Fairfax County, VA tax sales
How tax deed sales work in Fairfax County, seat of Fairfax: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
New to tax sales? Read how Virginia tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.
- Next sale
- Auctions are scheduled only when collection efforts fail, not on a fixed annual calendar.
- Format
- County site
- County office
- 703-222-8234
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Aug 23, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page
How Fairfax County sells delinquent taxes
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC, appointed Special Commissioner by the Circuit Court of the County of Fairfax, with oversight from the Fairfax County Department of Tax Administration
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Auctions are scheduled only when collection efforts fail, not on a fixed annual calendar.
When it runs
Auctions are scheduled only when collection efforts fail, not on a fixed annual calendar. The last two ran in late spring: the most recent notice says the auction will "begin closing on June 25, 2026 at 11:00am", and the sale before it was set for "Tuesday, May 28, 2024 at 11:00am". No Fairfax County auction sits on the current schedule, so ask to be added to the potential bidders list and watch the auctioneer's tax delinquent real estate calendar.
Registration and deposit
Registration and bidding are free and run entirely through the auctioneer's website at forsaleatauction.biz. Every bidder must register and be approved by At Auction, Inc. before the auction closes. Bidders without internet access can call At Auction at (540) 899-1776 for help. To qualify as a purchaser you may not owe delinquent taxes to Fairfax County or the Town of Herndon, the Special Commissioner's sale adds the Town of Vienna, and you may not be a defendant in any pending delinquent tax matter.
Sale format and venue
Fairfax County runs no in-house auction. When collection efforts fail, the county's contracted collection attorney, Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC, is appointed Special Commissioner under decrees of the Fairfax County Circuit Court and sells the property at an online-only timed auction hosted by At Auction, Inc. Two notices close on the same morning and their payment terms differ. On the Special Commissioner's sale, the high bidder posts 25 percent of the bid or $1,000, whichever is higher, capped at $20,000 per parcel, plus a 5 percent buyer's premium with a $150 minimum, deposit and premium due within seven days of closing, and the balance plus deed recording costs due within 15 days after the Circuit Court confirms the sale. On the parallel non-judicial sale of low-value parcels under Va. Code 58.1-3975, the full bid plus the same 5 percent buyer's premium is due within seven days of closing. Payment must be certified funds, cashier's check, money order or wire, payable to the County of Fairfax and sent to Taxing Authority Consulting Services. Cash and personal checks are refused. Owners can redeem at any time before the auction by paying all taxes, penalties, interest, fees and costs, and redeemed parcels are struck from the list. Property is conveyed by special warranty deed, as-is and sold in gross, with no title insurance, no guarantee of a right of way and no warranty that a parcel is not landlocked, so budget for an independent title search and an access check before bidding.
Source: Notice of Public Auction and Special Commissioner's Sale of Real Estate, Taxing Authority Consulting Services· Verified Aug 23, 2026
Fairfax County tax sale list and auction calendar
For Fairfax County tax sale 2026 searches, use the county-run sources below rather than a copied parcel list, and confirm the parcel, registration cutoff, deposit, and payment deadline against the county before you bid.
Get the advertised list
Use Special Commissioner's sale notice, parcel list and terms of sale for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.Register to bid
Ask the county office how and when to register; many counties close registration days or weeks before the sale.Sale day
Auctions are scheduled only when collection efforts fail, not on a fixed annual calendar. Bidding runs on County site; check posted sale dates, registration status, and bidding windows there.Confirm with the office
If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC, appointed Special Commissioner by the Circuit Court of the County of Fairfax, with oversight from the Fairfax County Department of Tax Administration as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.
Before you bid in Fairfax County
4 checks
Start with the live sale list
Pull the current advertised parcels from Special Commissioner's sale notice, parcel list and terms of sale. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.Confirm registration and deposit
Registration and bidding are free and run entirely through the auctioneer's website at forsaleatauction.biz. Every bidder must register and be approved by At Auction, Inc. before the auction closes. Bidders without internet access can call At Auction at (540) 899-1776 for help. To qualify as a purchaser you may not owe delinquent taxes to Fairfax County or the Town of Herndon, the Special Commissioner's sale adds the Town of Vienna, and you may not be a defendant in any pending delinquent tax matter.
Check the state rules that change the bid
Read the Virginia due-diligence checklist before bidding. Redemption, liens that survive a tax deed, title cleanup, and payment deadlines can change what a parcel is worth.Set a walk-away number
Work out what the parcel is actually worth with the rural land value estimator, then turn it into a ceiling with the tax deed max-bid calculator.
Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.
County offices
County notes
- Virginia sells no tax lien certificates. In Fairfax County the auction conveys title to the property itself, so plan for an ownership purchase rather than a lien investment.
- The sale is run by the county's collection attorney rather than a county office. Direct questions about a parcel to Taxing Authority Consulting Services at (804) 548-4408 or [email protected], and questions about registering or bidding to Jerry Bertram at At Auction, Inc. on (540) 899-1776.
- Two separate notices close on the same morning. The Special Commissioner's sale runs under Circuit Court decrees and takes a 25 percent deposit, while the non-judicial sale of low-value parcels under Va. Code 58.1-3975 requires payment in full within seven days. Check which list a parcel sits on before you bid.
- The June 2026 offering ran heavily to small vacant remnants, outlots and vacated road strips in Alexandria, Lorton, Vienna, Reston, Chantilly and Oakton, with only a handful of houses. Confirm access, lot size and buildability before bidding, because parcels are sold in gross with no guarantee of a right of way.
- Bidders who owe delinquent taxes to Fairfax County, the Town of Herndon or the Town of Vienna, or who are a defendant in a pending delinquent tax matter, cannot qualify as purchasers.
- Sales are confirmed by the Fairfax County Circuit Court and the Special Commissioner can reject a bid judged unreasonable against the estimated value, so a winning bid is not final on auction day.
- There is no standing Fairfax County sale calendar. Ask the Department of Tax Administration to add you to the potential bidders list through the collection attorney at taxva.com, and notice goes out only when an auction is actually scheduled.
Virginia rules
- Redemption
- An owner listed in the published notice, or the owner's heirs, devisees, successors, and assigns, may redeem the real estate at any time before the date set for the judicial sale by paying into court everything due. The right ends when the sale happens; Virginia gives no redemption window after the hammer falls and no redemption window after the deed is recorded. Partial payment does not redeem the property and does not suspend, invalidate, or moot the suit. The treasurer may instead suspend the sale by entering an installment agreement with the owner running no more than 72 months, and an owner who defaults on such an agreement cannot enter a second one for the same property for three years. The same before-the-sale-only cutoff applies on the nonjudicial track under 58.1-3975. What does exist after the sale is not redemption but a challenge: a party served only by publication may petition for a rehearing for good cause within 90 days of the order confirming the sale.
- Deed deposit
- No statewide deposit percentage exists. Article 4 leaves the terms of sale to the special commissioner and the confirming court, so the deposit is whatever the advertised terms of that sale require. Read the terms of sale published with each auction and confirm accepted funds with the commissioner before bidding.
- Surplus proceeds
- The former owner and the owner's heirs, devisees, successors, or assigns are entitled to the surplus received from the sale above the taxes, penalties, interest, reasonable attorney fees, costs, and any liens chargeable on the parcel, and the burden is on the claimant to prove entitlement. If no claim is made within two years after the date the sale is confirmed, the clerk pays the money to the locality that received the sale proceeds. On the nonjudicial track, excess proceeds sit in an interest-bearing escrow account held by the treasurer, a claimant has two years from the date of sale to schedule a hearing in circuit court, and unclaimed money goes to the locality's general fund.
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 Fairfax County, Virginia sell tax liens or tax deeds?
Tax deeds. Virginia sells no tax lien certificates to investors; the county sells the property itself at a public tax sale.
How often does Fairfax County hold tax deed sales?
Fairfax County holds its tax deed sale once a year. Auctions are scheduled only when collection efforts fail, not on a fixed annual calendar. Each sale is scheduled and advertised in advance, so check the county's tax deed calendar for the next posted date.
I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?
Often yes, by paying the overdue taxes, interest, and costs before the deadline. Virginia's redemption rule: Until the date set for the sale. Virginia has no post-sale redemption period. Call the Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC, appointed Special Commissioner by the Circuit Court of the County of Fairfax, with oversight from the Fairfax County Department of Tax Administration as early as possible for your exact payoff and options; deadlines are strict. Free help: lawhelp.org lists legal aid programs, and consumerfinance.gov lists HUD-approved housing counselors.
Where can I find the Fairfax County tax sale list?
Fairfax County posts its tax sale list at taxva.com. Lists go up ahead of each sale and keep changing until the sale date, so confirm every parcel against the county's legal advertisement before you bid.
Verified Aug 23, 2026 against official county and state sources.
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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