Leon County, TX tax sales
Tax Sale Atlas maps the Leon County, TX tax sale, one of 3,131 counties in 51 states. Texas sells redeemable deeds carrying a 25% penalty in the first year. Sale office, calendar and list locations read from state rules plus what the county publishes on Oct 6, 2026.
How tax deed sales work in Leon County, seat of Centerville: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
New to tax sales? Read how Texas tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.
- Announcements
- The county's posted Joint Notice of Sale set its sale for Tuesday, February 1, 2022 at 1:30 p.m. at the Courthouse Steps.
- Format
- In person
- County office
- 903-536-2543
On this page
How Leon County sells delinquent taxes
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Leon County Sheriff's Office (sale conducted by the Sheriff; delinquent tax suits and sale notices handled by McCreary Veselka Bragg & Allen, P.C. for Leon County, and by other firms for some school districts and the City of Marquez)
- Frequency
- annual
When it runs
Registration and deposit
Register in person with the officer conducting the sale before bidding starts and show a valid driver's license or state or federal ID; the grantee on the deed must be the same person who was the successful bidder (Tex. Tax Code Sec. 34.015). Bidding is oral, property sells for cash to the highest bidder at or above the posted minimum bid, and payment must be cash or cashier's check (no personal checks). MVBA's sale information also warns that in certain counties the buyer must hand the officer a written statement from the County Tax Assessor-Collector showing no delinquent taxes owed to the county, any school district, or any city in the county, and that no deed issues until that statement is presented; MVBA directs buyers to "Contact the county tax office to determine if this requirement is applicable." Confirm with the Leon County Tax Assessor/Collector at 903-536-2543 before the sale.
Sale format and venue
Leon County tax sale list and auction calendar
For Leon 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.
Confirm the advertised parcel list
Use Property Tax Sales (Tax Assessor/Collector page, pointing to MVBA and LGBS listings) as a starting reference. Check which sale or list it covers; a Lands Available or office information page is separate from an auction parcel list. Ask the sale office for the advertised parcels for the auction you plan to attend.Register to bid
Ask the Leon County Sheriff's Office how and when to register; many counties close registration days or weeks before the sale.Sale day
The sale is live and in person; there is no online bidding platform. Confirm the venue and hour with the Leon County Sheriff's Office before you go.Confirm with the office
If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use the Leon County Sheriff's Office as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.
Before you bid in Leon County
4 checks
Confirm the parcel list before pricing
Open Property Tax Sales (Tax Assessor/Collector page, pointing to MVBA and LGBS listings). Confirm whether this reference contains the auction parcels or covers a different list. Get the advertised parcel list from the county before you price a bid, and recheck it before the sale.Confirm registration and deposit
Register in person with the officer conducting the sale before bidding starts and show a valid driver's license or state or federal ID; the grantee on the deed must be the same person who was the successful bidder (Tex. Tax Code Sec. 34.015). Bidding is oral, property sells for cash to the highest bidder at or above the posted minimum bid, and payment must be cash or cashier's check (no personal checks). MVBA's sale information also warns that in certain counties the buyer must hand the officer a written statement from the County Tax Assessor-Collector showing no delinquent taxes owed to the county, any school district, or any city in the county, and that no deed issues until that statement is presented; MVBA directs buyers to "Contact the county tax office to determine if this requirement is applicable." Confirm with the Leon County Tax Assessor/Collector at 903-536-2543 before the sale.
Check the state rules that change the bid
Read the Texas 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 Texas before you price the title work.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
unsold properties
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 purchases work. Every state has its own name for what goes unsold, so check what Texas calls its leftover tax-sale inventory.
Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.
County offices
Tax sale office
County notes
- The Leon County Tax Assessor/Collector is Victoria Willis, CTOP. The office is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., closed daily from noon to 1 p.m. for lunch, with vehicle and boat title processing ending at 4 p.m. Fax is 903-536-2431.
- Three delinquent tax law firms handle Leon County suits: McCreary Veselka Bragg & Allen, P.C. for Leon County (100 N. 6th Street, Suite 602, Waco, TX 76701, 254-756-7755); Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson LLP for Normangee ISD (903-872-3096); and Perdue Brandon Fielder Collins & Mott LLP for Buffalo ISD, Oakwood ISD and the City of Marquez (903-597-7664). A parcel's sale notice can come from whichever firm filed its suit.
- Leon County Sheriff Kevin Ellis signed the posted Joint Notice of Sale. The Sheriff's Office is at 606 E. St. Mary's Street, P.O. Box 278, Centerville, TX 75833, phone 903-536-2749.
- Sale inventory skews rural and mineral heavy. The posted notice listed manufactured homes, small acreage tracts, town lots in Normangee, and many fractional royalty and overriding royalty interests in oil and gas wells, several of which were marked WITHDRAWN before the sale.
- Property is sold by legal description and AS IS with all faults; all sales are final with no refunds. Deeds, maps, and plats are in the County Clerk's office or at the Leon Central Appraisal District (141 W. St. Mary's, Centerville, 903-536-2252, www.leoncad.org), and the underlying lawsuit files are with the District Clerk.
- The minimum bid covers taxes delinquent as of the judgment date and does not include the current tax year; the buyer must pay all taxes accruing after the judgment date.
- A bidder who wins and then fails to pay is liable for 20 percent of the property's value plus the costs of the default, under Rule 652 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure.
- Property bought at the sale can still be subject to city or property owners association liens for demolition, mowing, or maintenance fees.
- Property tax payments (not sales) run through www.leoncountytax.org, which carries no tax sale listings.
Texas 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 Leon County, Texas sell tax liens or tax deeds?
How often does Leon County hold tax deed sales?
I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?
Where can I find the Leon County tax sale list?
Verified Oct 6, 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 office that runs the sale before you bid.
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