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Tax Sale Atlas

Franklin City, VA tax sales

How tax deed sales work in Franklin City, seat of Franklin: 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.

Announcements
No fixed annual sale month is published; the city advertises a sale when parcels are ready.
Format
County site
Registration
Bidding is online only through Virginia Auction Company.
County office
757-562-8536
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Aug 23, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Franklin City sells delinquent taxes

No tax lien certificate sale

Virginia localities do not sell tax lien certificates to investors. The locality holds its own first-priority tax lien and enforces it through a judicial sale of the property.

Tax deed sale

Online auction
Run by
City of Franklin Treasurer's Office (Treasurer Dinah M. Babb), with Virginia Auction Co., Inc. of Suffolk conducting the auction on the Treasurer's behalf
Frequency
annual
Registration
Bidding is online only through Virginia Auction Company.
Sale list
City of Franklin sale of valuable real estate notice
When it runs
No fixed annual sale month is published; the city advertises a sale when parcels are ready. The last advertised City of Franklin sale was "Online Only, starting on Wednesday, March 11th, 2026 at 10 am and closing on Wednesday, March 18th, 2026 at 11 am." Virginia Auction Company is taking pre-registrations for the next City of Franklin tax auction and tells registered bidders it will send the dates by email and text once they are set.
Registration and deposit

Bidding is online only through Virginia Auction Company. Pre-register at vaauctionco.com for the City of Franklin auction and wait for the company to approve you before bidding opens; approved bidders are notified of the sale dates and the parcels offered by email and text. If your approval is still pending once bidding has opened, call the auction company at 757-538-0123. The successful bidder deposits the bid price, a 15 percent buyer's premium, and a $200 fee for recordation of the deed with Virginia Auction Co., Inc., by cash, cashier's check, money order, or wire transfer, payable in full the day of the sale.

Sale format and venue
Virginia sells the deed rather than a lien certificate, and the City of Franklin auctions the deed itself. Franklin is an independent city and a county equivalent with its own Treasurer and its own sale; it is not part of Franklin County, Virginia, whose seat is Rocky Mount, so a Franklin County notice never covers these parcels. The city's advertised sale is held by the Treasurer under Va. Code section 58.1-3975 for unpaid real estate taxes and runs online only through Virginia Auction Co., Inc., 3533 Pruden Boulevard, Suffolk, VA 23434, 757-538-0123. There is no courthouse-step auction to attend. Larger or more complicated delinquencies that fall outside the Treasurer's route are instead sold through a circuit court suit under Va. Code section 58.1-3965 and following, where a court-appointed special commissioner conducts the auction and the court confirms the sale; ask the Treasurer's Office which route a parcel you are watching is on. Separately, the Treasurer's Office publishes a Delinquent Real Estate List PDF of accounts in arrears, which is a prospecting pool and not the list of parcels currently offered at auction.
Register on Online auction
Source: Sale of Valuable Real Estate notice, City of Franklin Treasurer· Verified Aug 23, 2026

Franklin City tax sale list and auction calendar

For Franklin City 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.

  1. Get the advertised list

    Use City of Franklin sale of valuable real estate notice for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.

  2. Register to bid

    Bidding is online only through Virginia Auction Company. Full requirements are in the sale card above.

  3. Sale day

    Bidding runs on County site; check posted sale dates, registration status, and bidding windows there.

  4. Confirm with the office

    If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use City of Franklin Treasurer's Office (Treasurer Dinah M. Babb), with Virginia Auction Co., Inc. of Suffolk conducting the auction on the Treasurer's behalf as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.

Before you bid in Franklin City

  1. Start with the live sale list

    Pull the current advertised parcels from City of Franklin sale of valuable real estate notice. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.

  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    Bidding is online only through Virginia Auction Company. Pre-register at vaauctionco.com for the City of Franklin auction and wait for the company to approve you before bidding opens; approved bidders are notified of the sale dates and the parcels offered by email and text. If your approval is still pending once bidding has opened, call the auction company at 757-538-0123. The successful bidder deposits the bid price, a 15 percent buyer's premium, and a $200 fee for recordation of the deed with Virginia Auction Co., Inc., by cash, cashier's check, money order, or wire transfer, payable in full the day of the sale.

  3. 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.

  4. 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

Tax sale office

City of Franklin Treasurer's Office

757-562-8536

207 West 2nd Avenue, City Hall Building, First Floor, Franklin, VA 23851

Official website

County notes

  • Franklin is one of Virginia's independent cities, a county equivalent that runs its own Treasurer and its own tax sale. It is entirely separate from Franklin County, Virginia, whose seat is Rocky Mount. Confirm any notice names the City of Franklin before you spend money on diligence.
  • The sale is online only through Virginia Auction Company at vaauctionco.com. Registration is approved in advance, so pre-register for the City of Franklin auction well before bidding opens rather than on the closing day.
  • Money at the close: bid price plus a 15 percent buyer's premium plus a $200 deed recordation fee, payable in full on the day of the sale by cash, cashier's check, money order, or wire transfer, made out to Virginia Auction Co., Inc. Budget the premium and fee into your maximum bid.
  • The Treasurer's Office publishes a Delinquent Real Estate List PDF showing owner name, map and parcel number, and principal balance. Those figures leave out penalties and interest, so call 757-562-8544 for an actual payoff before you underwrite a parcel.
  • Virginia Auction Company runs tax auctions for many Hampton Roads and Southside localities on one calendar, including Suffolk, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Virginia Beach, Hopewell, Halifax County, Southampton County, and Newport News. Open the City of Franklin listing specifically; a neighbouring locality's sale does not include Franklin parcels.
  • Treasurer's Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., on the first floor of City Hall at 207 West 2nd Avenue. General line 757-562-8536, Treasurer Dinah M. Babb 757-562-8543, fax 757-562-8768.
  • Real estate assessment questions go to the Commissioner of the Revenue at 757-562-8548. The city rate is $1.03 per $100 of assessed value, or $1.27 per $100 inside the Downtown Taxing District, with real estate bills due December 5 and June 5.

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.
Governing statute
Va. Code Title 58.1, Chapter 39, Article 4

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.

See the full Virginiarules and every county →

Frequently asked questions

Does Franklin City, 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 Franklin City hold tax deed sales?

Franklin City holds its tax deed sale once a year. 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 City of Franklin Treasurer's Office (Treasurer Dinah M. Babb), with Virginia Auction Co., Inc. of Suffolk conducting the auction on the Treasurer's behalf 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 Franklin City tax sale list?

Franklin City posts its tax sale list at franklinva.gov. 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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Compare sale calendars, platforms, and rules across the state, or read the guides before you bid.

Virginia tax salesDue diligence guide
Call City of Franklin Treasurer's Office