Tax lien
A lien for unpaid property taxes. Tax liens usually sit ahead of every other lien, including mortgages. Long-unpaid taxes can lead to a tax sale.
Your Room opens on this part of the sale, with the offer and everything before it already ticked.
Organize my saleFree to set up. Pay once when you list: $89 or $189. 7-day refund.
See how it worksWhere this comes up in a sale, and what follows
- Buyer's inspection (comes before)
Part 1 of 4
Why a seller cares
Unpaid property taxes sit ahead of every other lien, including the mortgage, and they are paid first at closing. A few years of missed taxes can end in a tax sale, so the search treats them as urgent.
Part 2 of 4
A simple example
The title search shows two years of unpaid property taxes, $6,800 with penalties. They are paid from your proceeds before the mortgage is.
| What is owed | What happens at closing |
|---|---|
| This year's taxes, not yet due | Prorated between you and the buyer |
| Two years of delinquent taxes | Paid in full, first, from your proceeds |
| A tax sale certificate already issued | Redeemed at closing, with interest, or the sale cannot close |
Taxes are paid before anyone else, because the county's lien outranks everyone else's.
Part 3 of 4
What people get wrong
That the mortgage company was paying the taxes. If the loan has no escrow account, nobody was, and the county's lien grows quietly.
Part 4 of 4 · where to read next
Where it appears in the sale
What a definition is, and what it isn't
Keighbor is a software company, not a law firm, brokerage, or tax adviser. This is general information, not legal, tax, financial, or real estate advice about your sale. Your situation may differ. Before acting on a contract, disclosure, title, tax, or pricing question, ask an appropriately licensed professional in your state.
Written and researched by Keighbor Research · drawn from the reference glossary · how we research and check what we publish
In your Room, this word explains itself where it appears.
Your Room defines tax lien in the step you meet it in, beside the document or the date it belongs to. Free to set up, with an agent or on your own.
Organize my saleFree to set up. Pay once when you list: $89 or $189. 7-day refund.