Refugio County, TX tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Refugio County, seat of Refugio: 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 Refugio County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Refugio County Sheriff's Office (sale conducted by the Sheriff or a Constable under a district court order of sale; delinquent-tax billing and bidder statements run through the Refugio County Tax Assessor-Collector)
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Refugio County publishes no tax sale calendar or sale notice online. The county's Public Notices page is an events calendar that showed no sale entries, and the county's Real Estate Notices page carries only "Notice of Substitute Trustee's Sale" items (mortgage foreclosures, most recent dated 2018), not tax foreclosure sales. Texas sheriff and constable tax sales run on the first Tuesday of the month under Tax Code 34.01. Confirm the next Refugio County date by phone with the Tax Assessor-Collector at 361-526-2023 before planning a trip.
Registration and deposit
Not published online by Refugio County. Neither the Tax Assessor-Collector page nor the Sheriff or Constable pages post bidder rules, deposit terms, or a registration form. Under Texas Tax Code 34.015 a bidder must first obtain a written statement from the county assessor-collector certifying no delinquent taxes are owed, so request that statement from the Refugio County Tax Assessor-Collector at 808 Commerce Street, Room 109, and confirm payment and registration terms with that office.
Refugio is a small Coastal Bend county with no dedicated tax sale web page. Evidence points to an in-person sale at the Refugio County Courthouse, 808 Commerce St, Refugio, rather than an online auction: Refugio does not appear in the county selector on RealAuction's Texas sheriff sale auction platform (which lists 23 Texas counties including nearby Aransas, San Patricio, Nueces, Jackson and Victoria); the Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson public tax sale site (taxsales.lgbs.com) returns zero Refugio County properties and does not list Refugio among its sale counties; and Refugio does not appear on MVBA's upcoming tax sales schedule. The subdomain refugio.texas.sheriffsaleauctions.com is not a configured county site, it serves the generic Realauction corporate page identical to a nonexistent subdomain, so there is no verified online platform URL for this county. Caution for anyone re-researching: the county's content host serves /upload/page/#### documents from a shared root, so search engines surface other counties' PDFs (for example Llano County notices of sale) under the co.refugio.tx.us hostname. Those are not Refugio County documents. The Refugio County Tax Office does run an online property tax balance search and payment portal, but it is a lookup and payment tool only and carries no sale list or struck-off inventory.
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)
Notes for Refugio County
- The elected County Tax Assessor-Collector is Liz L. Kelley. The office is in the Refugio County Courthouse at 808 Commerce Street, Room 109, phone 361-526-2023, fax 361-526-2279.
- The Refugio County Sheriff's Office (Sheriff Matthew Tuttle) is at 808 Commerce St / P.O. Box 1022, Refugio, TX 78377, phone 361-526-2352. Its web page posts no sale notices or civil process sale calendar.
- Refugio County has two constable precincts (Precinct 1 Sheldon Wiginton, Precinct 2 J.J. Garza), both at 808 Commerce Street, phone 361-526-2351. Neither posts sale notices online.
- No county page publishes a tax sale list, struck-off or resale inventory, bidder registration form, or deposit rules. Buyers should call the Tax Assessor-Collector directly.
- Verified negative: Refugio County is absent from the RealAuction Texas sheriff sale platform county list, from the Linebarger (LGBS) public tax sale search, and from MVBA's upcoming sale schedule. No online auction platform could be confirmed for this county.
- The Refugio County Tax Office online portal (actweb.acttax.com) supports account search and payment only. It is not a delinquent or sale list.
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 Refugio County, Texas sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Refugio County follows Texas's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Refugio 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.
Explore all 254 Texas counties
Compare sale calendars, platforms, and rules across the state, or read the guides before you bid.