Shenandoah Valley, Virginia
Selling a house with delinquent property taxes
One sentence on this page matters more than all the others: in Virginia, a partial payment does not stop a tax sale. People mail the treasurer five hundred dollars against a four-thousand-dollar delinquency, believe they've fixed it, and lose the house.
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Partial payment does not redeem. Read this twice.
§ 58.1-3965(B), verbatim: "Partial payment of delinquent taxes, penalties, reasonable attorney fees, interest, or costs shall not be sufficient to redeem the property and shall not operate to suspend, invalidate, or make moot any action for judicial sale brought pursuant to this article."
Only payment in full redeems — paid into court, including costs of publication and a court-set attorney fee (§ 58.1-3974).
And since 2025 there's a second trap that's specific to the Valley. The 2025 amendment (Acts 2025, c. 267) added to the redemption amount "any outstanding taxes, penalties, and interest owed to a town or other concurrent taxing entity." Front Royal, Woodstock, Strasburg, Berryville, Luray, Bridgewater and Broadway all levy town taxes on top of county taxes. Paying the county in full will not redeem your house if the town bill is still open. Call both.
When a locality can actually start
This is more granular than the "two or three years" you'll hear. § 58.1-3965(A) sets four separate tracks:
| Track | Trigger |
|---|---|
| Standard | Delinquent on December 31 following the second anniversary of the due date |
| Problem property — condemned, a nuisance under § 15.2-900, a derelict building under § 15.2-907.1, or declared blighted under § 36-49.1:1 | First anniversary of the due date |
| Qualifying locality (fiscal stress index ≥ 100) with unpaid abatement costs plus a problem-property condition | Six months after taxes became due |
| Low-value — assessed at $100,000 or less | On a court finding: delinquent on Dec 31 following the first anniversary |
A vacant, deteriorating house moves onto the fast track. That's the practical takeaway — the clock on a boarded-up inherited house is half as long as the clock on the one you're living in.
Before any suit, you get notice. At least 30 days before instituting proceedings the treasurer must notify the owner at their last known address and at the property address, and must publish a list of properties at least once. The 2025 amendment narrowed that pre-suit notice: it no longer goes to trustees, mortgagees and lien creditors at this stage, though they remain necessary party defendants in the suit itself (§ 58.1-3967).
The 72-month payment plan the treasurer has to tell you about
§ 58.1-3965(C) lets the treasurer suspend any action for sale on entering an agreement to pay all delinquent amounts in installments "over a period that is reasonable under the circumstances, but that in no event shall exceed 72 months."
Six years. And subsection (A) requires the treasurer to tell you about it in the 30-day pre-suit notice. If your notice didn't mention it, that's a defect worth raising with a lawyer.
Any such plan must also cover current taxes as they come due. And it does not stop penalty and interest that already accrued — Augusta County, for one, states plainly that a payment arrangement "does not relieve the penalty for late payment, nor does it stop the accrual of interest."
The heirs' rescue valve nobody uses
Clause (ii) of the same subsection: on written notice by an individual who is not a party to the action, asserting ownership rights arising by testate or intestate succession, the treasurer "shall promptly advise the court of such claim and seek leave to add the individual… as a party." If the court finds an ownership interest, that heir gets 30 days to enter their own 72-month agreement.
If your grandmother's house is heading for a tax sale and you were never put on the deed, you can write the treasurer and assert a succession claim. If the court recognizes your interest, you may request an installment agreement for a reasonable period of up to 72 months. Worth knowing before you sell anything to anyone, me included.
Judicial or non-judicial — and why the difference matters to you
Virginia tax sales are mostly judicial. § 58.1-3967 requires a complaint filed in circuit court, with every interested party — lienors, claimants of title, deed-of-trust beneficiaries and trustees — named as party defendants. Title passes free of those claims provided the holder was made a party. Prior recorded easements survive regardless.
But § 58.1-3975 authorizes a genuinely non-judicial treasurer's auction, and Warren County and Shenandoah County both run them. It reaches parcels assessed at $15,000 or less where taxes are delinquent on December 31 following the third anniversary — plus, on the same clock, certain parcels up to $30,000 with no recorded deed of trust, and up to $40,000 in designated revitalization zones.
The difference that matters: under § 58.1-3975(I), a non-judicial sale is free of the locality's tax lien but does not affect prior recorded easements or liens unless the treasurer gave that lienholder 30 days' written notice. Conveyance is by special warranty deed. Shenandoah County says it plainly on its own site: judicial sales are free and clear; non-judicial sales are subject to liens of record.
Do not wait until auction day. § 58.1-3974 and § 58.1-3975(H) require redemption before the sale date. Ask the treasurer or sale attorney for the full amount, accepted payment method and exact deadline now. A proposed sale or assignment needs separate legal review; do not assume it can be completed in time.
