Harrison County, WV tax sales
Tax Sale Atlas maps the Harrison County, WV tax sale, one of 2,862 counties in 36 states. West Virginia sells tax lien certificates paying up to 12%, redeemable for Until the deed issues. Sale office, calendar and list locations read from state rules plus what the county publishes on Sep 11, 2026.
How tax lien sales work in Harrison County, seat of Clarksburg: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
New to tax sales? Read how West Virginia tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.
- Next sale
- No Harrison County auction date is posted.
- Format
- In person
- Registration
- One statewide pre-registration covers all 55 counties.
- County office
- (304) 624-8685
On this page
How Harrison County sells delinquent taxes
From lien to deed
West Virginia holds no separate tax deed auction. The deed goes to whoever bought the tax lien at the Auditor's auction, or bought the parcel afterward as unsold land, and it comes from the Auditor rather than from a second sale. Within 120 days after the Auditor approves the sale the purchaser must give the Auditor a list of everyone entitled to notice to redeem, supply the property's physical mailing address if it is Class II property, and deposit the cost of preparing and serving the notice. Miss that and the purchaser loses all benefits of the purchase. A written request filed within the following 30 days buys another 60 days, for one hundred dollars or ten percent of the amount paid at the sale, whichever is greater, plus a twenty five dollar certificate fee. The Auditor then serves the notice at least 45 days before the first day a deed may be issued, and no deed may issue sooner than 30 days after the notices were served.
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- West Virginia State Auditor's Office (Land/County Collections)
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- No Harrison County auction date is posted.
- Registration
- One statewide pre-registration covers all 55 counties.
- Next expected
- on a date the State Auditor sets, in practice between April and June, 2027 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
When it runs
Registration and deposit
One statewide pre-registration covers all 55 counties. The Auditor's Land Sale Pre-Registration form signs a bidder up once per year for every county sale in West Virginia, and each company or LLC must be registered separately. The form asks for the deed name exactly as it should appear on any deed the Auditor issues, the agent name acting for the bidder, full contact details, and last year's Bidder ID if you have one. A registrant must certify that they have not failed to pay for a purchase at a prior auction, are not delinquent on West Virginia real property tax in any county, have no history of county or municipal code enforcement violations, are not subject to code enforcement proceedings, and have not failed to comply with a raze or repair order in the past five years. Entities must be registered with the West Virginia Secretary of State and authorized to do business in the state. W. Va. Code 11A-3-45(c) also lets a bidder who did not pre-register sign a notarized affidavit affirming the same eligibility requirements on the day of the sale.
Sale format and venue
Harrison County tax sale list and auction calendar
For Harrison 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 Land Sale Listings, West Virginia State Auditor's Office for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.Register to bid
Sale day
No Harrison County auction date is posted. The sale is live and in person; there is no online bidding platform. Confirm the venue and hour with the county office before you go.Confirm with the office
If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use West Virginia State Auditor's Office (Land/County Collections) as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.
Before you bid in Harrison County
4 checks
Start with the live sale list
Pull the current advertised parcels from Land Sale Listings, West Virginia State Auditor's Office. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.Confirm registration and deposit
One statewide pre-registration covers all 55 counties. The Auditor's Land Sale Pre-Registration form signs a bidder up once per year for every county sale in West Virginia, and each company or LLC must be registered separately. The form asks for the deed name exactly as it should appear on any deed the Auditor issues, the agent name acting for the bidder, full contact details, and last year's Bidder ID if you have one. A registrant must certify that they have not failed to pay for a purchase at a prior auction, are not delinquent on West Virginia real property tax in any county, have no history of county or municipal code enforcement violations, are not subject to code enforcement proceedings, and have not failed to comply with a raze or repair order in the past five years. Entities must be registered with the West Virginia Secretary of State and authorized to do business in the state. W. Va. Code 11A-3-45(c) also lets a bidder who did not pre-register sign a notarized affidavit affirming the same eligibility requirements on the day of the sale.
