Tax title properties

The Real Estate Services section, part of the Facilities Management Division, manages tax title properties for King County. Tax title properties are parcels that were previously offered for sale at an annual tax foreclosure auction, but did not sell. For information about these properties, visit the Real Estate Services webpage, call 206-477-9350, or email RES.Sales@kingcounty.gov.

Additional information

Parcels offered for auction at tax foreclosure sales, but not bid upon, are deeded to the county. These parcels are called Tax Title Properties. Most of these parcels are of little value, which is why they did not sell at auction in the first place. Many of these properties are "dangling strips" or "isolated triangles." The former are usually narrow strips, anywhere from a few inches to a few feet wide, that were left over because of an error in a legal description or survey, a platting error, or a mis-measurement by the Assessor's Office. The triangles generally are created when a roadway cuts through a lot, leaving a small isolated piece of land cut off from the rest of the lot or block. These properties may still be purchased from the county, but through a different process. Purchasing tax title properties are subject to the same risks as tax foreclosure properties.