Foreclosed property auctions

In mid-November, we will post a list of tax foreclosure properties online and in our office at the King County Customer Service Center. In addition, a list will be published in the Seattle Times newspaper in June of the following year after all our title reports are completed.

If you obtain a list from us, keep in mind that the list will need to be periodically updated leading up to the auction date, as some properties will need to be removed for accounts that have been paid since your list was printed. Parcels may be redeemed from foreclosure at any time up to the day before the auction, thus we do not know what will be in the sale until the morning of the auction.

We do not maintain a mailing list to notify people of each year's tax foreclosures. For those who wish a listing of foreclosure properties, please view the list online.

By state law, prior owners have no rights to the property after foreclosure, unless they were a minor or legally incompetent. Minors and legal incompetents have the right to redeem anytime within three years from the date of the foreclosure sale. If they do so, they must pay the amount which the property sold for, plus interest on the tax amount. If there were any improvements made by the new owner, those must also be paid for.

King County makes no guarantees that prior liens will be extinguished. If prior lien holders attempt to collect on their liens after the property has been foreclosed upon, it is entirely up to the new owner to defend against these claims. 

Read Washington state law RCW 84.64.080

A Treasurer's Tax Deed is issued within sixty days of the date of sale. The Treasurer forwards deeds to the King County Recorder's office for recording. A copy is also mailed to the address provided in the bidder registration.

Treasurers' deeds provide the purchaser no guarantees. There can be clouded title or other problems which King County is neither aware of, nor responsible for, that will become the responsibility of the purchaser.

Do not count on buying a house at foreclosure auction. Normally, owners of improved properties subject to tax foreclosure will raise the money to redeem the property before the sale, often at the last minute. Most houses that are foreclosed upon also have delinquent loans held by banks, mortgage companies, or other lenders. There is no department within the county that has information on these lending agency foreclosures.