How to buy tax-sale property in Tennessee (2026)

1. 1.Watch for the suit and the court's order of sale: a delinquent tax sale is the judicially ordered public sale of property to collect unpaid taxes, prescribed by Tenn. Code Ann. 67-5-2501 to -2516 (Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008)
2. 2.Bid at the auction conducted by the clerk of the court that ordered the sale, or by a special master (Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008, citing Tenn. Code Ann. 67-5-2502(a)(6))
3. 3.Bid at least the minimum bid the clerk sets, which includes the amount due for taxes, penalties, interest, and the costs of administering the sale; if no other bidder offers that amount the clerk bids it for the taxing entity, except where the entity's legislative body has determined that the property's environmental risks make a minimum bid inappropriate (Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008, citing Tenn. Code Ann. 67-5-2501(a)(2))
4. 4.Do not expect to post a bidding deposit: no Tennessee statute authorizes a court clerk to require a deposit as a condition of bidding at a delinquent tax sale (Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008)
5. 5.Wait for the clerk's report of sale and the court's confirmation: after the auction the clerk files a report of sale for the judge's confirmation and forwards notice of the sale to the register of deeds (Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008, citing Tenn. Code Ann. 67-5-2501(c))

Registration

Required: UnknownUnknown

Not verified from a source yet.

Deposit

Required: NoUnknown

Not verified from a source yet.

Forms

Bidder ID card: UnknownW-9: Unknown

Bidder registration form before the sale: county example - the Chancery Court Clerk and Master for Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County requires all prospective bidders to complete an informational form, with every person to be named on the conveyance present and proof of authority for agents and corporations (Davidson County Chancery Court Clerk & Master, Delinquent Tax Sale Information)

Eligibility

Residency required: UnknownNo delinquent taxes: Unknown

Generally any person not disqualified by statute may bid at a delinquent tax sale, and political subdivisions are authorized to bid (Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008, citing Tenn. Code Ann. 67-5-2508(a)(1))

Payment

Unknown

Not verified from a source yet.

Sources

• Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008 (deposit)
• Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008 (statutory framework)
• Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008 (clerk conducts the sale)
• Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008 (any person may bid)
• Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008 (minimum bid)
• Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008 (court orders the sale for cash)
• Tenn. Att'y Gen. Op. 23-008 (report of sale)
• Davidson County (TN) Chancery Court Clerk & Master, Delinquent Tax Sale Information

Tennessee collects delinquent property taxes by suit and a judicially ordered tax sale conducted by the clerk of the court (or a special master), not by selling tax lien certificates; sales are subject to the owner's equity of redemption. The Attorney General's opinion 23-008 supplies the bidder-facing rules: any person not disqualified by statute may bid, political subdivisions may bid, the clerk sets the minimum bid to cover taxes, penalties, interest and the costs of administering the sale and bids it for the taxing entity when nobody else does, the court orders the sale for cash, and the clerk may not require a bidding deposit as a condition of bidding. Because Part 25 as described in that opinion fixes neither a statewide bidder registration requirement nor a payment deadline, and because the clerk conducting each sale sets the practical terms, registration, deposit mechanics, payment methods and settlement dates are left unknown here; individual clerks do require a bidder registration form before the sale, as the Davidson County example cited shows. One caveat for follow-up: the compiled 67-5-2501 is reported to have been amended to add certified funds, cashier's check, money order and automated clearing house transfer as payment forms and to allow the sale to be conducted by internet sale, but those amendments could not be confirmed on an official page and are not relied on in this record.