Texas tax sale statutes

The governing law

Texas is a redeemable deed state. No county sells tax lien certificates to investors. A taxing unit sues in district court to foreclose its tax lien, the court orders the property sold, and a sheriff or constable auctions it on the first Tuesday of the month. The winning bidder receives a deed at the sale, but the former owner keeps a statutory right to redeem: two years on a residence homestead, on land designated for agricultural use, and on a mineral interest, and 180 days on everything else. Redemption repays the bid plus costs plus a premium of 25 percent, rising to 50 percent in the second year on the two-year classes. The process runs on Title 1 of the Texas Tax Code, principally Chapters 33 and 34.