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North Carolina · Weigh your options

Property tax foreclosure in North Carolina

North Carolina does not sell tax lien certificates. Instead, the county or city tax collector forecloses its own tax lien, either by a court lawsuit run like a mortgage foreclosure or by a faster in rem method where the tax bill is docketed as a judgment and the sheriff sells the home. Taxes are due September 1 and interest starts January 6, and a home can be sold within months after the lien is advertised the next spring. Any money left after a tax foreclosure sale goes to the clerk of superior court for the people entitled to it, usually you.

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Reviewed against North Carolina law and official sources on October 12, 2026. General information, not legal advice.

The property tax process in North Carolina, step by step

  1. Taxes due and interest starts

    Due September 1; interest from January 6

    Interest is 2% for January 6 to February 1, then three-fourths of 1% a month until paid. If you are 65 or older or totally and permanently disabled with limited income, ask the county assessor about the elderly or disabled homestead exclusion or the circuit breaker deferral.

    N.C.G.S. §§ 105-360(a), 105-277.1, 105-277.1B

  2. Notice and newspaper ad of the tax lien

    Letter at least 30 days before the ad; ads run March 1 to June 30

    The tax collector mails the record owner a notice that the lien will be advertised, then posts it at the courthouse or town hall and publishes it in a newspaper. Paying before the ad keeps your name out of the paper and stops added costs.

    N.C.G.S. § 105-369(b1), (c)

  3. Lawsuit method

    Must start within 10 years after the taxes were due

    The county can sue in the county where the home is, and you, your spouse and lienholders must be served with a summons. If the court orders a sale, a commissioner sells the home at the courthouse door.

    N.C.G.S. §§ 105-374(a), (c), (k), (m), 105-378

  4. In rem method: judgment docketed without a lawsuit

    Notice at least 30 days before docketing; docketing at least 30 days after the ad

    The tax collector mails you a certified-mail notice and then files a certificate with the clerk that acts as a court judgment against the home, adding a $250 charge plus mailing and publication costs. The judgment bears 8% interest a year, and before the sheriff is told to sell you can ask the clerk to set it aside if the tax was paid or is invalid.

    N.C.G.S. § 105-375(b) to (f)

  5. Sheriff's or commissioner's sale

    In rem sale 3 months to 2 years after docketing, with 30 days' notice

    For an in rem sale, the sheriff mails notice by certified mail at least 30 days before the sale. Under the lawsuit method, increased upset bids and objections can be filed for 10 days after the sale is reported, and you can still redeem by paying all taxes, interest and costs until the sale is confirmed.

    N.C.G.S. §§ 105-374(e), (o), (p), 105-375(g), (i)

  6. Buyer gets the deed

    After confirmation or the execution sale

    The buyer gets title free of your ownership and most other liens, and you no longer have a right to buy the home back. A county or city can bid at its own sale and later resell the home.

    N.C.G.S. §§ 105-374(p), 105-375(i), 105-376

  7. Claim the surplus from the clerk

    After the sale proceeds are paid out

    After costs, taxes and assessments are paid, any balance goes as the court directs or into the clerk of superior court's office for the people entitled to it. If the clerk is unsure who should get it or someone disputes it, you start a special proceeding before the clerk to claim it.

    N.C.G.S. §§ 105-374(q)(6), 1-339.70(c), 1-339.71

Common questions in North Carolina

How long can you go without paying property taxes in North Carolina before the county forecloses?

There is no long waiting period. Under the in rem method, the judgment can be docketed 30 days after the lien is advertised in the spring, and the sheriff can sell 3 months later, so in theory a home can be sold about a year after the September due date. Counties must start collection actions within 10 years after the taxes were due, and many wait longer than the minimum.

Will the county tell me if there is money left after my North Carolina tax sale?

No North Carolina statute requires the tax office to tell you about a surplus. The UNC School of Government recommends that local governments notify former owners in writing, and says the clerk, not the tax office, decides who gets the money. Call the clerk of superior court in the county of the sale and ask whether any surplus is being held in your name.

What happens to unclaimed tax sale surplus in North Carolina?

