Tax Sales in Bell County

• The sales begin at 10:00 am and are held at the Bell County Clerk’s Alcove to the east of the main entrance of the Bell County Justice Complex, 1201 Huey Drive, Belton. Click for Additional Directions.
• You must be present at the sale. You may not bid via phone or internet. Section 34.015 of the Texas Tax Code requires that the grantee in the Sheriff’s Deed from the tax sale and the bidder at the tax sale be the same person.
• You must register to bid prior to the sale. Registration will begin at approximately 9:45 am the day of the sale outside the County Clerk’s office. You must present a valid driver’s license or identification card issued by a State or an Agency of the United States government to register to bid.
• You must have the funds available to pay the purchase price in full at the time of the sale. You will be given 2 hours to go to your bank to obtain cash or a cashier’s check. You must remit the exact amount due. The Sheriff’s office cannot make change.
• You must pay in either cash or cashier’s check payable to the District Clerk of Bell County. Personal checks will not be accepted.
• You will be required to pay for the deed recording fees at the time of the sale. Most deeds are two pages and the fee for two pages is $15.00. You may pay this with a check payable to County Clerk of Bell County or pay in cash. If you pay in cash you must remit the exact amount due.
• The number of people at a sale varies according to the property being offered. Usually there are between 30 and 50 people at a sale.
• Tax sales are not conducted every month in Bell County. We will usually have 3 to 4 sales a year.
• The Tax Appraisal District of Bell County is not the owner of the property and cannot give you permission to go on or access the property prior to the sale. You should view the property from public streets or roadways.
• All property is subject to a right of redemption. The redemption period for homestead property is 2 years. Property may be the homestead of a person even if a person does not have a homestead exemption for tax purposes on the property.
• A statement of taxes due described in Section 34.015 of the Texas Tax Code IS required in Bell County.
• The Texas Tax Code, Section 34.01(n), gives purchasers at tax sales the right of use and possession of the property subject only to the prior owner’s right of redemption. However, neither the Tax Appraisal District of Bell County nor the Bell County Sheriff’s Department will put you in possession of the property at the time of the tax sale. See Section 33.51 of the Texas Tax Code for the procedure for gaining possession of occupied property.
• A large percentage of the properties will be withdrawn from the sale due to the owners paying their taxes. You should consult the MVBA website for the properties that have been withdrawn.
• The Notice of Sale is published in the Temple Daily Telegram. You may view the Notice of Sale on their website at http://www.tdtnews.com/classifieds. All defendants in the lawsuit are not listed on the bid sheet, however all defendants are listed in the Notice of Sale.
• See General Information under Tax Sales on the MVBA website at www.mvbalaw.com for further information on tax sales. The Texas Tax Code may be accessed at: http://www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/proptax/tc06/