Quick answer: Go to the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Tax Sale Property Listings, search the page for your parcel ID, owner name, or street address, and check the “Tax Sale Date” and “Total Tax Due” columns. If you appear, call the Delinquent Division at 404-298-3053 the same day.
What Is the DeKalb County Tax Sale List?
The DeKalb County tax sale list is the official schedule of parcels the Tax Commissioner plans to auction for unpaid property taxes. Each entry shows the tax sale date, parcel ID, owner, property address, levy date, the tax years owed, and the total tax due.
It is not the same as the delinquent property tax list. The delinquent list covers every parcel with taxes due in the last seven years. The tax sale list is much shorter: only parcels that have been levied and set for a specific auction date. If you are on the delinquent list, you have a problem. If you are on the tax sale list, you have a deadline. (We explain the difference in detail in DeKalb County Delinquent Property Tax List: What It Means If Your Property Is Listed.)
How the Georgia tax sale process works in DeKalb
The road to a DeKalb County tax sale follows Georgia law, step by step. According to the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Tax Sales page, a tax lien attaches to your property on January 1 each year (O.C.G.A. 48-2-56), and that lien outranks every other lien, including your mortgage.
DeKalb tax bills go out in August, with installments due September 30 and November 15. On December 31, the Tax Commissioner must issue a tax execution, called a Fi.Fa., against every delinquent account (O.C.G.A. 48-3-3). The Fi.Fa. authorizes the levying officer to levy on the property and sell it.
Once a parcel is levied, notice of the sale runs once a week for four weeks in the county’s legal organ, currently The Champion Newspaper. Sales happen on the first Tuesday of the month, generally April through December, on the steps of the DeKalb County Courthouse at 556 N McDonough Street in Decatur.
Who runs the DeKalb tax sale?
In DeKalb, the Tax Commissioner’s Office manages delinquent collections and publishes the tax sale listings. The Tax Commissioner is Nicole M. Golden, sworn in on December 31, 2025. Bidding starts at the total of taxes plus costs (levy, recording, advertising, and commissions), and the parcel goes to the highest bidder. If nobody bids, the county may bid the opening amount itself.
One important detail: DeKalb County includes part of the City of Atlanta. Properties on the DeKalb side of the city line go through DeKalb’s tax office, not Fulton’s. If you are not sure which side you are on, read our breakdown of Fulton County vs. DeKalb County property taxes.
How to Check If Your Property Is on the DeKalb County Tax Sale List (Step by Step)
You can check the DeKalb County tax sale list online in about five minutes. You need one thing first: your parcel ID. Everything else follows from it.
- Find your parcel ID. Open the county’s free Search Property Information portal and search by street address or owner name. Your parcel ID (for example, a number formatted like “15 186 03 002”) also appears on any past tax bill, deed, or closing statement. Write it down exactly as shown, spaces included.
- Open the official tax sale listing. Go to the Tax Sale Property Listings page. It shows every parcel scheduled for the next sale in one long table.
- Search the page. Press Ctrl+F (Command+F on a Mac) and type your parcel ID. If nothing comes up, try the street number and street name, then the owner’s last name. Property held by an LLC, trust, or estate is listed under that entity’s name.
- Read your row carefully. If you find a match, note the tax sale date, the levy date, the tax years owed, and the total tax due. The table below explains each column.
- Check the delinquent list too. Not on the sale list? Open the DeKalb County Delinquent Property Listings. If you appear there, you are in the pipeline for a future sale even if you are not scheduled yet.
- Look for the legal notice. Every sale is advertised for four weeks in The Champion Newspaper. Searching the legal notices confirms the date and gives you the exact legal description.
- Call the Delinquent Division. The online number may not include the latest interest, penalties, and fees. Call 404-298-3053 or email delinquentcollections2@dekalbcountyga.gov and ask two questions: “What is my payoff today?” and “Is this parcel scheduled for sale?”
- Check for recorded liens. Search the GSCCCA lien index to see any recorded Fi.Fa., judgment, or other lien against the property. Buyers and title companies will see these, so you should too.
