Lancaster County, VA tax sales
How tax deed sales work in Lancaster County, seat of Lancaster: 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
- Mid August, with online bidding opening about four weeks ahead.
- Format
- County site
- County office
- (804) 462-5630
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Aug 23, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page
How Lancaster County sells delinquent taxes
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC, Special Commissioner of Sale for the County of Lancaster, acting for the Lancaster County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Mid August, with online bidding opening about four weeks ahead.
- Sale list
- Sale notice and parcel list
When it runs
Mid August, with online bidding opening about four weeks ahead. The notice sets the 2026 auction "on August 12, 2026, at 12:00pm" and the prior sale ran Thursday, August 15, 2024 at 10:00am. Online bidding for the 2026 sale opened July 17.
Registration and deposit
Registration and bidding are free through the auctioneer's HiBid storefront at bigredauctions.hibid.com, and every online bidder must register and be approved by Big Red Auctions before bidding. You may register any time and do not have to wait for bidding to open. Bidders without internet access can call Big Red Auctions at (804) 577-7449 to arrange a bid. You cannot qualify as a purchaser if you owe delinquent taxes to Lancaster County or are a defendant in a pending delinquent tax matter.
Sale format and venue
The auction is a simulcast: bidders attend in person at the Board of Supervisors Meeting Room in the Lancaster County Administration Building, 8311 Mary Ball Road, Lancaster, while online bidders compete at the same time on HiBid. Two tracks sell at the same event. Judicial parcels are offered by the Special Commissioner under Circuit Court decrees of sale, and lower value parcels are offered by the Treasurer under Va. Code 58.1-3975. A 10 percent buyer's premium, minimum $150, is added to every winning bid. On judicial parcels the high bidder posts 25 percent or $1,000, whichever is higher, capped at $20,000 per parcel, with the balance and recording costs due within 15 days of the court confirming the sale. On the 58.1-3975 parcels the full price is due at the close of the auction, and online winners have 7 days. In person payment is by personal check, cashier's check or money order, and no cash is accepted. Online winners pay by certified funds, cashier's check, money order or wire. Bids are immediately binding and irrevocable, and a failed settlement forfeits the deposit plus attorney and auctioneer fees. Property conveys by special warranty deed, as is, with no guarantee of a right of way and no title insurance assistance, so order an independent title search before bidding. Direct property questions to TACS at (804) 548-4418 or [email protected], and bidding questions to Big Red Auctions at (804) 577-7449.
Source: Tax Delinquent Real Estate Auction Catalog, Big Red Auctions on HiBid· Verified Aug 23, 2026
Lancaster County tax sale list and auction calendar
For Lancaster 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 Sale notice and parcel list 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
Mid August, with online bidding opening about four weeks ahead. 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, Special Commissioner of Sale for the County of Lancaster, acting for the Lancaster County Treasurer as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.
Before you bid in Lancaster County
4 checks
Start with the live sale list
Pull the current advertised parcels from Sale notice and parcel list. 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 through the auctioneer's HiBid storefront at bigredauctions.hibid.com, and every online bidder must register and be approved by Big Red Auctions before bidding. You may register any time and do not have to wait for bidding to open. Bidders without internet access can call Big Red Auctions at (804) 577-7449 to arrange a bid. You cannot qualify as a purchaser if you owe delinquent taxes to Lancaster County or are a defendant in a 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
Tax sale office
Lancaster County Treasurer's Office
County Administration Building, 8311 Mary Ball Road, Suite 204, Lancaster, VA 22503
Official websiteCounty notes
- Lancaster County real estate tax is due December 5. A 10 percent penalty is added after that date, the whole unpaid balance earns 10 percent interest per year from January 1, and a $30 delinquent account fee is added March 1. Delinquent real estate notices are mailed in January, with a separate notice in the first week of January for accounts two years delinquent.
- Parcels reach the auction block through the Circuit Court of Lancaster County. Taxing Authority Consulting Services files the suit as Special Commissioner, the court enters a decree of sale, and the court confirms the result after the auction. Lower value parcels can be sold without a suit under Va. Code 58.1-3975, and both kinds are offered at the same simulcast auction.
- Owners redeem right up to the sale. Published Lancaster catalogs mark parcels redeemed and pull them from bidding, so re-check the list the morning of the auction rather than relying on the version advertised weeks earlier.
- Winning a judicial parcel is not the end. Budget several weeks between the auction and a recorded deed while the Circuit Court confirms the sale, then settle the balance within 15 days of that confirmation.
- Most of what Lancaster offers is vacant land, including lots in Corrotoman-by-the-Bay, Heritage Point and similar waterfront subdivisions, plus scattered acreage on rural roads. Access, buildable area and septic suitability are the buyer's risk, so walk the parcel and check the county GIS and health department records before you bid.
- The county website carries no tax sale calendar of its own. Watch the TACS auction page for the Lancaster listing and call the Treasurer's Office at (804) 462-5630 to confirm whether a sale is docketed.
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 Lancaster 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 Lancaster County hold tax deed sales?
Lancaster County holds its tax deed sale once a year. Mid August, with online bidding opening about four weeks ahead. 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, Special Commissioner of Sale for the County of Lancaster, acting for the Lancaster County Treasurer 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 Lancaster County tax sale list?
Lancaster 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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