Land · Oregon tax sale guide

Multnomah County tax sales, Oregon

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Multnomah County changed systems in 2025. House Bill 2089, effective September 26, 2025, directs how the county disposes of tax foreclosed property, and Board Order 2026-019, adopted Thursday, April 2, 2026, splits the 26 parcels in the current group two ways: four independently appraised accounts are listed with a licensed broker, and 22 accounts go to auction, first at a Primary Auction and then at a Secondary Auction if they do not sell. The Primary Auction list sets each minimum bid at two thirds of the 2025 real market value. The classic mistakes are expecting an online sale (this is a registered, in person, oral auction, and no sealed bids are accepted), arriving after the registration line closes, bringing personal or corporate checks when the rules require cash or certified funds, and treating the broker listed channel and the auction channel as the same sale. Bidding on condominium accessory units is restricted to current unit holders.

Selling office: Multnomah County Tax Title Program, Division of Assessment, Recording and Taxation (DART), 501 SE Hawthorne Blvd., Suite 175, Portland, OR 97214-3577, Email: tax.title@multco.us, Phone: NOT PUBLISHED in the 2026 sale sources read

Next sale: Wednesday, December 2, 2026 Secondary Auction (scheduled). The Multnomah County Tax Title page states: The Next Auction Will Be December 2, 2026, and flags one property as PENDING: 6480 SE 140TH AVE, PORTLAND, OR 97236, RMLS #468030460. The county Secondary Auction page confirms that Tax Title will conduct a Secondary Auction of deeded properties in compliance with ORS 312.500 and Board Order 2026-019 on December 2, 2026, but as read it lists the offering package, auction rules, earnest money agreement, and certificate of sale as COMING. The December 2 auction time, venue, registration deadline, and per parcel earnest money amounts are NOT PUBLISHED yet. The Tax Title page also states the next update is November 18, 2026, and that all information is published there first.

As of November 9, 2026, no dated sale after the December 2, 2026 Secondary Auction is published. The Tax Title page says the next update is November 18, 2026 and that all information is published there first. A dated 2027 sale is NOT PUBLISHED.

Dates and deadlines

Sources: Multnomah County, Tax Title. Multnomah County, Board Order 2026-019, Authorizing Disposition of Tax Foreclosed Property. Multnomah County, Rules and Procedures, Tax Title Auction October 12, 2026. Multnomah County, Tax Title Auction List, October 12, 2026. Multnomah County, Auction Earnest Money Agreement, October 12, 2026. Multnomah County, Secondary Auction: December 2, 2026. Multnomah County, Broker Listed Property Sales. Confirm with the selling office before relying on any date on this page: sales move, terms change, and parcels are pulled up to sale day.

Research Multnomah County parcels before you bid

A sale list gives you the parcels, the date, and the opening terms. It does not give you the owner, the value, or the rest of the picture: liens, foreclosure status, and parcel history. PropertyRadar is the data platform for that layer. It carries owner records, assessed and market values, foreclosure and tax data, and property history for parcels across Multnomah County, searchable by address, owner, or county, including parcels that never reach a sale list.

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How Oregon tax foreclosure and county land sales work