How to read a DeKalb County tax sale listing
| Column on the listing | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Tax Sale Date | The auction date. This is your real deadline. |
| Parcel ID / Map Ref | The county’s unique number for your property. |
| Tax Sale ID | The county’s internal case number for this sale. Give it when you call. |
| Owner / Address | The owner of record and the property’s street address. |
| Defendant | Everyone named in the tax execution, which can include a lender. |
| Levy Type / Lien Book / Page | Where the levy is recorded in DeKalb’s lien records. |
| Levy Date | When the property was formally levied for sale. |
| Min Year / Max Year | The oldest and newest tax years included in the balance. |
| Total Tax Due | The opening amount, before costs added at sale. Confirm by phone. |
What the timing looks like in practice: parcels on the October 6, 2026 listing show a levy date of August 14, 2026. That is roughly seven and a half weeks between the levy and the auction. Some of those parcels carry unpaid tax years going back to 2005 or 2010, which shows how long a balance can quietly build. For the full picture on those timelines, see How Long Can You Be Behind on Property Taxes in DeKalb County?
Tip for heirs and out-of-state owners: If the parcel belonged to a parent or relative, the owner name may still be the deceased person. Search by address or parcel ID instead of by name. Our guides on inherited land and managing Georgia land from out of state cover this situation in depth.
Warning Signs Your DeKalb County Property Is Headed for a Tax Sale
Most DeKalb County tax sales are preceded by months of warning signs. The problem is that many of them arrive by mail, and mail goes to whatever address the county has on file. If that address is old, you may miss every one of them.
Here are the milestones to watch, in the order they usually happen:
| When | What happens | What you should do |
|---|---|---|
| August | Annual property tax bills are mailed to the owner of record as of January 1. | Confirm you received a bill. No bill does not mean no tax. |
| September 30 | First installment is due (full payment also due if paying in one amount). | Pay online through the county’s GovHub payment portal or in person. |
| November 15 | Second installment is due. | Partial payments are accepted, but interest keeps running. |
| After December 31 | Unpaid accounts are subject to a tax lien (Fi.Fa.), which may show up on credit reports. | Get a written payoff and a plan before spring. |
| Levy date | The property is formally levied and scheduled for a specific sale. | Check the tax sale list the same week. |
| 4 weeks before sale | The sale notice runs weekly in The Champion Newspaper. | Act now. Personal checks and cards are no longer accepted. |
| First Tuesday | The auction is held on the DeKalb County Courthouse steps. | If you have not paid, your 12-month redemption clock starts. |
Five red flags that you may already be listed
- You suddenly get a stack of letters from investors. A new wave of “we buy houses” mail often follows a recorded Fi.Fa. or a published sale notice. Here is why you keep getting letters to buy your house.
- Your tax balance online includes more than one tax year. Multi-year balances are the ones most likely to be levied.
- The county will only take certified funds. Once a property is scheduled for sale, DeKalb accepts only cash, bank-issued cashier’s checks, or bank wire transfers. Personal checks, business checks, money orders, and credit or debit cards are refused.
- Someone posts or delivers a notice at the property. Vacant land and rentals are especially easy to miss because nobody is there to see it.
- A title search turns up a recorded lien. If a buyer, lender, or title company mentions a Fi.Fa., assume the clock is running.
Why the balance keeps growing
Unpaid DeKalb property taxes do not sit still. Interest accrues under Georgia’s statutory formula, penalties are added over time, and once a sale is scheduled, levy, recording, advertising, and commission costs are stacked on top. The number on your August bill is almost never the number you need to stop a sale.
That is why a phone call to the Delinquent Division matters more than the figure on the screen. For more on how quickly these charges add up statewide, see how many years you can be behind on property taxes in Georgia.
What to Do If Your Property Is on the DeKalb County Tax Sale List
If your parcel is on the DeKalb County tax sale list, the cheapest fix is almost always to pay the full payoff before the auction. After the sale, you can still get the property back, but it costs noticeably more. Here are your options, from least to most expensive.