Check the state rules that change the bid
Read the West 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.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
unsold certificates
A parcel that draws no bid at the auction, or whose sale the Auditor disapproves, or that was sold at one of these auctions within the previous five years and was neither redeemed nor deeded because the purchaser did not follow through, may be sold by the Auditor with no further auction and no additional advertising. The statute sets a priority order rather than a price contest: an owner of an adjacent tract or parcel first, with the highest bidder taking it if more than one adjacent owner wants the same parcel; then the municipality; then the county commission; then the West Virginia Land Stewardship Corporation for its Land Bank Program; then any willing buyer. The price is agreed between the Auditor and the buyer, and the Auditor may require the buyer to reimburse the cost of a licensed attorney's title examination or let the buyer engage one at their own cost. These are handled as written bids sent with a check to the Auditor's land department inside a bid window the Auditor posts on its Land/County Collections page.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work. Every state has its own name for what goes unsold, so check what West Virginia calls its leftover tax-sale inventory.
Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Harrison County Sheriff's Tax Office
Harrison County Courthouse, 229 South Third Street, Clarksburg, WV 26301
Official websiteCounty notes
- Harrison County publishes no parcel list for the auction. The tract list for the Harrison County sale appears on the State Auditor's Land Sale Listings page once the sale is scheduled, and the sheriff's delinquent land list runs separately as a Class III-0 legal advertisement in a Harrison County newspaper before certification.
- For payoff figures, delinquent balances and redemptions before certification, contact the Harrison County Sheriff's Tax Office at the courthouse, 229 South Third Street, Clarksburg, WV 26301, (304) 624-8685.
- The sheriff prepares the second delinquent land list on or before September 10 each year. The published notice states that the listed tax liens will be certified to the Auditor on October 31, and the sheriff also mails certified notice of the delinquency and the sale date to owners and lienholders at least 30 days before the Auditor's sale.
- Redemption before certification is paid to the sheriff by credit card, cashier's check, money order, certified check or United States currency, and payment must reach the tax office by the close of business on the last business day before certification. After certification, redemption is paid to the State Auditor at any time before the sale.
- The State Auditor's Office is at 1900 Kanawha Blvd. East, Building 1, Room W-100, Charleston, WV 25305, phone (304) 558-2251 or toll free (877) 982-9148.
- Property tax payments and parcel, ticket and account lookups for Harrison County run through the Sheriff's online tax record search, linked from the county website.
- The Sheriff's law enforcement division sits at 609 W. Main Street in Clarksburg, but tax collection, civil process and concealed weapon permits are handled at the courthouse on South Third Street.
West Virginia rules
- Redemption
- West Virginia runs three redemption windows in sequence, and only the last one involves the investor. Before the sheriff certifies the parcel to the Auditor on October 31, the owner pays the sheriff the taxes, interest and charges due. After certification and before the Auditor certifies the list for sale, the owner redeems from the Auditor at twelve percent a year on the amount due at certification. After the Auditor's auction, the owner or any other person entitled to pay the taxes, or any lienholder, may redeem at any time before a tax deed is issued. There is no fixed number of days on that last window: it closes when the deed issues, which cannot happen until the Auditor has served the notice to redeem at least 45 days beforehand and at least 30 days have passed since service. A person whose primary residence was sold may petition the Auditor, on grounds of financial hardship, to redeem in up to three installments before the deed is issued.
- Surplus proceeds
- The former owner is entitled to the surplus received at the Auditor's sale over and above the taxes and interest charged or chargeable including all costs of the sale, but only if a claim is filed in the circuit court of the county where the land sits within two years after the date the sale was confirmed. Unclaimed surplus is paid to the Auditor for credit to the general school 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 Harrison County, West Virginia sell tax liens or tax deeds?
When is the Harrison County tax certificate sale?
I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?
Where can I find the Harrison County tax sale list?
Verified Sep 11, 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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