• Oregon runs two sales, and the first one has no public bidding at all. The foreclosure itself sells each property directly to the county: the certified copy of the foreclosure judgment is the certificate of sale to the county (ORS 312.100). There is no lien auction, no certificate for an investor to buy, and no third party in the room. The public buying opportunity comes only after the county holds the property through redemption and takes its deed, when the land is sold under ORS 312.520 or under the county land sale rules of ORS chapter 275. Any description of an Oregon tax lien sale is describing a proceeding Oregon does not hold.
• The road in is mechanical, and the county must walk it. Taxes are a lien from July 1 of the levy year with priority over all other liens (ORS 311.405), payable in thirds on November 15, February 15 and May 15, and delinquent if unpaid after May 15 (ORS 311.505 and 311.510), bearing interest at one and one third percent per month or fraction of a month. Real property is subject to foreclosure whenever three years have elapsed from the earliest delinquency (ORS 312.010). Within two months after delinquency day the tax collector prepares the foreclosure list, and three months after the delinquency of the latest year the collector, with the district attorney, shall institute one general proceeding in rem against everything on it (ORS 312.030 and 312.050). Notice runs by publication of the list and delivery to the owners shown in the deed records, under a county due diligence duty, and since the 2025 amendments the notice must warn that a former owner whose property is worth more than the amount owed is entitled to a return of money.
• The judgment starts a two year hold, and redemption runs from the judgment, not from the deed. The court gives a several judgment for the delinquent taxes and interest, foreclosing the liens, the judgment itself bearing interest at the legal rate of 9 percent per annum, and orders the properties sold to the county (ORS 312.090 and 312.100, and ORS 82.010). The county then holds each property for two years from the date of the judgment unless it is sooner redeemed (ORS 312.120). Summaries that count the two years from delinquency, or from the deed, misplace the window by years. The collector must send an individual expiration notice at least one year before the period expires, by certified and first class mail with a copy posted on the county website and information about claiming a surplus (ORS 312.125), and publish a general expiration notice 10 to 30 days before expiration (ORS 312.190).
• Redemption is specified to the dollar, and only one route shortens it. A person who held an interest at the judgment date, an heir or devisee, a lienholder of record, or a municipal lienholder may redeem by paying the full judgment amount with interest, plus a penalty of 5 percent of that total, plus a fee of 50 dollars before the certified mail expiration notice or the greater of 50 dollars or the actual title search cost on or after it (ORS 312.120). Partial redemption of an undivided interest is allowed. No property class carries a shorter general period. The only faster route is the waste or abandonment procedure of ORS 312.122, which requires a county ordinance and a hearing, and deeds the property 30 days after the governing body determines waste or six months of unoccupancy with substantial depreciation.
• The deed is the collector's, it needs no confirmation, and it wipes the lien slate almost clean. Property not redeemed inside the two years is deeded to the county by the tax collector, and all redemption rights terminate on execution of the deed (ORS 312.200). The county takes title free from all liens and encumbrances except assessments levied by a municipal corporation for local improvements, and a private purchaser at a county resale takes free of even those (ORS 312.270). Challenges to the foreclosure must be commenced within two years from the date of the judgment of foreclosure and sale to the county, with the payment into court ORS 312.230 requires; note that this clock also runs from the judgment, so by the time a deeded parcel reaches a sale much of it may already have run.
• Since 2025, the front door sale of foreclosed homes runs under ORS 312.520, not the sheriff. After redemption expires the county may retain foreclosed property for public purposes or transfer it to a nonprofit for public benefit, in either case on an unaffiliated licensed appraisal. What is not retained or transferred is sold under ORS 312.520: a property in a residential zone that was the former owner's primary residence is first listed with an independent real estate broker at the highest price at which it is reasonably expected to sell (with an unaffiliated appraisal where its tax statement real market value exceeds 250,000 dollars). A public high bid auction follows where no broker agreement is reached after three attempts, where a broker cannot sell within 12 months, or where the property is not a qualifying primary residence: advertised in a multiple listing service for at least 30 days, the first auction starting at two thirds of fair market value as of the county deed date and selling only to a highest bidder whose bid exceeds the outstanding taxes and other allowable costs, and a second auction, if the first fails, starting at the taxes and allowable costs themselves. If the property fails twice, the county may forgive the taxes and costs and retain it or transfer it to a nonprofit. Multnomah and Yamhill Counties already run versions of this ladder, documented on their pages.
• The older channel is a sheriff sale at a minimum price the county board simply sets. Under ORS chapter 275 the governing body orders the sheriff to sell county land and fixes the minimum price for each parcel or group in the sale order, and that minimum may be lower than the tax roll real market value (ORS 275.110 and 275.120). There is no appraised value floor in the statute. The sheriff publishes notice once a week for four consecutive weeks, and the sale is held in the county between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. to the highest and best bidder, for cash or for not less than 10 percent in cash with the balance in equal installments over no more than 20 years at a governing body rate (ORS 275.140 and 275.190). Land the sheriff does not sell may go at private sale for not less than the largest bid received, or, if no bid was made, for a reasonable price no less than 15 percent of the sheriff sale minimum (ORS 275.200); a separate private sale exists only for parcels under 15,000 dollars of real market value that are unsuited for a dwelling (ORS 275.225); and the board may sell tax acquired property back to the record owner at taxes and interest at purchase plus 6 percent per annum (ORS 275.180). Marion, Jackson, Douglas and Yamhill Counties sell on this channel, each on its own board's orders.
• Surplus is now a defined claim, paid through the State Treasurer, on ORS 312.520 sales. The 2025 law, ORS 312.500 to 312.560 (House Bill 2089), defines surplus as the value of the disposed property less the allowable costs listed in ORS 312.530, including the judgment and its interest, taxes and interest that would have been due through the sale, the county amounts in ORS 275.275, municipal lien reimbursements, and reasonable foreclosure and disposal fees. The county determines the surplus within 60 days, gives notice of it, and reports and delivers it to the State Treasurer as unclaimed property within 30 days after determination; the former owner or other claimant as narrowly defined in ORS 312.500 claims it from the Treasurer under ORS 98.392 and 98.396, at any time after it is reported. Proceeds on the chapter 275 track that are not surplus under this system are distributed under ORS 275.275, county refunds first, then filed municipal lien claimants and governmental units, on a June 30 cycle. A buyer should know which track a sale is on before assuming anything about where the money above the tax debt goes.
• No county in this set has its own statute, and the visible differences are practice, not law. Chapters 312, 275 and 311 name no county and give none of the ten a different foreclosure, redemption, deed or sale rule; the only textual differences are population based proceeds and conveyance rules in ORS 275.275 and 275.330. Practice diverges sharply anyway: Multnomah runs the new two stage ORS 312.520 auctions, Lane sells by sealed bid off a standing list, Marion auctions three parcels at a time in a hearing room under board orders that override its own general policy, Deschutes publishes no county land sale in the sources read, and Linn publishes none that could be verified from a county source at all. The governing document for any given parcel is the county's own order and notice for that sale.

