The Hinds County tax sale is an annual online auction, held on the last Monday in August, where the county sells liens on parcels with unpaid property taxes. Winning bidders do not buy the property itself. They buy a certificate representing the delinquent debt, and the original owner has two years to redeem by paying the taxes, costs, a 5% damages penalty, and 1.5% interest per month. State law also permits a sale on the first Monday in April.
What Lands on the Delinquent List
Mississippi property taxes are due on or before February 1 for property assessed the prior year. Parcels that go unpaid after that date become eligible for the auction. The sale covers both real property (land and permanent structures) and personal property tax liens such as mobile homes and business equipment.
Before the auction, the Tax Collector must publish the delinquent list for two weeks in a newspaper published in the county. The published notice shows the owner’s name, the property description, and the amounts owed, broken down by state and county tax with a total. Hinds County also posts the delinquent parcel lists and tax sale results on its website, so you can search the data without waiting on the newspaper.
How To Register and Bid
Hinds County runs the sale through GovEase (govease.com), the online platform identified in the county’s FAQ. You create an account and register there before the auction opens.
Registration generally asks for a Social Security Number or Federal Employer Identification Number for tax reporting, a valid email address, and a physical mailing address for legal documents. Expect to provide banking details so the platform can verify your identity and financial standing. Finish registration early. An incomplete profile can lock you out of bidding entirely.
Bidding on each parcel starts at the amount of delinquent taxes plus costs. From there, investors bid upward, and the highest bid when the timer expires wins the lien. The platform shows real-time updates on competing bids, and once a listing closes the winning bid is locked in. If you plan to chase multiple parcels, stay on your dashboard. Status changes move quickly.
Paying for a Winning Bid
After winning, you typically have a tight window, often 24 to 48 hours, to pay by wire transfer or certified funds. Missing that window can void your bid and may bar you from future Hinds County auctions.
Once your payment clears, the county issues a tax sale certificate identifying the parcel number and the amount you paid. Certificates are usually delivered through the auction portal or mailed to your registered address. The certificate is a claim against the property for the debt. It is not a deed. It does not give you ownership, and it does not give you the right to occupy the property.
The Two-Year Redemption Period
The original owner has two years from the date of the sale to reclaim the property. Redemption is handled through the Chancery Clerk, and the owner must pay:
- the full amount of taxes for which the property was sold,
- all costs from the sale,
- a 5% damages penalty on the tax amount, and
- interest at 1.5% per month, or any fraction of a month, from the sale date.
The interest applies to the taxes and costs, not to whatever premium the purchaser bid above the starting amount. If the owner redeems, the purchaser gets back what they paid plus the statutory interest and damages. At 1.5% per month, that is 18% annualized, which is a meaningful return even on parcels you never take title to.
If the two years pass with no redemption, the lien matures and the purchaser becomes eligible to pursue a deed.
Notice Before the Redemption Period Ends
Mississippi does not let the redemption window close silently. Under Mississippi Code 27-43-3, the Chancery Clerk must notify the property owner at least 45 days before redemption expires. Notice goes out by registered or certified mail and must also be published in a county newspaper.
If the mailed notice comes back undelivered and the sheriff cannot locate the owner, the clerk must conduct an additional search for the owner’s address and try again. If that second attempt also fails, the clerk files an affidavit documenting the search efforts, and the affidavit becomes a permanent record. The owner’s failure to actually receive notice does not void the sale as long as the clerk and sheriff followed the required steps. If the clerk simply neglects to send notice, however, the sale is void and the purchaser is entitled to a refund of all money paid.
Getting the Deed After Redemption Expires
After two years with no redemption, you can apply for what is commonly called a maturity deed, sometimes referred to as a tax deed. This transfers legal title from the former owner to you. The application involves fees and typically a title search to confirm that all required notices under ยง 27-43-3 were properly served.
Receiving the deed is not the end of the work. A tax deed on its own rarely gives you marketable title, meaning the kind of clean ownership a title insurance company will insure and a conventional buyer or lender will accept. Former owners, lienholders whose interests were not properly extinguished, and parties with unrecorded claims can all cloud the title.
Quiet Title Actions
To turn a tax deed into title you can actually sell or finance, you will almost certainly need to file a quiet title action. The lawsuit names all potential claimants as defendants, including the former owner, lienholders of record, and any parties in possession, and asks the court to declare your ownership superior to all competing claims.
Expect the process to take several months and to involve attorney fees, court costs, and service-of-process expenses. If defendants cannot be located, service by publication is typically available but lengthens the timeline. Skipping the quiet title step saves money in the short term, but it leaves you with a property you cannot insure, sell to most buyers, or use as loan collateral.
Federal Tax Liens on the Property
If the IRS has filed a federal tax lien against the owner, that lien may still be attached to the property when you buy the certificate. Federal law gives local property tax liens priority over federal tax liens even when the federal lien was recorded first, so the local tax debt gets satisfied first in a forced sale.
A federal tax lien does not simply disappear once you receive a tax deed. If you plan to take the property itself, an outstanding IRS lien complicates your title and makes the quiet title process more involved. Checking federal lien filings before you bid is one of the most overlooked pieces of due diligence in tax sale investing.
Reporting Interest Income
Interest and damages you collect when a property owner redeems are taxable income. If the total interest paid to you in a calendar year reaches $10 or more, the paying entity is required to report it to you and to the IRS on Form 1099-INT.
Even without a 1099-INT, whether because the amount is below the threshold or the county fails to issue one, you still have to report the income on your federal return. Keep records of every certificate you buy, every redemption payment you receive, and the dates attached to each. The 1.5% monthly rate adds up quickly across multiple parcels, and unreported interest is one of the easier things for the IRS to catch.