Rusk County, TX tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Rusk County, seat of Henderson: 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 Rusk County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Rusk County tax foreclosure sales are held at the Rusk County Courthouse door in Henderson. McCreary, Veselka, Bragg & Allen, P.C. (MVBA) is the delinquent tax law firm that publishes the notice, prepares the bid sheet, and collects payment; the notice states buyers receive an ordinary Sheriff's Deed, but it does not name the conducting officer by name.
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- First Tuesday of the month at 10:00 AM, in months when a sale is scheduled. The current notice reads "August 4, 2026 at 10:00AM" and "Courthouse Door, Henderson, Texas." MVBA lists Rusk County under the heading "August Tax Sales (Tuesday, August 4, 2026)" on its Monthly Tax Sales page. Rusk County appears only in months with a scheduled sale; it is absent from the September 1, 2026 list.
Registration and deposit
Registration is on site on sale day. MVBA states "In-Person Tax Sales will have registration on-site the day of the Tax Sale." Before bidding opens, a person intending to bid must register with the person conducting the sale and present a valid driver license or state or federal ID, and the grantee named in the deed must be the successful bidder (Texas Tax Code 34.015). The Rusk County notice carries a Bidder's Acknowledgement form marked "COMPLETE THIS FORM PRIOR TO YOUR ARRIVAL AT THE SALE," capturing bidder registration number, printed grantee name and address, bidder name, phone, driver license number, email, and signature. Winning bidders pay by cashier's check or money order payable to MVBA Law Firm, delivered in person to the Longview office at 115 Rothrock Dr, Longview TX 75602, or by wire transfer arranged by calling MVBA at (903) 757-5757. Personal checks are not accepted, and a bidder who fails to pay is liable for 20 percent of the property value plus costs under Rule 652, Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. A person registering on behalf of a corporation, LLC, or other entity is personally liable for the bid. MVBA also notes that in certain counties a buyer must present the officer a written statement from the County Tax Assessor-Collector showing no delinquent taxes owed, and that no deed issues until that statement is presented; call the Rusk County Tax Assessor-Collector at 903-657-0338 to confirm whether Rusk applies it.
Rusk County runs an in person, oral bid auction at the courthouse door in Henderson, so there is no online bidding platform. The August 4, 2026 notice is headed "DELINQUENT TAX SALE - TATUM INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, RUSK COUNTY, TEXAS" and lists 16 tracts, most of them acreage out of Rusk County surveys plus some fractional mineral and royalty interests, with minimum bids from about $3,300 to about $47,000. The minimum bid beside each tract covers taxes delinquent at the date of judgment and excludes the current tax year; the buyer pays taxes accruing after judgment. Buyers receive an ordinary Sheriff's Deed without warranty, title is not guaranteed, and the notice warns that title insurance may be difficult to obtain. Property sells by legal description, as is, all sales final, no refunds. Redemption follows the Texas Tax Code: two years for homestead, agricultural use, and mineral interests, 180 days for all other property, with a 25 percent premium in year one and 50 percent in year two, running from the date the purchaser's deed is recorded. Right of possession begins 20 days after the deed is filed (Section 33.51). Property may also carry city or property owners association liens for demolition, mowing, or maintenance. Rusk County's own website has no tax sale page; the Rusk County Clerk posts monthly foreclosure sale lists by month, and questions on the tax sale go to Barbara Dameron at MVBA's Longview office at (903) 757-5757. In person, oral bid auction at the Rusk County Courthouse door in Henderson (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)
Notes for Rusk County
- County seat is Henderson. The Rusk County Courthouse is at 115 N. Main, Henderson, Texas 75652, per the county's official website.
- The elected Tax Assessor-Collector is Nesha Partin. The county lists 903-657-0338 for the office and 903-657-0315 for the tax department.
- The Rusk County Clerk (Trudy McGill, 115 North Main, Suite 206, Henderson, TX 75652, P.O. Box 758, Henderson, TX 75653, 903-657-0330) publishes foreclosure sale lists organized by month and hosts a Designation of Location for Foreclosure Resolution document, which fixes where sales at the courthouse take place.
- Rusk County Appraisal District (P.O. Box 7, Henderson, Texas 75653-0007, 903-657-3578) handles valuation only and states plainly that it does not collect taxes. Use it for parcel research before bidding, not for sale logistics.
- The county's online tax payment portal at ruskcountytax.com carries vendor stub contact details and no tax sale content, so treat the MVBA notice and the Tax Assessor-Collector's phone line as the authoritative sources.
- MVBA runs its own online auction site at mvbataxsales.com for some Texas counties (Comal and Harrison had online sales on August 4, 2026), but Rusk County's sale is published as a PDF notice for an in person courthouse door sale, not an online auction.
- MVBA states that one of its attorneys oversees the sale process and is present in person for the actual sale.
- No Rusk County struck-off or trust property list appears on MVBA's trust properties page, which showed only Bandera, Brown, and Runnels counties at the time of this research.
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 Rusk County, Texas sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Rusk County follows Texas's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Rusk 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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