Tax Sales
Tax Sale Location
Tax sales are held the first Tuesday of each month for the months in which we plan a tax sale on the steps of the Superior Courthouse at Flournoy Park between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. If the tax sale falls on a holiday, the sale will take place on the first Wednesday.
Flournoy Park is located on the southeast corner of Roswell and Waddell Streets.
Tax Sale Registration
You may pre-register prior to the day of the tax sale; however you must be present in order to bid. Bidder registrations and ID cards are issued between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. on the day of the tax sale. Please bring your photo ID and present it to the Levy Officer to receive your bidder ID card.
Tax Sale Bidding & Payment
We do not accept mail, phone or fax bids. The opening bid for a particular property is the amount of tax due, plus penalties and all applicable other costs. The Tax Deed, not the property, is sold to the highest bidder. All Tax Deeds must be won at the auction. We do not sell tax liens.
We require payment in full upon conclusion of the tax sale. Payment must be in the form of cash or certified check.
Please make all checks payable to: Cobb County Tax Commissioner
If there is any excess after paying taxes, costs and all expenses of a sale, the Tax Commissioner may file an interpleader action in superior court to the intended parties, including the owner as their interest appears and in the order of priority in which their interest exists (O.C.G.A. § 48-4-5).
Any properties not receiving a bid may be re-auctioned that afternoon at 3 p.m.
Notice
The tax sale purchaser receives a tax deed to the property. However, they cannot take immediate possession of the property, make any improvements to the property, evict any tenants or move onto the property.
Georgia law allows the property owner or anyone with any right, title or interest in the property to repurchase (redeem) the Tax Deed. Until the right of redemption has been foreclosed or the title has ripened by prescription, a tax deed has the same force and effect as a lien.
Right of Redemption
When real property is sold at a tax sale, the owner, creditor or any person having an interest in the property may redeem (repurchase) the property from the holder of the tax deed within 12 months.
The redemption price is:
- The bid amount,
- Plus, any taxes paid by the purchaser after the tax sale,
- Plus, any special assessments on the property,
- Plus, a 20% premium of the amount for the first year or fraction of a year which has elapsed since the date of sale and a 10% premium for each additional year or fraction of a year thereafter plus the sheriff and advertisement costs.
The tax sale purchaser is responsible for determining the amount payable for redemption. Redemption of the property puts the title conveyed by the tax sale back to the owner of record subject to all liens that existed at the time of the tax sale.
Notice of Foreclosure of Right to Redeem
After 12 months from the date of the tax sale, the purchaser at the tax sale may terminate or foreclose on the owner's right to redeem the property by causing a notice(s) of the foreclosure to be served by certified mail to the owner of record and to all interest holders which appear on the public record.
In addition, the notice of foreclosure is to be published in the newspaper in the county in which the property is located once a week for four consecutive weeks.
For more information on tax sales, please read our Real Property Tax Sales booklet.