Wichita County, TX tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Wichita County, seat of Wichita Falls: 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 Wichita County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
Details are being verified for this county.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Wichita County Tax Office, the office of Tommy Smyth, Wichita County Tax Assessor-Collector. GovEase lists the selling entity as "Wichita County Tax Office" and names it the "Entity Handling Payments." The sale itself is a sheriff sale: the county's Rules of the Auction call it "the Wichita County, Texas Sheriff Sale," and the Sheriff's Office Civil Division "represents the Sheriff during Tax sales in Wichita County." Perdue Brandon Fielder Collins & Mott LLP acts as the county's delinquent-tax counsel and receives in-person payments.
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- First Tuesday of the month, in line with Texas Tax Code 34.01. The Sheriff's Office Tax Sales page states: "Tax Sales are held the first Tuesday of the month between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m." The current GovEase listing is "2026 Wichita County TX August Tax Foreclosure Sale" with "Auction Start Date: 08/04/2026 11:00:00 AM EDT" (August 4, 2026 is the first Tuesday of August; GovEase displays times in Eastern, so this is 10:00 a.m. local Central). Prebidding opens 08/03/2026 09:30 AM EDT. Payment deadline is listed as 08/04/2026 05:00 PM EDT, and the county's own instructions say "All payments must be made by 4:00 p.m. CDT the day of the sale."
Registration and deposit
Register online with GovEase before the sale. GovEase shows "Registration Dates: 07/16/2026 09:30 AM EDT to 08/03/2026 05:30 PM EDT" for the August 2026 sale, and sub-accounts are "Not Allowed." The county's Rules of the Auction (effective January 1, 2026) state: "Bidders will need to register online and be approved by GovEase to participate in the auction. GovEase will stop approving bidders at 10:00 a.m. on the day of the sale. To register, bidders will go to govease.com and create/sign in to their profile. Under My Account on the left side of the page, bidders will select Register/ Add Auctions." Bidders must electronically sign the "Rules of the Auction (Wichita TX)" form and upload all required registration documents; once approved, "your registration will be good for the duration of 2026." GovEase support is listed at (769) 208-5050 / [email protected]. On the Texas Tax Code 34.015 written statement, the county instructions say: "If you are the winning bidder, the Unexpired Written Statement Application will be emailed to you. This form must be completed within 7 days of the auction," and the rules add: "You will not receive your Sheriff's Deed if the request is not submitted, or if you owe delinquent property taxes to any taxing entity within Wichita County."
Wichita County runs its redeemable tax deed sale ONLINE ONLY through GovEase. The Rules of the Auction effective January 1, 2026 state plainly: "This auction will be conducted exclusively online." The Tax Office homepage carries a "PROPERTY TAX SALE INFORMATION" button that links straight to the county's GovEase auction page. GovEase classifies the auction type as "Redeemable Tax Deed" and the county instructions head the page "REDEEMABLE TAX DEED AUCTION - OVERBID." Bidding mechanics: bidding opens at the posted minimum bid and buyers enter an overbid amount; each parcel runs on a 3 minute clock with a 20 second extension added whenever competing bids are still coming in; bid increment is $100.00; ties go to whoever bid first. Payment: online winners pay by electronic wire transfer only (wiring instructions emailed after the sale); in person, "a cashier's check or money order must be made payable to Perdue Brandon Fielder Collins & Mott LLP and delivered to 900 8th Street, Suite 1100, Wichita Falls, TX 76301. PERSONAL CHECKS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED." No cash and no credit cards. Failure to pay in full by the deadline means a 6 month bidding ban, the property going to the second highest bidder or being resold, and possible penalty under Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 652. Winners receive a Sheriff's Deed or Tax Resale Deed without warranty, sold "AS IS, WHERE IS, WITHOUT WARRANTY" on a "BUYER BEWARE" basis; deed preparation "may take 6-8 weeks." The Tax Assessor-Collector reserves the right to change the minimum bid or pull a property before or after the auction. The rules also warn that "Taxes may also be due for non-judgment years that are not included in the minimum bid." CAUTION on a stale county page: the Sheriff's Office Tax Sales page is dated June 18, 2014 and still describes an in-person courthouse-steps sale at 900 7th Street with a paper sign-in sheet and the line "We do not accept sealed, internet or phone bids." That page is superseded by the 2026 online rules; treat GovEase as the operative venue and verify with the Tax Office before a sale. That older page does still describe how notice is published: properties are advertised in a newspaper for 3 consecutive weeks before the sale, with Wichita Falls, Burkburnett, Kamay and Electra properties in the Electra Star News and Iowa Park properties in the Iowa Park Leader, both published each Thursday.
Register on GovEaseOver-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)
Wichita County Tax Office, Tommy Smyth, Wichita County Tax Assessor-Collector
600 Scott Ave, Suite 103, Wichita Falls, TX 76301 (physical and mailing address; the county directory lists the same suite as 600 Scott St, Suite 103)
Official websiteNotes for Wichita County
- County seat is Wichita Falls. The Tax Office also runs branch locations in Iowa Park, Electra and Burkburnett, listed on wichitatax.com.
- Office hours posted on the Tax Office contact page: Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Wichita County Sheriff's Office, 2815 Central Freeway East, Wichita Falls, TX 76302, phone (940) 766-8170, fax (940) 766-8102. Its Civil Division represents the Sheriff at tax sales.
- Delinquent-tax counsel is Perdue Brandon Fielder Collins & Mott LLP, 900 8th Street, Suite 1100, Wichita Falls, TX 76301, per the county's Rules of the Auction payment instructions. The firm's public website was not reachable in a usable state at research time, so no firm-hosted list URL is recorded here.
- Do not confuse the county's "Public Notices | Notice of Sale" page on wichitacountytx.com with the tax foreclosure sale. That page carries surplus real property notices from the county, not the delinquent tax sale list. The tax sale parcel list lives on GovEase.
- Sample listing data confirms the redeemable-deed structure: parcels show a Cause No., an Adjudged Value, a Minimum Bid and a "SUBJECT TO 2026 TAXES" note.
- The Rules of the Auction cite the redemption rule as "Texas Property Code 34.21" with a 2 year right for homestead, agricultural and mineral property and a 6 month right for all other property, running from the filing of the Sheriff's deed. The controlling citation is the Texas Tax Code, and the statute sets 180 days rather than a plain 6 months for non-homestead property, so use the state rules record for the legal statement and treat the county PDF as operational guidance only.
- Wichita County is not served by the Linebarger (taxsales.lgbs.com) portal; that portal's 150 county list does not include it.
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 Wichita County, Texas sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Wichita County follows Texas's redeemable deed state system.
How often does Wichita 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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