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Tax Sale Atlas

Hanover County, VA tax sales

How tax deed sales work in Hanover County, seat of Hanover: 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.

Format
County site
County office
804-365-6145
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Aug 23, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Hanover County 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
Special Commissioner of Sale appointed by the Hanover County Circuit Court, working with Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC for the Hanover County Treasurer's Office
Frequency
annual
Sale list
Delinquent Tax Sale page, Hanover County Treasurer
When it runs
Hanover County hosts at least two real estate auctions a year to collect delinquent taxes, and the Treasurer sets no fixed month. Recent Special Commissioner's sales opened at midday, one on March 25, 2025 at 12:00pm and an earlier sale on January 30, 2023 at 11:00 am. A parcel becomes eligible once the taxes are delinquent on December 31 following the second anniversary of the date they became due, so 2021 taxes could be auctioned from January 1, 2024.
Registration and deposit

Auctions are open to the general public, but Hanover County states that to qualify as a purchaser you may not owe delinquent taxes to the county and you may not be a defendant in any pending tax matter. Online bidders must register and be approved by the auctioneer at For Sale At Auction before the sale opens, and registration and bidding are free. In-person bidders simply attend at the Hanover County Administration Building Board Room, 7516 County Complex Road. The winning bidder posts a deposit of 25 percent of the bid or $1,000, whichever is higher, plus a 10 percent buyer's premium subject to a $150 minimum, paid in certified bank funds or by wire. In-person buyers settle on the day of the auction and online buyers have seven days from the close. Taxing Authority Consulting Services keeps a free email list that notifies interested bidders roughly three weeks before a scheduled Virginia auction.

Sale format and venue
Virginia conveys the deed through a judicial sale, so a Hanover parcel reaches auction only after the Treasurer certifies the delinquency and a suit in equity is filed in Hanover County Circuit Court under Va. Code 58.1-3965. The court confirms the sale before the Special Commissioner delivers a deed, which adds time between the winning bid and title. Bidding runs two ways at once: live from the Hanover County Board Room at 7516 County Complex Road and online through For Sale At Auction. Parcel lists are not released until about three weeks before each sale and are posted on the county calendar, while Taxing Authority Consulting Services publishes the full advertisement with parcel descriptions and terms of sale. Hanover has also used the non-judicial route under Va. Code 58.1-3975 to sell small unimproved parcels at the same auction. Terms vary by sale, so read the bid package on auction day before bidding.
Register on Online auction

Hanover County tax sale list and auction calendar

For Hanover 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.

  1. Get the advertised list

    Use Delinquent Tax Sale page, Hanover County Treasurer for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.
  2. Register to bid

    Ask the county office how and when to register; many counties close registration days or weeks before the sale.
  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 Special Commissioner of Sale appointed by the Hanover County Circuit Court, working with Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC for the Hanover County Treasurer's Office as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.

Before you bid in Hanover County

  1. Start with the live sale list

    Pull the current advertised parcels from Delinquent Tax Sale page, Hanover County Treasurer. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.
  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    Auctions are open to the general public, but Hanover County states that to qualify as a purchaser you may not owe delinquent taxes to the county and you may not be a defendant in any pending tax matter. Online bidders must register and be approved by the auctioneer at For Sale At Auction before the sale opens, and registration and bidding are free. In-person bidders simply attend at the Hanover County Administration Building Board Room, 7516 County Complex Road. The winning bidder posts a deposit of 25 percent of the bid or $1,000, whichever is higher, plus a 10 percent buyer's premium subject to a $150 minimum, paid in certified bank funds or by wire. In-person buyers settle on the day of the auction and online buyers have seven days from the close. Taxing Authority Consulting Services keeps a free email list that notifies interested bidders roughly three weeks before a scheduled Virginia auction.

  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

Hanover County Treasurer's Office

804-365-6145

P.O. Box 200, Hanover, VA 23069 (Chenault-Weems Building, 7507 Library Drive, Hanover, VA 23069)

Official website

County notes

  • Hanover County holds at least two delinquent real estate auctions a year and does not tie them to a set season, so watch the county calendar and the Treasurer's delinquent tax sale page rather than waiting on an annual month.
  • Bidding happens two ways at the same time: live in the Board Room at the Hanover County Administration Building, 7516 County Complex Road, and online through For Sale At Auction. Online bidders must be approved by the auctioneer before the sale opens.
  • Deposit terms have held steady across recent Hanover sales at 25 percent of the bid or $1,000, whichever is greater, plus a 10 percent buyer's premium with a $150 minimum. In-person winners settle the same day, online winners get seven days, and payment is certified funds or wire only.
  • You cannot buy if you owe delinquent taxes to Hanover County or are a defendant in a pending county tax matter.
  • Parcel lists surface only about three weeks before each auction, so the due-diligence window is short. Taxing Authority Consulting Services runs a free email alert list for upcoming Virginia sales that gives roughly the same notice.
  • This is a court process, not a counter sale. The Hanover County Circuit Court confirms the sale before the Special Commissioner delivers a deed, so budget time between the winning bid and clear title.
  • Hanover has also used the non-judicial route under Va. Code 58.1-3975 to sell small unimproved parcels, offered at the same auction as the judicial parcels.
  • For questions on a specific delinquency, reach the Treasurer's Collections Division at 804-365-6145; the general Treasurer line is 804-365-6050.

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 Hanover 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 Hanover County hold tax deed sales?

Hanover County 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 Special Commissioner of Sale appointed by the Hanover County Circuit Court, working with Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC for the Hanover County Treasurer's Office 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 Hanover County tax sale list?

Hanover County posts its tax sale list at hanovercounty.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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Call Hanover County Treasurer's Office