How buying works in Multnomah County

The only registration rules the county has published for the 2026 sales are the Rules and Procedures for the October 12, 2026 auction, updated October 1, 2026. That auction was a registered, in person, oral auction, and no sealed bids were accepted. A bidder had to sign in on the day of the sale before the first bid, registration began at 9:30 a.m., all bidders had to be in line to register no later than 9:55 a.m., and the first bid was at 10:00 a.m. Each bidder had to bring current valid picture identification, such as an Oregon driver license, along with cash or certified funds, meaning certified checks with no personal or corporate checks accepted, made out to Multnomah County, in at least the earnest money deposit amount for each property bid on, one check per property. The name registered is the name the property will be deeded in, a bidder bidding for a business, nonprofit, government entity, or proxy had to show documentation of authority, and on registration the bidder received a bid number and bid paddle used for the entire sale. Questions about authority or eligibility had to be emailed to tax.title@multco.us before October 7, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. Registration rules, deadlines, and deposit amounts for the December 2, 2026 Secondary Auction are NOT PUBLISHED as of November 9, 2026.

• Ask which system is selling before pricing anything. An ORS 312.520 auction and an ORS 275 sheriff sale have different floors, different notices and different money after the sale. The county notice names the authority; a parcel priced off the wrong system's floor is mispriced before the bidding starts.
• The minimum is a policy number, so read the order. On the chapter 275 track the governing body fixes the minimum in the sale order and may set it below the tax roll value, and the same county can set different minimums sale to sale. The order and the sale notice, not the assessment roll, carry the number.
• In a 312.520 auction the first floor is designed to fail. The first auction starts at two thirds of fair market value and still requires the winning bid to exceed the taxes and allowable costs; the second auction starts at the taxes and costs. A parcel that reaches the second auction is priced on a different ladder, and the calendar between the two is part of the strategy.
• County terms override county policy. Marion County's November 2026 sale terms require payment in full and no land sale contract where its general policy allows 25 percent down and contracts. The documents for the sale in front of you outrank the county's standing policy page every time.

