Right to redeem your home after a property-tax sale
Tex. Tax Code § 34.21(a), (e)
In plain words
If your residence homestead (or agricultural land) is sold at a tax sale, you can buy it back within two years after the buyer’s deed is recorded. You repay the bid and certain costs plus a premium: 25% in the first year, 50% in the second. For other property the window is 180 days. Owners 65+, disabled owners and disabled veterans can also stop a tax suit or sale on their homestead by filing a deferral affidavit.
Who is protected
The former owner of Texas property sold at a tax sale.
When it applies
- Only in Texas.
- Only if you are behind on property taxes.
What you can do
Put the deadline on your calendar
Enter the date on your notice so Techoclaro can count the days and remind you.
Open the toolGet help with the tax debt
See payment plans, deferrals and how to calculate the redemption amount.
Deadline: Two years after the buyer’s deed is recorded (homestead); 180 days otherwise. Deferral affidavit to stop a sale: at least 5 days before the sale.
Open the toolRead your state guide and find free help
Open the state page for the process, deadlines and legal-aid contacts in your state.
Open the tool
Honest limits
- The premium grows from 25% to 50% after the first year, so acting early costs less.
- A deferral does not erase the tax: it stays a lien and earns 5% yearly interest.
- This is general education, not legal advice. Laws change and details matter — check the current official text or talk to a legal aid lawyer or HUD-approved housing counselor.
The law
- State lawTax sale redemption
Tex. Tax Code § 34.21(a), (e)
Exact part: (a), (e)
What it says: A homestead or agricultural owner may redeem within two years of the deed’s recording with a 25%/50% premium; others within 180 days.
Read the official texthttps://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/TX/htm/TX.34.htm#34.21 - State lawTax deferral for 65+, disabled, disabled veterans
Tex. Tax Code § 33.06(a)–(c-1)
Exact part: (a)–(c-1)
What it says: Eligible homestead owners may defer collection or abate a tax suit or sale by affidavit.
Read the official texthttps://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/TX/htm/TX.33.htm#33.06
Court cases
- Homeowner wonCited for this rightJones v. Flowers
Jones v. Flowers, 547 U.S. 220 (2006)
when mailed notice of a tax sale is returned undelivered, the government must take additional reasonable steps to notify the owner before selling the property
- Homeowner wonSame topicSauceda v. GMAC Mortgage Corp.
Sauceda v. GMAC Mortg. Corp., 268 S.W.3d 135 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi–Edinburg 2008)
a wrongful-foreclosure claim requires a defect in the sale proceedings, a grossly inadequate selling price, and a causal connection between them, and that homeowners who offer evidence of each are entitled to a trial
- Homeowner wonSame topicCharter National Bank-Houston v. Stevens
Charter Nat'l Bank-Houston v. Stevens, 781 S.W.2d 368 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 1989)
when a mortgagee deliberately chills the bidding at a foreclosure sale, the injured owner seeking damages need not also prove a grossly inadequate selling price
- Homeowner lostSame topicRice v. Pinney
Rice v. Pinney, 51 S.W.3d 705 (Tex. App.—Dallas 2001)
an eviction after foreclosure may proceed while a wrongful-foreclosure suit is pending, because the eviction court decides only the right to immediate possession and not title
- Homeowner wonSame topicTyler v. Hennepin County
Tyler v. Hennepin County, 598 U.S. 631 (2023)
a government that sells a home for unpaid taxes and keeps the value beyond the tax debt takes property without just compensation
- Homeowner wonSame topicHall v. Meisner
Hall v. Meisner, 51 F.4th 185 (6th Cir. 2022)
a homeowner's equity in property taken for a smaller tax debt is protected property, and taking it without compensation states a federal takings claim
- Homeowner wonSame topicMennonite Board of Missions v. Adams
Mennonite Bd. of Missions v. Adams, 462 U.S. 791 (1983)
a person with a recorded interest in property is entitled to notice by mail or equally reliable means before a tax sale, and publication or posting alone is not enough
Related rights
Right to claim excess proceeds from a tax sale
Tex. Tax Code § 34.04(a), (c)(5)
When a tax sale brings in more than the taxes and costs, the extra money (excess proceeds) is held by the court clerk for two years. The clerk must mail you a notice if the excess is more than $25. You claim it by filing a petition in the court that ordered the sale before the second anniversary of the sale.
Read this rightYour homestead is protected from forced sale for most debts
Tex. Const. art. XVI, § 50(a)
The Texas Constitution protects a family’s or single adult’s homestead from forced sale for almost all debts. The protection has no dollar cap; it is limited by land size (10 acres in a town or city; up to 200 acres rural for a family, 100 for a single adult). Only listed debts — like the purchase loan, property taxes, valid home-equity loans and home-improvement liens — can force a sale.
Read this rightThe government cannot keep your home equity beyond the tax debt
U.S. Const. amend. VTakings Clause
If your home is taken or sold to pay property taxes, the government may collect what you owe, but it may not keep the extra value. Keeping the surplus is a "taking" of your property without just compensation, which the Fifth Amendment forbids (Tyler v. Hennepin County, 2023). You may be able to claim the surplus, but you usually must follow your state's claim process and deadlines.
Read this rightThe right to real notice before the government takes or sells your home
U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1Due Process Clause
Before a state or county sells your property — for example at a tax sale, or through a court foreclosure — the Constitution requires notice that is reasonably likely to actually reach you. If the government knows your address, publishing a notice in the newspaper is not enough. If a mailed notice comes back unclaimed, the government must take extra reasonable steps to reach you, if it practicably can.
Read this rightAfter a discharge, creditors cannot collect the wiped-out debt from you
11 U.S.C. § 524(a)(2)
A bankruptcy discharge wipes out your personal liability for most debts in the case. After that, the law forbids creditors from suing, calling or otherwise trying to collect a discharged debt from you personally. A court can hold a creditor in contempt if there was no fair doubt that its conduct was barred.
Read this rightRenters get at least 90 days' notice after a foreclosure
12 U.S.C. § 5220 note(Pub. L. 111-22, div. A, § 702(a)–(b))
If you rent a home that goes through foreclosure, the new owner must give you a notice to move at least 90 days before you have to leave. If you have a real (bona fide) lease signed before the foreclosure notice, you can usually stay until the lease ends. The exception is when the new owner will live in the home; even then you still get the 90 days' notice.
Read this right