Getting Your Nebraska Home Back After a Property Tax Sale

You may redeem your house after a Nebraska property tax sale. This is how.

If you do not pay your property taxes on time, the amount owed becomes a lien on your house. This form of lien nearly often takes precedence over other types of liens, including mortgages. When taxes are not paid, the taxing authority will either sell the lien (and if you do not pay the past-due sum to the lien purchaser, that party may foreclose or use another way to get title to the house) or sell the property itself in a tax sale.

In certain areas, however, no auction is made; instead, the taxation body enforces its lien by acquiring ownership to the residence. The taxation body is then required by state law to dispose of the property, typically by selling it. Before conducting a sale, the taxation authority in some countries utilizes a foreclosure procedure.

How Nebraska Tax Sales Work

Homeowners in Nebraska who refuse to pay their unpaid taxes may lose their house, or a part of it, after a tax auction (Neb. Rev. Stat. 77-1802, 77-1807). The purchaser receives a “certificate of purchase” after the transaction (Neb. Rev. Stat. 77-1818).

However, the purchaser cannot yet take possession of your house because Nebraska law imposes a waiting period known as a “redemption” period (see below). During this period, you have the legal right to repay the obligation and regain your property. During the redemption period, the certificate of purchase serves as proof of the purchaser’s ownership interest in the property.

How Long You Get to Redeem Your Property After a Nebraska Tax Sale

Following the transaction, the buyer receives a “certificate of purchase,” and a three-year redemption period begins. Nebraska Revised Statutes 77-1818, 77-1837. During this period, you have the legal right to repay the obligation and regain your property. The certificate of purchase only serves as proof of the purchaser’s ownership of the property during the redemption period.

Following the expiration of the three-year redemption period following the sale, the purchaser must take specified actions to obtain title to your property. The buyer must either:

file a tax deed or foreclose.

How a Tax Deed Provides Title to the Purchaser

After the three-year redemption period passes, the purchaser may apply to the county treasurer for a tax deed at any time during the next nine months. The county treasurer will then execute and present a deed to the purchaser, transferring ownership of the land to the purchaser. Nebraska Revised Statutes 77-1837.

You have until the date of the tax deed application to redeem the property. You have until the end of business on the day the tax deed application is received by the county treasurer. Nebraska Revised Statutes 77-1824, 77-1837.

How a Foreclosure Purchaser Acquires Title

Instead of going to the treasurer for a deed, the tax sale purchaser may file a complaint (lawsuit) in court to foreclose the tax lien represented by the certificate of purchase. The court will issue a decision and conduct a sheriff’s sale. Your residence is then transferred to the buyer at that transaction. After the three-year term passes, the foreclosure process must begin within nine months. Nebraska Revised Statutes 77-1902).

You have until the final confirmation of the transaction to redeem the property. Nebraska Revised Statutes 77-1917.

What Will It Cost to Redeem My Nebraska Home Following a Tax Sale?

The amount you must pay to regain your house is determined on when you redeem.

If You Redeem Prior to the Purchaser Applying for a Tax Deed or Beginning a Foreclosure

To redeem your Nebraska property after the tax auction, but before the purchaser files for a tax deed or begins foreclosure proceedings, you must pay the county treasurer the following:

the purchase price listed in the certificate of sale, plus interest from the purchase date to the redemption date, plus any additional taxes subsequently paid by the purchaser, plus interest (Neb. Rev. Stat. 77-1824, 77-1917).

If You Redeem After a Foreclosure Has Been Started

To redeem your property after a foreclosure has begun, you must pay the district court clerk:

the amount owed for property interest charges, as well as lawyers’ fees, if sought in the foreclosure complaint (Neb. Rev. Stat. 77-1917).

If You Redeem Following a Foreclosure Decree But Prior to Confirmation

To redeem your property after the foreclosure judgment but before the court acknowledges the sale, you must pay the district court clerk the following fees:

the amount owed on the property interest charges any further taxes paid by the purchaser plus interest (if the property was sold at a sheriff’s sale to a buyer other than the foreclosing party and the buyer paid extra taxes). Nebraska Revised Statutes 77-1917.

How to Reduce Your Property Taxes

Even though you will have a redemption time after a Nebraska tax lien sale, it is usually advisable to take action before your taxes become late in order to make them more reasonable. If you believe your assessed property value is not indicative of the fair market value, you might seek a modification in assessment.