Real County, TX tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Real County, seat of Leakey: 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 Real County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Real County Sheriff (listed on the county website as "County Sheriff", Sheriff Nathan T. Johnson). Texas sheriff sales run under Texas Tax Code Chapter 34; the Real County Tax Assessor-Collector, Terrie Pendley, handles property tax billing and collection.
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- No sale is currently scheduled. The Real County Sheriff page carries a single auction line that reads "Next Auction to be announced". Texas Tax Code 34.01 sets sheriff sales on the first Tuesday of the month. A separate 2025 foreclosure notice filed with Real County set its courthouse sale for "Tuesday, August 5, 2025", the first Tuesday of that month, with the sale "held between the hours of 10:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. local time", which shows the county uses the statutory first-Tuesday window and the courthouse as the venue.
Registration and deposit
Real County publishes no bidder registration instructions online. Under Texas Tax Code 34.015 a bidder must first obtain a written statement from the county tax assessor-collector showing no delinquent property taxes are owed. Request that statement from the Real County Tax Assessor-Collector at 830-232-6210 or [email protected]. Confirm sale-day registration with the Sheriff at 830-232-5201 before traveling.
Real County is a small rural county and runs its tax sales in person at the courthouse, not on an online auction platform. No online platform was found and none is listed. Two statewide checks came back empty: Real County does not appear among the counties on MVBA's upcoming Texas tax sales page, and a query of the Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson tax sale portal for REAL COUNTY, TX returned zero listings (the same portal returns results for other Texas counties, so the search itself works). Neither the Tax Assessor-Collector page nor the Real Central Appraisal District site has any tax sale, struck-off property, or delinquent tax attorney section. The county's public notices are posted on the county homepage; the only sale notice there is a private deed-of-trust foreclosure under Texas Property Code Chapter 51 conducted by a substitute trustee, which is a different process from a Chapter 34 tax sale and should not be read as a tax sale listing. Buyers take a redeemable deed: the former owner may redeem within 2 years for homestead, agricultural-use, and mineral property, or 180 days for other property, at the statutory premium in Texas Tax Code 34.21. Call the Sheriff's office and the Tax Assessor-Collector directly to confirm whether a sale is set, since the county posts little in advance.
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)
Real County Tax Assessor-Collector
474 Ranch Rd 337 West, Leakey, TX 78873 (mailing: P.O. Box 898, Leakey, TX 78873)
Official websiteNotes for Real County
- Tax Assessor-Collector: Terrie Pendley. Office hours are Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 4:00pm in the lobby and 8:00am to 4:30pm at the drive-thru. Email [email protected]. Property tax payments run through real.propertytaxpayments.net.
- Sheriff: Nathan T. Johnson, 830-232-5201 (non-emergency), P.O. Box 445, Leakey, TX 78873-0445. The Sheriff page's only auction content is the line "Next Auction to be announced".
- Constable: Kevin Chisum, 830-279-8772, P.O. Box 509, Leakey, TX 78873. Texas Tax Code 34.01 lets either the sheriff or a constable conduct the sale, so confirm which office is handling a given sale.
- Real County Courthouse: 146 Highway 83 South, P.O. Box 446, Leakey, Texas 78873. A 2025 foreclosure notice filed with the county gave the sale place as "Real County Courthouse, 146 US-HWY 83, Leakey, Texas 78873".
- Real Central Appraisal District (realcad.org, 830-232-6248, [email protected]) handles valuation and property search. It publishes no tax sale information, but it is the practical source for parcel and account research before a sale.
- County Judge Bella A. Rubio, (830) 232-5304. County Clerk/District Clerk, (830) 232-5202. County Attorney, (830) 232-6461. County Treasurer, (830) 232-6627.
- No delinquent tax collection law firm is named on any Real County page reviewed, including the county's financial and budget transparency page.
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 Real County, Texas sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Real County follows Texas's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Real 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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