In Missouri, you can generally go about three years without paying property taxes before the county can sell your property at a tax auction, and then anywhere from one year down to zero days to redeem it depending on how the sale plays out. So the honest answer to how long you can go without paying property taxes in Missouri is roughly four to five years from the first missed December 31 deadline to permanently losing the home, with penalties climbing sharply the entire time.
When the Clock Starts
Property taxes in Missouri are due by December 31. Miss that date and the taxes are delinquent as of January 1.1Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.100 – Penalty Against Delinquent Lands A tax lien attaches to the property automatically that same day, and it will block a sale or refinance until the debt is cleared.2Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.150 – Lands, Lots, Mineral Rights, and Royalty Interests Subject to Sale, When Missouri property tax liens outrank most other claims, including federal tax liens.
Penalties start immediately. If you pay before the property enters the tax sale process, the penalty is capped at 2% per month or fraction of a month the taxes remain unpaid. Once the property is in the sale process, that cap disappears and the full 18% annual penalty applies for each year of delinquency, plus sale costs.1Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.100 – Penalty Against Delinquent Lands Three months late but caught up early? Around 6%. Three years late and in the auction pipeline? A very different number.
The Three-Year Window Before a Tax Sale
Missouri law requires the county collector to begin tax sale proceedings within three years of delinquency.3Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.160 – Limitation on Proceedings for Sale of Land The annual sale is held on the fourth Monday in August.2Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.150 – Lands, Lots, Mineral Rights, and Royalty Interests Subject to Sale, When What sells at auction is a tax lien certificate, not the property itself, and the buyer receives a certificate of purchase.
Before the auction the collector must send you notice by first-class mail, and by certified mail as well if the property is assessed above $1,000. The delinquent list is also published in a local newspaper for three consecutive weeks, ending at least fifteen days before the sale.4Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.170 – County Collector Shall Cause Copy of List to Be Printed One catch worth knowing: the statute says your failure to actually receive a notice does not relieve you of the tax obligation.2Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.150 – Lands, Lots, Mineral Rights, and Royalty Interests Subject to Sale, When
Even after the sale process starts, you can stop it at any point before the actual auction by paying the delinquent taxes, penalties, and costs to the collector.2Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.150 – Lands, Lots, Mineral Rights, and Royalty Interests Subject to Sale, When Getting a sale notice is not the end of the road.
How the Offerings Shorten Your Right to Redeem
If the property does sell, how long you have to reclaim it depends on which offering it went through.
First and Second Offerings: One Year to Redeem
If a property is sold at its first or second annual offering, the owner, an occupant, or a lienholder has one year from the sale date to redeem it.5Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.340 – Redemption of Land Sold for Taxes Redemption means paying the collector the purchase price and sale costs, interest of up to 10% annually on the purchase amount as stated on the certificate, any post-sale taxes the buyer paid at 8% annual interest, and the costs of the redemption itself, including the fee to record the release. The collector reimburses the buyer, and you keep the property.
Third Offering: 90 Days
If a property is offered twice and no one bids enough to cover the taxes, penalties, and costs, it goes to a third offering at the next regular sale. At the third offering it sells to the highest bidder meeting the minimum, and the redemption period drops to 90 days.6Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.250 – Third Offering of Delinquent Lands and Lots, Redemption
After the Third Offering: No Redemption at All
If the third offering doesn’t sell either, the collector re-advertises the property every 30 days. At any sale after the third offering, the buyer receives a collector’s deed immediately, and there is no redemption period.6Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.250 – Third Offering of Delinquent Lands and Lots, Redemption That deed takes priority over all other liens and encumbrances except real property taxes. Past the third offering, you can lose the property with no chance to buy it back.
When Ownership Actually Transfers
For first- and second-offering sales, the buyer can apply for a collector’s deed after the one-year redemption period ends. For third-offering sales, that comes after the 90-day period. At least 90 days before applying, the buyer has to notify the recorded owner and anyone with a publicly recorded mortgage, deed of trust, lien, or other claim, by both first-class and certified mail, that they have a right to redeem.7Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 140.405 – Purchaser of Property at Delinquent Land Tax Auction, Deed Issued To, When Once the buyer files an affidavit that the notice requirements were met and the redemption window is closed, the collector issues the deed and the former owner’s interest is extinguished.
If your property sold for more than the taxes, penalties, and costs owed, the surplus belongs to you. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that a government cannot keep tax sale proceeds beyond the debt itself.8Supreme Court of the United States. Tyler v. Hennepin County, Minnesota Contact the county collector to claim it.
Ways to Stop or Slow the Timeline
Paying before the auction is the cleanest option and keeps you under the 2% monthly cap. Beyond that, two tools can help.
Filing for bankruptcy triggers an automatic stay that generally halts tax sale proceedings if the sale hasn’t been completed. Under Chapter 13, delinquent property taxes can be spread across a three- to five-year repayment plan, and property taxes secured by a lien on the home must be paid in full through the plan. Bankruptcy buys time and structure, not forgiveness of the taxes. And if you have already lost all legal and equitable interest in the property before filing, the stay may not help. Talk to a bankruptcy attorney before a sale, not after.
Missouri also has a property tax credit for senior citizens and individuals who are 100% disabled. The maximum credit is $1,100 per year for homeowners and $750 for renters, and eligibility is based on total household income, including nontaxable income. You claim it on your Missouri income tax return.9Missouri Department of Revenue. Property Tax Credit
Year-by-Year Recap
- Year 1, January 1: Taxes delinquent. Lien attaches. Penalties begin at 2% per month up to the sale process.
- Years 1 through 3: Penalties keep growing. Notices go out. Once the property enters the sale process, the full 18% annual penalty applies for each year of delinquency.
- Year 3, fourth Monday in August: First tax sale offering. If sold, one year to redeem.
- Year 4: Second offering if no adequate bid the first time. One-year redemption again.
- Year 5: Third offering. Redemption drops to 90 days.
- After Year 5: Post-third-offering sales every 30 days. Buyer gets a deed immediately. No redemption.
The short version: expect about three years before the property can be auctioned, and expect the window to reclaim it to shrink each time it goes unsold. Every month of delay adds penalties and costs that make redemption harder to afford, so the sooner you engage with the collector, an attorney, or the property tax credit program, the more of that timeline you get to keep.