgage trustee sales, not tax sales, and was returning another county's content when checked. Do not cite it for tax sale logistics.
- The archived October 7, 2025 Notice of Sale PDF on hilltax.org is a scan with no extractable text, so no facts were drawn from it beyond its title and date.
Texas statewide rules
- Redemption
- The redemption clock runs from the date the purchaser's deed is filed for record, not from the sale date. Property that was the owner's residence homestead or was land designated for agricultural use when the suit or the warrant application was filed, and any mineral interest, may be redeemed on or before the second anniversary of that filing. Every other property may be redeemed only through the 180th day after the deed is filed. When a parcel is struck off to a taxing unit instead, the period runs from the date the taxing unit's deed is filed for record. The former owner has no right to use, possess, or collect rent from the property while the redemption right runs, and the right of redemption cannot be sold or transferred: any instrument purporting to transfer it is void.
- Deed deposit
- The Tax Code sets no statewide deposit and no buyer premium. Section 34.01 directs the officer to conduct the sale the way similar property is sold under execution, so payment terms are set locally by the officer who runs the sale. Most Texas counties collect the full bid in cash or by cashier's check on the day of the sale. Confirm the terms with the county before you bid.
- Homestead deeds
- Texas sets no separate opening bid for a homestead. What changes on a homestead parcel is the exit: a residence homestead, land designated for agricultural use when the suit or warrant application was filed, and a mineral interest all carry a two-year redemption right instead of 180 days, and the premium the owner pays can reach 50 percent in the second year. Price a homestead parcel for that longer clock.
- Surplus proceeds
- The officer pays any excess proceeds to the clerk of the court that issued the order of sale. The clerk holds the excess for two years after the sale and notifies the former owner when the amount exceeds $25. A claim must be filed before the second anniversary of the sale. The court pays established claims in statutory priority: a purchaser at a sale later adjudged void, taxing units for post-judgment or omitted taxes, other lienholders, taxing units for unsatisfied judgment amounts, and then the former owner. Anything unclaimed is distributed to the taxing units.
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.
Frequently asked questions
Does Hill County, Texas sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Hill County follows Texas's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Hill County hold tax deed sales?
- annual. Each sale is scheduled and advertised in advance, so check the county's tax deed calendar for the next posted date.
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.
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