The clerk holds it, and under the state's unclaimed property law, money held by a court is presumed abandoned one year after it becomes payable to you and is then sent to the State Treasurer. You can search and claim it at the Treasurer's NCCash site. The local government that foreclosed is not allowed to keep it.

What if the county buys my North Carolina home at the tax sale and sells it later for more?

A county or city can bid what it is owed at its own tax sale and later resell the home, and the statute lets the taxing units keep the resale money. The UNC School of Government says this does not violate the Supreme Court's 2023 Tyler decision because no surplus existed at the original sale, but courts have not settled the question. If this happened to you, talk with Legal Aid of North Carolina.

Step by step

More on foreclosure in North Carolina

Understand the process

What is happening and how much time there is.

Weigh your options

What can stop it, and what happens if it goes ahead.

Get help now

Who to call, and what to do when a sale is scheduled.

Also in North Carolina

Property tax foreclosure (this page)Claim surplus funds

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Sources for this page

  1. N.C.G.S. § 105-360: Due date; interest
  2. N.C.G.S. § 105-369: Advertisement of tax liens
  3. N.C.G.S. § 105-374: Foreclosure in nature of action to foreclose a mortgage
  4. N.C.G.S. § 105-375: In rem method of foreclosure
  5. N.C.G.S. § 105-376: Taxing unit as purchaser
  6. N.C.G.S. § 105-378: Limitation on use of remedies
  7. N.C.G.S. § 105-277.1: Elderly or disabled homestead exclusion
  8. N.C.G.S. § 105-277.1B: Homestead circuit breaker
  9. N.C.G.S. § 1-339.70: Disposition of execution sale proceeds
  10. N.C.G.S. § 1-339.71: Special proceeding to determine ownership of surplus
  11. N.C.G.S. § 116B-53: Presumptions of abandonment
  12. N.C.G.S. § 116B-78: Agreements with property finders
  13. UNC School of Government: Did the U.S. Supreme Court Rein In Property Tax Foreclosures?
  14. NC Department of State Treasurer: NCCash unclaimed property
  15. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.16, Notice and hearing
  16. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.16C, Opportunity for parties to resolve foreclosure of owner-occupied residential property
  17. N.C.G.S. Chapter 45, Article 11, Emergency Program to Reduce Home Foreclosures Act (§§ 45-100 to 45-107)
  18. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.17, Posting and publishing notice of sale
  19. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.20, Satisfaction of debt before completion of sale
  20. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.21, Postponement of sale; notice of cancellation
  21. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.23, Time of sale
  22. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.27, Upset bid on real property
  23. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.29, Orders for possession
  24. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.31, Disposition of proceeds of sale; payment of surplus to clerk
  25. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.32, Special proceeding to determine ownership of surplus
  26. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.36, Right of mortgagor to prove reasonable value in deficiency suits
  27. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.38, Deficiency judgments abolished where mortgage represents part of purchase price
  28. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.38A, Deficiency judgments abolished where mortgage secured by primary residence
  29. N.C.G.S. § 1-54, One-year statute of limitations (deficiency judgments)
  30. N.C.G.S. § 45-21.12A, Power of sale barred during periods of military service
  31. N.C.G.S. § 45-93, Borrower requests for information
  32. N.C.G.S. § 53-244.111, Prohibited acts (mortgage lending and servicing)
  33. N.C.G.S. § 14-423, Debt adjusting definitions (includes foreclosure assistance)
  34. N.C.G.S. § 75-121, Foreclosure rescue transactions prohibited
  35. North Carolina Judicial Branch: Foreclosures help topic
  36. NC Housing Finance Agency: Avoid Foreclosure (State Home Foreclosure Prevention Project)
  37. NC Housing Finance Agency: Homeowner Tips and Resources
  38. NC Housing Finance Agency: Avoid Scams and Fraud Prevention
  39. NC Pandemic Recovery Office: Housing (NC Homeowner Assistance Fund closed to new applications as of November 2023)
  40. U.S. Treasury: Homeowner Assistance Fund (period of performance ended)
  41. North Carolina Department of Justice: Foreclosure and Loan Modification
  42. Legal Aid of North Carolina: Foreclosures