Terms: what a bid actually costs

What happens to parcels that do not sell in Multnomah County

Auction properties that did not sell at the Primary Auction go to the Secondary Auction, at a minimum bid or price calculated at the time of the Secondary Auction for each parcel, as Board Order 2026-019 directs. The Secondary Auction for the current group is Wednesday, December 2, 2026. Any properties not sold at the Secondary Auction may thereafter be sold, including by government transfer, for cash in compliance with House Bill 2089, with the purchase price in cash due at or before the date of sale, and the Chair is authorized to execute a deed for a property sold by private sale. The October 12, 2026 rules add that if no acceptable bid is received at the auction, or a sale is not completed and becomes null and void, Multnomah County may dispose of the property as allowed under County Code and State law, and that no questions will be answered on future disposition options at or before the auction.

Before you bid

• Confirm the deed has actually issued. Redemption runs two years from the judgment and the collector's deed is what ends it. A parcel described as foreclosed may still be inside its redemption window and not the county's to sell; the deed, recorded after the period runs, is the document that makes a county sale possible.
• Compute the challenge clock from the judgment. Actions against the foreclosure must be commenced within two years of the judgment of foreclosure and sale to the county (ORS 312.230). On older inventory that window may have closed before the county ever lists the parcel; on fresh inventory it is still running while you bid. The date that matters is on the judgment, not the sale notice.
• Read the board order and the sale notice, in that order. Minimum price, payment terms, increments and deed form for a chapter 275 sale all live in the governing body's order and the sheriff or finance notice under it. County policy pages are background; where they conflict with the sale documents, the sale documents win, as Marion County's current sale shows.
• Set the maximum before the sale opens. The free Max-Bid Calculator below works backwards from your resale price. In Oregon run it with the sale's own costs inside: deposit handling, deed and recording fees where the county charges them, and, on an installment sale, the governing body's interest rate over the term you would actually carry.

Every Oregon county in this set

One page per county, each verified against the county's own publications and the current text of ORS chapters 312, 275 and 311. Oregon has 36 counties; this set is the top 10 by population.

• Multnomah County (this page)
• Washington County tax sales
• Clackamas County tax sales
• Lane County tax sales
• Marion County tax sales
• Jackson County tax sales
• Deschutes County tax sales
• Linn County tax sales
• Douglas County tax sales
• Yamhill County tax sales

Keep going

Once a deadline puts you in a sale, the Land Investor Due Diligence Toolkit is the checklist and bid worksheet to run on each parcel before you bid. The same desk runs Florida tax deed sales, Texas tax sales, Pennsylvania tax sales, Georgia tax sales, North Carolina tax foreclosure sales, Ohio tax foreclosure sales, Illinois tax lien sales, Michigan tax foreclosure sales, Arizona tax lien sales, California tax defaulted property sales, Colorado tax lien sales, South Carolina tax sales, Indiana tax lien sales, Tennessee delinquent tax sales, Wisconsin tax deed sales, Missouri tax sales, New Jersey tax lien sales, Maryland tax lien sales, West Virginia tax sales, Virginia tax sales, Oklahoma tax resale, Kansas tax foreclosure sales, Arkansas tax-delinquent land sales, Alabama tax sales, Kentucky certificate of delinquency sales, Mississippi tax land sales, Nevada tax deed sales, New Mexico delinquent property tax sales, Iowa tax lien sales, Nebraska tax certificate sales, Minnesota tax-forfeited land sales, Utah final tax sales, Washington tax foreclosure sales and Oregon tax foreclosure sales, and the proven New York season, with the live membership, sits in the NY tax sale hub.