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Tax Sale Atlas

Winston County, AL tax sales

Tax Sale Atlas maps the Winston County, AL tax sale, one of 2,553 counties in 30 states. Alabama sells tax lien certificates paying up to 12%. Sale office, calendar and list locations read from state rules plus what the county publishes on Jul 27, 2026.

How tax lien sales work in Winston County, seat of Double Springs: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.

New to tax sales? Read how Alabama tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.

Next sale
Not scheduled.
Format
GovEase
Registration
Register online through GovEase.
County office
205-489-5166
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Jul 27, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Winston County sells delinquent taxes

From lien to deed

Alabama holds no routine county tax deed auction under the tax lien regime. A holder of all the sold, unexpired, outstanding tax lien certificates on a parcel may file an action in circuit court to foreclose the right to redeem and quiet title, but only once four years have passed since the tax lien auction and no later than ten years after it. The holder must mail a notice of intent at least 30 days and no more than 180 days before filing, to the owner of record, every recorded lienholder, the tax collecting official, and anyone else who may reasonably be believed to hold an interest.

Tax certificate sale (lien)

GovEase
Run by
Winston County Revenue Commissioner's Office (Sandra Thorn Wright, Revenue Commissioner), Double Springs
Frequency
annual
Registration
Register online through GovEase.
Next expected
between March 1 and June 15, 2027 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Sale list
Alabama DOR state-held tax delinquent land transcript, Winston County
When it runs
Early May. The county's own auction flyer gives "Start Time May 4th @ 8:30AM" and "Registration will begin on April 4th." That flyer sat on the Revenue Commissioner's former website next to a delinquent list generated March 31, 2023, and both were captured June 2, 2023, so the quoted dates belong to the 2023 cycle. No current-year date is published on any live page. Alabama's statutory auction window runs March 1 through June 15, so expect a similar spring date and call the office to confirm it.
Registration and deposit

Register online through GovEase. The county flyer directs bidders to "Sign Up liveauctions.govease.com/Account/Login", states "You can create an account and register by visiting www.govease.com", and points to training at "www.govease.com/bidderhelp". It also states "Registration will begin on April 4th. Please view the registration page for details." The county publishes no deposit amount, no registration deadline, and no bid rules. Confirm the current cycle with the Revenue Commissioner at 205-489-5166 before you register.

Sale format and venue
Winston County sells tax LIENS under the Alabama Article 7 tax lien auction regime, not tax deeds. The one county-published statement of format found anywhere is the Revenue Commissioner's flyer titled "Winston County Online Tax Lien Auction Provided by GovEase," which announces that "the Winston County tax lien auction will be held online." Treat that as the 2023 cycle, not as confirmation of the current year: the office's website domain has since lapsed and now serves unrelated adult content, so the flyer and the parcel list survive only as web archive captures. GovEase's own published Alabama county contact list names 41 counties and does not include Winston, which leaves the current vendor unconfirmed. The only live county web presence the Alabama Department of Revenue lists for Winston County is a public GIS parcel viewer with no sale, auction, or delinquent list content. The archived 2023 delinquent list runs 7 pages and roughly 365 parcel rows with columns for PPIN, parcel number, owner name, and total tax and penalty; it is a snapshot, not a current list. Separately, the Department of Revenue publishes a weekly transcript of state-held tax delinquent land by county; the Winston County transcript dated 07/20/2026 contains no parcels, so there is no state-held over the counter inventory for this county at present. State-held parcels, when they exist, are bought by submitting an electronic price quote application to the Department, with payment due within 10 calendar days of the quote. Verify the date, the platform, and the parcel list by phone at 205-489-5166 before you commit money.
Register on GovEase
Source: Winston County Revenue Commissioner - Winston County Online Tax Lien Auction Provided by GovEase (auction flyer, archived from the office's former website)· Verified Jul 27, 2026

Winston County tax sale list and auction calendar

For Winston County tax sale 2026 searches, use the county-run sources below rather than a copied parcel list, and confirm the parcel, registration cutoff, deposit, and payment deadline against the county before you bid.

  1. Get the advertised list

    Use Alabama DOR state-held tax delinquent land transcript, Winston County for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.

  2. Register to bid

    Register online through GovEase. Full requirements are in the sale card above.

  3. Sale day

    Not scheduled. Bidding runs on GovEase; check posted sale dates, registration status, and bidding windows there.

  4. Confirm with the office

    If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use Circuit court of the county; the circuit clerk executes the deed as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.

Before you bid in Winston County

  1. Start with the live sale list

    Pull the current advertised parcels from Alabama DOR state-held tax delinquent land transcript, Winston County. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.

  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    Register online through GovEase. The county flyer directs bidders to "Sign Up liveauctions.govease.com/Account/Login", states "You can create an account and register by visiting www.govease.com", and points to training at "www.govease.com/bidderhelp". It also states "Registration will begin on April 4th. Please view the registration page for details." The county publishes no deposit amount, no registration deadline, and no bid rules. Confirm the current cycle with the Revenue Commissioner at 205-489-5166 before you register.

  3. Check the state rules that change the bid

    Read the Alabama due-diligence checklist before bidding. Redemption, liens that survive a tax deed, title cleanup, and payment deadlines can change what a parcel is worth.

  4. Set a walk-away number

    Work out what the parcel is actually worth with the rural land value estimator, then turn it into a ceiling with the tax deed max-bid calculator.

Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases

Liens that draw no bid at the auction stay with the county. At any time after the auction date the tax collecting official may sell an unsold lien at private sale for no less than all taxes, interest, penalties, costs and fees due, plus any amount owed to a prior certificate holder. The rate is agreed with the tax collecting official and cannot exceed 12 percent, so over-the-counter liens often carry the full rate. Ask the county for its list of unsold liens.

New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work. Every state has its own name for what goes unsold, so check what Alabama calls its leftover tax-sale inventory.

Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.

County offices

Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)

Winston County Revenue Commissioner's Office

205-489-5166

Winston County Courthouse Annex, Double Springs, AL 35553 (mailing: P.O. Box 160, Double Springs, AL 35553)

Official website

County notes

  • Revenue Commissioner named by the Alabama Department of Revenue: Sandra Thorn Wright. Office fax is 205-489-8926.
  • The Revenue Commissioner's former website, winstoncountyrevenue.com, listed a physical address of 25125 Highway 195, Room 14, Double Springs, AL 35553 when it was archived in February 2015. That domain has since lapsed and now serves unrelated adult content, so treat it as hostile and rely on the Department of Revenue listing instead.
  • The only live county web address the Department of Revenue lists for Winston County is the public GIS parcel viewer at isv.kcsgis.com, which carries no tax sale, auction, registration, or delinquent list content.
  • Winston County does not appear on GovEase's published Alabama county contact list, which names 41 counties, so the county's current auction vendor could not be confirmed from a live page.
  • The archived 2023 delinquent list runs 7 pages and about 365 parcel rows with PPIN, parcel number, owner name, and total tax and penalty. The PDF was generated March 31, 2023, and the auction flyer was captured the same week, which dates the May 4 at 8:30 a.m. start time to the 2023 cycle.
  • The Department of Revenue transcript of state-held tax delinquent land for Winston County, dated 07/20/2026, contains no parcels, so there is no state-held over the counter inventory for this county right now.
  • WebSearch budget was exhausted for this session. Every fact here comes from a page fetched directly, and no live county-run sale page exists to fetch.

Alabama rules

Max interest rate
12% per year, bid down at auction
Minimum return
No statutory minimum; interest accrues at your bid rate
Redemption
A tax lien can be redeemed at any time before the circuit court enters judgment in a foreclosure action, and the holder cannot file that action until four years after the auction or the tax official's private sale. If the holder does not commence a foreclosure action within ten years of the auction or sale, the certificate expires and the lien becomes void. A certificate holder has no right to enter or possess the property, make repairs, or charge rents before it receives the circuit clerk's deed. In a county that uses the Article 1 property tax sale instead, land sold to a purchaser other than the state may be redeemed within three years from the date of sale, and land bid in for the state may be redeemed at any time before title passes out of the state.
Surplus proceeds
In a court-ordered auction the proceeds pay the cost of the auction first, then the certificate holder up to the redemption amount plus taxes it paid before filing and the court-allowed costs and fees. Any surplus goes to the owner or the owner's heirs or successors as the court determines, and Alabama's unclaimed property law applies to whatever is left. In a county that instead uses the Article 1 property tax sale, the excess over the decree is held in a separate county account for three years for a party who redeems, and Section 40-10-28 opens later windows in which the owner or a redeeming party can claim it.
Governing statute
Ala. Code § 40-10-180

A tax deed does not convey marketable title. Most buyers file a quiet title action before they can resell or insure the property. See the due diligence guide.

See the full Alabamarules and every county →

Frequently asked questions

Does Winston County, Alabama sell tax liens or tax deeds?

Tax lien certificates. In Alabama investors buy the lien, not the property; the County tax collecting official runs the sale.

When is the Winston County tax certificate sale?

Early May. The county's own auction flyer gives "Start Time May 4th @ 8:30AM" and "Registration will begin on April 4th." That flyer sat on the Revenue Commissioner's former website next to a delinquent list generated March 31, 2023, and both were captured June 2, 2023, so the quoted dates belong to the 2023 cycle. No current-year date is published on any live page. Alabama's statutory auction window runs March 1 through June 15, so expect a similar spring date and call the office to confirm it. Registration and bidding happen on the county's online platform. Always confirm the exact date with the County tax collecting official before the sale.

How often does Winston County hold tax deed sales?

Winston County holds its tax deed sale none (court action, not a scheduled auction). Not scheduled. Each sale is scheduled and advertised in advance, so check the county's tax deed calendar for the next posted date.

I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?

Often yes, by paying the overdue taxes, interest, and costs before the deadline. Alabama's redemption rule: Redeemable until the circuit court enters judgment; the holder cannot file to foreclose until 4 years after the tax lien auction, and the certificate expires 10 years after it. Call the Circuit court of the county; the circuit clerk executes the deed as early as possible for your exact payoff and options; deadlines are strict. Free help: lawhelp.org lists legal aid programs, and consumerfinance.gov lists HUD-approved housing counselors.

Where can I find the Winston County tax sale list?

Winston County posts its tax sale list at revenue.alabama.gov. Lists go up ahead of each sale and keep changing until the sale date, so confirm every parcel against the county's legal advertisement before you bid.

Verified Jul 27, 2026 against official county and state sources.

Tax Sale Atlas publishes educational information about public tax sale processes. This is not legal, financial, or investment advice. Rules, dates, and fees change; confirm with the county office before you bid.

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Compare sale calendars, platforms, and rules across the state, or read the guides before you bid.

Alabama tax salesDue diligence guide
Call Winston County Revenue Commissioner's OfficeOpen auction