Washington County, UT tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •Washington County runs its tax sale as an online timed auction on Public Surplus. Bidders do not appear in person at the county administration building.
• •The county keeps no standing parcel list on its own website between sales. The list of parcels going to tax sale appears on the county's Public Surplus tax sale page when bidding opens in late April, and the statutory notice carrying the parcel list runs in The Spectrum for four consecutive weeks before the sale.
• •The auditor posts a closed auction report after each sale showing every parcel number, the number of bids, the final price and whether the owner paid in full before the close. Reports covering 2023 through 2026 sit on the tax sale page and are the best read on how thin the bidding is; the 2026 sale drew bids on only three of thirteen listed parcels.
• •The auditor's office is at the Washington County Administration Building, 111 East Tabernacle St. in St. George, open Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Utah rules

Redemption

Utah gives the buyer no post-sale redemption risk and gives the owner no post-sale second chance. Any person may redeem on behalf of the record owner at any time before the tax sale, which is held in May or June following the lapse of four years from the date the tax or tax notice charge became delinquent. Once the auditor accepts a bid and executes the tax deed, the conveyance is in fee simple and the deed is prima facie evidence of the regularity of everything that led to it. What replaces a redemption period here is a limitation period on challenges: an action or defense to recover, take possession of, quiet title to, or determine ownership of the property may not be brought against the holder of a tax title more than four years after the sale or conveyance, and that bar does not reach an owner who actually occupied the property within four years of the action, or a city or town asserting an equal or superior lien.Utah Code 59-2-1346 - Redemption and the time allowed for itUtah Code 59-2-1346Verified Sep 10, 2026

Deed deposit

Utah Code sets no statewide deposit. Each county fixes its own terms by ordinance and in the auction notice, and they differ: Salt Lake County requires a refundable 500 dollar deposit wired before bidding opens, while Utah County's notice warns only that bidders may be subject to nonrefundable fees or deposits depending on the bid method used. Confirm the deposit, the deadline for posting it, and whether it is refundable before you register.Utah Code 59-2-1351.1 - Tax sale, combining certain parcels, acceptable bids, deedsUtah Code 59-2-1351.1Verified Sep 10, 2026

Surplus proceeds

Sale money goes into the county treasury and the treasurer settles with the taxing entities and tax notice charge entities. Anything above the delinquent taxes, tax notice charges, penalties, interest and administrative costs is treated as unclaimed property under Title 67, Chapter 4a, the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act, rather than paid out by the county as a surplus fund. A former owner therefore claims it through the state unclaimed property process, not from the auditor.Utah Code 59-2-1351.1 - Tax sale, combining certain parcels, acceptable bids, deedsUtah Code 59-2-1351.1Verified Sep 10, 2026

Governing statute

Utah Code Title 59, Chapter 2, Part 13Utah Code 59-2-1351 - Sales by county, notice of tax sale, entries on recordUtah Code 59-2-1351Verified Sep 10, 2026

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.

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