Option 1: Pay the full payoff before sale day
Call the Delinquent Division at 404-298-3053 for an exact payoff that includes interest, penalties, and sale costs. Once a property is scheduled, pay with cash, a bank-issued cashier’s check, or a bank wire made payable to the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner. Get a receipt and ask the office to confirm the parcel has been pulled from the sale.
Option 2: Ask about partial payments early
The Tax Commissioner’s Office accepts partial payments, and you can make as many as you need. This works best before a levy. Interest keeps accruing on whatever remains, and a partial payment alone will not necessarily stop a scheduled sale, so ask directly what amount is required to remove your parcel.
Option 3: Sell the property before the auction
If the balance is more than the property is worth carrying, selling first often leaves you with more money than any other path. The delinquent taxes are paid out of the sale proceeds at closing, so you do not need cash up front. A fast cash buyer can close in days rather than months, which matters when the sale is a few weeks out. See who buys vacant land with back taxes in Atlanta.
Option 4: Redeem the property after the sale
Missing the sale date is not the end. Under Georgia law, the owner, or anyone with a recorded interest such as a lender, can redeem within 12 months of the sale. During that year, the tax sale buyer holds a tax deed but has no immediate control of the property and is not entitled to rents or profits.
The catch is the price. The redemption price is the amount paid at the sale, plus any taxes the buyer paid afterward, plus a 20% premium for the first year (or any part of it) and 10% for each additional year.
In this example, a parcel that sold for $10,000 costs $12,000 to redeem at any point in the first year. After 12 months, the buyer can start the legal process to “bar” or foreclose your right of redemption by serving notice on everyone with a recorded interest. Once that process is complete, the right to redeem is gone. Our explainer on the 12-month redemption period walks through the timing.
Option 5: Claim excess funds if the property sold for more than you owed
When a DeKalb tax sale brings in more than the taxes, costs, and fees, the surplus is called excess funds. The Tax Commissioner holds it until someone with a legal right to it files a claim. You can download the Excess Funds Claim Form and review the county’s Excess Funds List.
Two DeKalb rules catch people off guard. Claims must be filed by the entitled party or their Georgia-licensed attorney, and Powers of Attorney are not accepted. If competing claims come in, the county can deposit the money with the Superior Court and let a judge decide. Learn more in our guide to DeKalb County excess funds and what to do if your house was sold at auction.
This section is general information, not legal advice. Tax sales are complex legal transactions. Talk with a Georgia real estate attorney about your specific situation.
Selling Your DeKalb County Property Before (or After) the Tax Sale
For many DeKalb owners, especially heirs, landlords, and owners of vacant lots, selling before the auction is the option that protects the most equity. The back taxes come out of the proceeds at closing, the Fi.Fa. is satisfied, and whatever is left goes to you rather than to a tax sale bidder.
[Image: Vacant residential lot in DeKalb County, Georgia, with a “For Sale by Owner” sign. Alt text: “Selling tax delinquent land in DeKalb County before the tax sale”]
Compare your outcomes
| Path | Cash needed up front | Who keeps the equity | Typical timeline | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay the payoff yourself | Full payoff in certified funds | You | Days | Low, if you have the money |
| Sell before the tax sale | None; taxes paid at closing | You, after taxes and costs | As fast as 7 to 14 days with a cash buyer | Low; must close before sale day |
| Let it sell, then redeem | Bid amount plus 20% or more | You, at a higher cost | Up to 12 months, until barred | Medium; the buyer may bar your right |
| Let it sell, claim excess funds | None | Only the surplus, if any | Varies; case by case | High; you lose the property |
When selling makes the most sense
- You inherited the property and the estate has not been settled, or several heirs share ownership. See what happens when you inherit land in Georgia.
- It is vacant land you are not using. Vacant land does not qualify for a homestead exemption, so it often carries a higher tax burden year after year. Learn more about how we buy vacant land.
- The back taxes span several years, and the payoff is climbing faster than you can save.
- You live out of state and cannot easily manage notices, code enforcement, or a property nobody is watching.
- The sale is only weeks away and a traditional listing with showings and buyer financing would take too long.
