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Tax Sale Atlas

Roanoke City, VA tax sales

How tax deed sales work in Roanoke City, seat of Roanoke: 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
The auction runs roughly twice a year at the Berglund Center, 710 Williamson Road NE.
Format
County site
Registration
Bidding is simulcast, so you can bid in the room at the Berglund Center or online.
County office
540-853-2561
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Aug 23, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Roanoke 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
Roanoke City Treasurer's Office, with Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC serving as Special Commissioner of Sale for the court-ordered parcels
Frequency
annual
Typical timing
The auction runs roughly twice a year at the Berglund Center, 710 Williamson Road NE.
Registration
Bidding is simulcast, so you can bid in the room at the Berglund Center or online.
Sale list
Current property list and terms of sale
When it runs
The auction runs roughly twice a year at the Berglund Center, 710 Williamson Road NE. Recent sales were held Thursday, May 28, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. and Wednesday, November 19, 2025 at 12:00 p.m. The Treasurer's tax sale page posts the next auction date.
Registration and deposit

Bidding is simulcast, so you can bid in the room at the Berglund Center or online. Online bidders must register in advance and be approved by Walker Commercial Services at walkercommercialservices.com; registration and bidding are free. To qualify you may not owe the city delinquent taxes or nuisance abatement liens, may not have unresolved code enforcement violations, and may not be a defendant in a pending delinquent tax matter. Call Walker Commercial Services at (540) 344-6160, or Asher Walker at (540) 779-1435, for help registering.

Sale format and venue
The city sells two ways at the same auction. The judicial parcels, numbered with a J prefix, are sold by the Special Commissioner under a decree of the Roanoke City Circuit Court and convey free of city and other recorded liens once the court confirms the sale. The nonjudicial parcels, numbered with an N prefix, are sold by the Treasurer under Va. Code 58.1-3975 and clear only city debts, so order your own title search before bidding on one. On judicial parcels the high bidder posts 25 percent or $1,000, whichever is greater, capped at $20,000 per parcel, plus a 10 percent buyer's premium with a $150 minimum, and the balance plus recording costs is due within 15 days of court confirmation. Nonjudicial parcels are paid in full at the close, also with the 10 percent premium. In-person winners pay at the close of the auction by personal check, cashier's check or money order; no cash is accepted. Online winners have seven days and must send certified funds, a cashier's check, money order or wire transfer. Property is conveyed by special warranty deed, as is and where is, with no title work or title insurance provided. An owner who pays all taxes, fees, penalties, interest and costs by 4:00 p.m. the day before the auction keeps the property and it comes off the list, and parcels are marked redeemed on the published notice right up to sale day. Questions about a specific parcel go to Taxing Authority Consulting Services at (804) 548-4424.
Register on Online auction
Source: Treasurer's Office Tax Sale Page· Verified Aug 23, 2026

Roanoke City tax sale list and auction calendar

For Roanoke 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 Current property list and terms of sale for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.
  2. Register to bid

    Bidding is simulcast, so you can bid in the room at the Berglund Center or online. Full requirements are in the sale card above.
  3. Sale day

    The auction runs roughly twice a year at the Berglund Center, 710 Williamson Road NE. 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 Roanoke City Treasurer's Office, with Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC serving as Special Commissioner of Sale for the court-ordered parcels as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.

Before you bid in Roanoke City

  1. Start with the live sale list

    Pull the current advertised parcels from Current property list and terms of sale. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.
  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    Bidding is simulcast, so you can bid in the room at the Berglund Center or online. Online bidders must register in advance and be approved by Walker Commercial Services at walkercommercialservices.com; registration and bidding are free. To qualify you may not owe the city delinquent taxes or nuisance abatement liens, may not have unresolved code enforcement violations, and may not be a defendant in a pending delinquent tax matter. Call Walker Commercial Services at (540) 344-6160, or Asher Walker at (540) 779-1435, for help registering.

  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

Roanoke City Treasurer's Office

540-853-2561

215 Church Avenue, Room 254, P.O. Box 1451, Roanoke, VA 24011

Official website

County notes

  • Roanoke is an independent city and a county equivalent. It elects its own treasurer and runs its own tax sale, entirely separate from Roanoke County, whose seat is Salem.
  • The auction is held at the Berglund Center, 710 Williamson Road NE, and is simulcast, so bidders can compete in the room or online through the auctioneer.
  • Judicial sales must be confirmed by the Roanoke City Circuit Court before a deed issues, and the Special Commissioner may reject any bid judged unreasonable against the estimated value of the property.
  • Most parcels offered are vacant lots, often small infill lots sold in groups. There is no guarantee a parcel has road frontage or is not landlocked, so inspect and search title at your own expense before bidding.
  • Parcel detail for each listed property can be pulled from the city's online mapping system, though the city gives no warranty on what it shows.
  • The list changes up to auction day as owners pay off. Sign up for the Special Commissioner's email notices to catch a new sale about three weeks out.

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 Roanoke 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 Roanoke City hold tax deed sales?

Roanoke City holds its tax deed sale once a year. The auction runs roughly twice a year at the Berglund Center, 710 Williamson Road NE. 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 Roanoke City Treasurer's Office, with Taxing Authority Consulting Services, PC serving as Special Commissioner of Sale for the court-ordered parcels 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 Roanoke City tax sale list?

Roanoke City 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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Call Roanoke City Treasurer's Office