Who actually runs collections in the Valley
| Locality | Who runs it | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Shenandoah County | Sands Anderson PC (Christiansburg) | Sales at the County Government Center, 600 N. Main St., Woodstock. Typically spring and fall. Deposit 20% of bid or $2,000, whichever is greater. Runs both judicial and non-judicial sales. |
| Warren County | TACS (Taxing Authority Consulting Services) | § 58.1-3975 non-judicial auctions at 220 N. Commerce Ave., Suite 601, Front Royal, timed-to-live simulcast. Also runs judicial sales. |
| Frederick County | County Treasurer, 107 N. Kent St., Winchester · (540) 665-5600 | Sales on the steps of the Joint Judicial Center, 5 N. Kent St., at 11:30 AM. No set auction calendar — "no set intervals or dates." |
| Clarke County, Staunton, Waynesboro | Sands Anderson PC | — |
| Augusta County | County Treasurer · (540) 245-5660 | Taxes due June 5 and December 5. 10% late penalty plus 10% annual interest. Penalty and interest waived only for medical impairment or documented administrative error. |
If you've had a letter from Sands Anderson or TACS, that is not junk mail and it is not early. It means the file has already left the treasurer's office.
Surplus, and the two-year clock on it
§ 58.1-3967: the former owner and their heirs, devisees, successors or assigns are entitled to the surplus above taxes, penalties, interest, attorney fees, costs and chargeable liens — but "the burden shall be on the claimant to prove such entitlement" (added in 2025). If it isn't claimed within two years after confirmation of sale, it escheats to the locality.
In a delinquent-tax judicial sale, § 58.1-3967 gives a party served by publication a special right to seek a rehearing for good cause, but only within 90 days after confirmation of the sale.
There's also § 58.1-3970.1, which lets a locality skip the auction entirely and take a low-value parcel by special commissioner's deed — into the locality, its land bank or a designated nonprofit — where the parcel is assessed at $125,000 or less and taxes plus liens exceed half the assessed value (or taxes alone exceed 25%). Surplus still flows out, and no deficiency is charged against the owner after conveyance.
The honest summary: if there's real equity in your house, a tax sale is a terrible way to realize it. Between the attorney fees, the court costs, the auction discount and the two-year surplus clock, selling on your own terms almost always leaves you with more. That's true whether you sell to me or to anyone else.
Three clear steps
How this works
Tell me about the house
Two minutes, or a phone call. Describe the condition and anything you would want to leave.
I review the property and explain the number
The timing depends on the information available and whether a walkthrough or other review is needed.
We agree on the date in writing
Virginia's Wet Settlement Act, § 55.1-903, requires the settlement agent to disburse proceeds within two business days of settlement.
Questions I get about selling in this situation
How much do I actually owe? The letters don't agree.
Call the treasurer and ask for a full payoff quote as of a specific date, and ask separately whether there's a town bill. Since 2025, redemption has to include town taxes too. If a collection firm is involved, the fee is theirs and the treasurer may not have it.
Can you just pay my taxes and let me keep the house?
I buy houses; I do not offer a pay-your-taxes-and-stay arrangement. Paying someone else's taxes does not automatically make that person the owner. For property covered by § 58.1-3974, the law gives the payer a lien for taxes paid, plus interest. Have an independent Virginia attorney review any tax-payment or assignment proposal before signing.
The sale is in three weeks. Is it too late?
There may be options, but three weeks does not guarantee enough time. § 58.1-3974 requires redemption before the sale date. Contact the treasurer or sale attorney now for the exact deadline, full amount and payment instructions, and have an attorney review any proposed sale.
Will I still owe the taxes after I sell?
No. Delinquent real estate taxes are a lien on the property and they get paid off at settlement out of the price, like a mortgage. You walk away clear.
Does a tax sale wipe out my mortgage?
In a judicial sale, yes — if the lender was named as a party defendant. In a non-judicial sale under § 58.1-3975, no. The buyer takes subject to prior recorded liens. Which is one reason non-judicial parcels sell cheap.
I inherited a house that's behind on taxes and I'm not on the deed.
Then read the payment-plan section above carefully. § 58.1-3965(C)(ii) lets you write the treasurer, assert an ownership claim by succession, get added as a party, and enter your own 72-month plan. Do that before you decide anything.
A direct next step
Want a number on your house?
Tell me about the property. I'll review the details, explain the next step and put any offer and cost terms in writing. No obligation to accept.
Fastest answer is a phone call. If you'd rather not talk yet, the form below works too.
Official sources are linked for reference. Laws and requirements can change, and the right answer depends on the property and transaction. This page is not legal advice or a complete legal review. Ask an independent Virginia attorney before relying on it.