Stephens County, GA tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •The Tax Commissioner's office sits at 70 North Alexander Street, Room 103, Toccoa, with a separate mailing address of PO Box 187, Toccoa, GA 30577. Phone (706) 886-4753, fax (706) 886-0643. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Staff named for delinquent work include Marilyn M. Smith, Property/Delinquent Tax Supervisor. (tc_home)
• •The official excess funds claim form is headed "Dene M. Hicks, Stephens County Tax Commissioner, Ex-Officio Sheriff," which confirms the Tax Commissioner levies and cries the tax sale in this county. The form requires notarization, a government issued photo ID, and rejects third party claims unless filed by a licensed attorney for the claimant. (tc_claimform)
• •Excess funds from past tax sales are published as a PDF worksheet, revised 6/15/26, listing owner name, map and parcel, excess amount, tax year and total bid, covering sales for tax years 2021 through 2025. It is the only public artifact of the county's sale results. https://www.stephenscountytax.com/resources/sites/stephenscountyga/docs/Excess-Funds.pdf (tc_excess, tc_excess_pdf)
• •The county defines excess funds as funds "remaining after paying taxes, costs, and all expenses of a tax sale made by the Tax Commissioner," held in escrow and paid to entitled parties in order of priority. (tc_excess)
• •Real estate and business personal property taxes are generally due by November 15. After the due date interest accrues at 0.65% per month and a 5% penalty applies every 120 days, except homesteaded property with a tax liability under $500. (tc_geninfo, tc_faq)
• •No delinquent tax list and no upcoming sale list are published by the county on any page reviewed. Investors have to request the advertised levy list from the office directly.
• •The City of Toccoa, the county seat, runs its own separate municipal tax sale and publishes a procedures page under "Ex Officio Sheriff." It describes a public auction conducted by an auctioneer in advertised order, photo ID required from the purchaser at the sale, payment of the full bid within two hours in cash or a cashier's or certified check from an FDIC insured institution, a tax deed that is not a fee simple deed, purchaser responsibility for Clerk of Superior Court recording fees, a redemption right of no less than 12 months, and foreclosure of the right to redeem available only after one year and one day. Those are the city's published terms, not Stephens County's published terms, but they show the procedure pattern used in this jurisdiction. (city_toccoa)
• •The Stephens County government site does not host tax sale content. It states that the Tax Commissioner's website "is maintained separately and independently from Stephens County" and points to stephenscountytax.com. (county_tc)

Georgia rules

Redemption

The right to redeem runs for 12 months from the date of the sale and does not end there. It continues after the year until the tax deed purchaser forecloses it by serving and publishing the statutory barment notice, which cannot be started until 12 months have passed. The purchaser delivers the notice to the sheriff at least 45 days before the redemption deadline named in it, and publishes it once a week for four consecutive weeks in the six months immediately before that deadline. Redemption puts title back in the defendant in fi. fa. subject to the liens that existed at the sale, and the purchaser must execute and record a quitclaim deed. Title under a tax deed recorded on or after July 1, 1996 ripens by prescription four years after recording. Judicial in rem foreclosures under Article 5 run on a different clock: the owner has 60 days after the sale to redeem by paying the minimum bid price into the superior court.O.C.G.A. 48-4-40, who may redeem and when (2024 Code of Georgia)O.C.G.A. 48-4-40Verified Jul 30, 2026

Deed deposit

Georgia sets no statewide percentage deposit. A purchaser at a judicial sale may tender cash or a cashier's or certified check drawn for the purchase price and issued or certified by a federally insured financial institution. Counties publish their own payment terms, and many require payment in full at the close of the sale, so confirm the terms with the tax commissioner before bidding.O.C.G.A. 48-4-1, Procedures for sales under tax levies and executions (2024 Code of Georgia)O.C.G.A. 48-4-1Verified Jul 30, 2026

Surplus proceeds

Excess funds left after taxes, costs, and the expenses of the sale belong to the former owner and to recorded lienholders in order of priority. The officer who sold the property must mail notice of the excess funds by first-class mail within 30 days to the record owner at the time of the sale, to the holder of each security deed, and to every other party with a recorded equity interest or claim, and may file an interpleader action in superior court. Funds still unclaimed five years after the sale are paid over to the Georgia Department of Revenue, after which only a court order from an interpleader action releases them.O.C.G.A. 48-4-5, Payment of excess (2024 Code of Georgia)O.C.G.A. 48-4-5Verified Jul 30, 2026

Governing statute

O.C.G.A. Title 48, Chapter 4Official Code of Georgia Annotated, public access published for the Georgia General Assembly by the Georgia Code Revision CommissionO.C.G.A. Title 48, Chapter 4Verified Jul 25, 2026

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.

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