Potter County, TX tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Potter County, seat of Amarillo: 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 Potter County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Potter County Sheriff's Office (the Sheriff sells under an Order of Sale issued by the district court; the Potter County Tax Assessor-Collector publishes the property list and answers questions about properties pulled from the sale)
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- First Tuesday of the month at 10:00 AM, held only when foreclosed properties are ready. The Tax Office home page states: "Our next Sheriff Sale will be Tuesday, May 5th, 2026 11th Floor Auditorium Santa Fe Building @ 10 AM". The Sheriff's Notice of Sale reads: "I will proceed to sell at 10:00 A.M. on the 5th day of May, 2026 which is the first Tuesday of said month, at the 11th Floor auditorium, Santa Fe Building, located at 9th and Polk of said POTTER County, in the City of AMARILLO, Texas".
Registration and deposit
Live in-person bidding at the sale; the county's published sale documents do not describe an online or advance registration portal. The Tax Office sale list states "MUST BE 18 YEARS OF AGE TO BID AND/OR PURCHASE PROPERTY" and "*** ALL SALES ARE FINAL ***". Payment instructions on the same list: "PLEASE MAKE PAYMENT BY 3:00 P.M. THE DAY OF THE SALE AT THE POTTER COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE (CIVIL DIVISION) 900 S POLK ST, 12th FLOOR SUITE 1212 AMARILLO, TEXAS" and "FOR PAYMENT QUESTIONS PLEASE CALL (806)379-2938". Texas Tax Code 34.015 also requires a bidder to present a written statement from the county assessor-collector that no delinquent taxes are owed; confirm the county's current procedure for obtaining it by calling the Tax Office at (806) 342-2600.
Potter County runs a live, in-person redeemable tax deed sale. There is no online auction platform. The sale is held in the auditorium on the 11th floor of the Santa Fe Building, 900 S Polk St, Amarillo, and is conducted by the Sheriff on the first Tuesday of the month under Orders of Sale from the district courts. The Sheriff's Office posts scanned Notice of Sheriff's Sale documents at pottercountysheriff.org/sheriffs-sale, and the Tax Assessor-Collector posts a courtesy PDF list of the properties with estimated minimum bids, linked from the Tax Office home page (most recent posted list: May 2026, at https://www.pottercountytax.com/media/May%202026%20website%20%20Sheriff%20Sale%20PDF%202.pdf). That list carries per-property cause numbers, legal descriptions, account numbers and an "Estimated Bid", marks pulled properties "WITHDRAWN", and warns "THESE PROPERTIES ARE BEING SOLD SUBJECT TO 2026 TAXES" with each entry also showing prior-year taxes still owed. The list is explicitly informal: "THIS LIST IS PROVIDED AS A COURTESY. TO VERIFY THE INFORMATION, PLEASE SEE THE LEGAL NOTICE IN THE MONDAY EDITION OF THE AMARILLO GLOBE NEWSPAPER." For property characteristics the county directs buyers to the Potter-Randall Appraisal District at 5701 Hollywood Rd, (806) 358-1601, www.prad.org, and for zoning to the City of Amarillo at (806) 378-3000. To check whether a property was pulled from the sale, call (806) 342-2607 or email [email protected]. The Tax Office FAQ confirms the foreclosure path: "A lawsuit for tax lien foreclosure can be filed with the District Clerk's office and a judgment subsequently granted by the court. The Delinquent Tax Attorney, with approval from the Potter County Tax Office, can then proceed to tax sale." The delinquent-tax law firm is not named on the county sites. Buyers take a redeemable deed subject to the Texas Tax Code 34.21 redemption period. Verify the next sale date before travelling, since sales occur only in months with properties ready and the county sites are updated per sale.
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)
Potter County Tax Assessor-Collector (Potter County Tax Office), Thomas Warren
900 South Polk, Suite 106, Amarillo, TX 79101. Mailing: PO Box 2289, Amarillo, TX 79105-2289
Official websiteNotes for Potter County
- Sale office: the Potter County Sheriff conducts the auction; the Potter County Tax Assessor-Collector publishes the list and handles pulled-property questions.
- In-person only. No online auction platform and no platform URL. Venue is the 11th floor auditorium of the Santa Fe Building, 900 S Polk St, Amarillo.
- Timing: first Tuesday of the month at 10:00 AM. Most recent notice posted by the county covers Tuesday, May 5, 2026.
- Payment is due by 3:00 PM on the day of the sale at the Sheriff's Office Civil Division, 900 S Polk St, 12th Floor Suite 1212, Amarillo. Payment questions: (806) 379-2938.
- Bidders must be at least 18. All sales are final. Properties sell subject to the current tax year.
- The county tax list is a courtesy document; the controlling notice runs in the Monday edition of the Amarillo Globe newspaper.
- Due diligence contacts published by the county: Potter-Randall Appraisal District, 5701 Hollywood Rd, (806) 358-1601, www.prad.org (property detail) and City of Amarillo, (806) 378-3000 (zoning).
- Sheriff's Office main line: (806) 379-2900, 13103 NE 29th Ave, Amarillo, TX 79111. Civil Department: (806) 379-2938.
- The sheriff's sale notices are posted as scanned images rather than machine-readable text, so any scraper for this county needs OCR.
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 Potter County, Texas sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Potter County follows Texas's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Potter 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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