Tennessee Tax Sale Clarifications

I have had several inquiries about past "Hot Topics" articles on Tennessee real property tax sales. Two of the more perplexing parts of the process are the redemption period and when a sale is "final" in the sense that the rights of claimants to title are blocked. I will attempt to clarify these issues. Tennessee Code Annotated 67-5-2702 states that in order to redeem a property lost at sale , a person or entity entitled to redeem property may do so by paying the required sum to the clerk within one year from the date of confirmation of sale. Buyers at sale sometimes seem confused about how a lender can redeem. Depending on the circumstances of the loan, lenders are often "persons" entitled to redeem by state law. If redemption occurs, the buyer at the tax sale has thirty days from the date of tender of redemption money to file a claim for additional compensation to the purchaser ( TCA 67-5-2704). These claims can include, taxes paid and sums expended  to preserve the value of the property.

The clerks office will often cite the one year redemption period as being a final step in the process. That is because the clerk's office is often not very involved in post redemption processes. However, suits to invalidate any tax title can be brought within three years from the time of sale (TCA 67-5-2504).These claims involve litigation and the court will decide whether the sale was valid. I have seen some sales set aside by this process. If you are a tax sale purchaser and are looking for some type of finality to your purchase the three year date is the date you want to see pass.