How Atlanta Land Buyers handles tax-delinquent property
At Atlanta Land Buyers, we buy land and property throughout DeKalb County as-is, including parcels with delinquent taxes, recorded liens, or an upcoming tax sale date. That includes properties in Decatur, Stone Mountain, Lithonia, Stonecrest, Tucker, Clarkston, Chamblee, Doraville, Brookhaven, Dunwoody, and the DeKalb side of Atlanta.
We verify your exact payoff with the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner before we make an offer, build it into the numbers, and pay it at closing through a Georgia title company. Most closings take 7 to 14 days. There are no agent commissions and no fees to you. If paying the taxes yourself or setting up payments is the better move, we will tell you that instead.
Read more on our tax-delinquent property page, or compare options using our guide to evaluating land buyers near you.
Frequently Asked Questions About the DeKalb County Tax Sale List
Where can I find the DeKalb County tax sale list?
The official list is on the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s website under Property Tax, then Tax Sales. The direct link is the Tax Sale Property Listings page. The county does not keep a mailing list for tax sales, so checking the page yourself is the only reliable way to stay informed.
How often is the DeKalb County tax sale held?
Tax sales are held monthly, generally from April through December, on the first Tuesday of the month. The county can add or cancel sales based on its needs, so always confirm the date on the current listing.
Where is the DeKalb County tax sale held?
On the steps of the DeKalb County Courthouse, 556 N McDonough Street, Decatur, GA 30030. Bidders must register in advance for each sale.
Can I stop a DeKalb County tax sale?
Yes, in most cases, by paying the full payoff before the sale in cash, cashier’s check, or bank wire. Selling the property and paying the taxes at closing also stops the sale. Call the Delinquent Division at 404-298-3053 to confirm the exact amount and deadline.
How long do I have to redeem my property after a DeKalb tax sale?
You can redeem within 12 months of the sale by paying the redemption price. After 12 months, the buyer can begin the process to bar your right of redemption. Until that process is properly completed, redemption may still be possible, but the cost keeps rising by 10% per additional year.
What is the difference between the delinquent tax list and the tax sale list?
The delinquent property tax list includes every parcel with unpaid taxes from the last seven years. The tax sale list includes only parcels that have been levied and scheduled for a specific auction. Being on the delinquent list is a warning. Being on the tax sale list means a date has been set.
Will a DeKalb County tax lien hurt my credit?
It can. The Tax Commissioner’s Office does not report to credit bureaus, but a recorded tax lien is public and may appear on credit reports.
Can I pay delinquent DeKalb property taxes online?
Regular property tax payments can be made online through the county’s GovHub portal. Once a property is scheduled for tax sale, only cash, bank-issued cashier’s checks, or wire transfers are accepted. For more, see can I pay delinquent property taxes online.
What happens to extra money if my property sells for more than I owed?
The surplus, called excess funds, is held by the Tax Commissioner until the entitled party files a claim. DeKalb does not accept Powers of Attorney for these claims. You or your Georgia-licensed attorney must file.
Can I sell my DeKalb property if it is already on the tax sale list?
Yes. As long as you close before the auction, the delinquent taxes are paid from the sale proceeds at closing. A cash buyer can often close fast enough to beat the sale date.
Found Your Property on the DeKalb County Tax Sale List? Get a Cash Offer Today
If your search turned up your parcel, or you are worried it is next, you do not have to wait for the auction to decide what happens. Every week you wait adds interest and fees, and every sale date that passes shrinks your options.
Atlanta Land Buyers buys houses and land across DeKalb County as-is, with back taxes, liens, or a tax sale date already set. Here is how it works:
- Tell us about the property. Share the address or parcel ID. It takes two minutes.
- We verify the payoff. We confirm the exact balance with the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner so there are no surprises.
- Get a fair cash offer. No commissions, no fees, no repairs, and no obligation.
- Close on your timeline. Often in 7 to 14 days, with the back taxes paid at closing so the tax sale is stopped.
Call (404) 913-7086 or request your free, no-obligation cash offer now.