Georgia Tax Deed & Lien Auctions

Georgia is a tax deed state. The owner, or anyone with a recorded interest, can redeem for 12 months after the sale (O.C.G.A. 48-4-40) by paying what you bid plus any taxes you paid since, plus a premium of 20% for the first year or any part of it and 10% for each year or part after that (O.C.G.A. 48-4-42). After 12 months you can end the right to redeem by serving a barment notice (O.C.G.A. 48-4-45); until the deadline in that notice passes, the owner can still redeem.

In Georgia the owner can redeem for at least 12 months after the sale, and after that until the buyer ends the right with a barment notice (O.C.G.A. 48-4-40, 48-4-45). To redeem, the owner pays the bid and any taxes the buyer paid, plus 20% for the first year or any part of it and 10% for each year after.

DeedFlex aggregates Georgia tax sale listings from county auction platforms and gives each property a plain-English verdict: Worth a look, Needs review, Screened out, or Not enough data yet. Next to it is how far the research has got on it. Start with Pro ($59/mo, flat) to browse all available Georgia properties with full deal analysis.

Key risks include: IRS federal tax liens (120-day right to redeem), City repair or demolition liens, unless the city was served with your barment notice, Any recorded interest you fail to serve keeps its right to redeem. GA sells a redeemable tax deed. For at least 12 months you hold the deed but not the property: no possession and no rents while the owner can still redeem. A redemption in month two still pays you the full 20% premium; after the first year it is 10% more per year. The right to redeem does not end on its own at 12 months: you end it by having the sheriff serve a barment notice on the owner, the occupant and every recorded interest holder, and publishing it (O.C.G.A. 48-4-45, 48-4-46); anyone you miss keeps the right to redeem. Plan on more than a year of locked-up money, then a quiet-title suit for insurable title; a deed that is never barred ripens into full title four years after it is recorded (O.C.G.A. 48-4-48). Bid money above the taxes goes to the owner and lienholders as excess funds, not back to you (O.C.G.A. 48-4-5).

Opening bids vary widely by county and property. Georgia has an average property tax rate of 0.92%, which influences opening bid amounts. DeedFlex shows the opening bid for every listed property. Where we hold a market value we can stand behind, we show it; where we do not, we say so rather than print a number we cannot support.