Rio Arriba County, NM tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •The New Mexico Property Tax Division, not the county, runs the Rio Arriba tax deed auction. The Rio Arriba County Treasurer, Joshua M. Martinez, handles delinquent balances before accounts transfer to the state.
• •Rio Arriba sales have been held in Española rather than at the Tierra Amarilla county seat: the Rio Arriba County Annex at 1122 Industrial Road, Española, on December 4, 2025.
• •The Rio Arriba County Treasurer's Office is at P.O. Box 548, Tierra Amarilla, NM 87575, (575) 588-7727, with an Española office at (505) 753-1663. Public hours are Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

New Mexico rules

Redemption

The pre-sale window is long even though there is no post-sale redemption: taxes go delinquent thirty days after each due date, the account transfers to the state after two years, the property cannot be sold until three years after the first delinquency date on the list, and the owner must receive certified-mail notice twenty to thirty days before the sale, as must each recorded lienholder whose address is reasonably ascertainable. Installment agreements run up to thirty-six months at one percent a month and cannot be entered on or after the date of the initial sale. After the sale the only exposure is the former owner's two-year window to challenge the conveyance in district court, and, where a federal tax lien is recorded, the 120-day federal redemption right the Property Tax Division's terms warn about.NMSA 1978, 7-38-65, sale after three years, offer within four years, annual sale in each countyNMSA 1978, 7-38-65Verified Sep 25, 2026

Deed deposit

None. The statute sets no bidder deposit and no registration fee. Bidders register in person on the day of the sale, registration opening at 8:00 a.m. and closing when the 10:00 a.m. auction starts, and bid orally in person or through an agent carrying a notarized authorization. A personal or business check is accepted only with a letter of guarantee from the issuing bank presented at registration.NMSA 1978, 7-38-67, public auction in the county, minimum price, payment in full, land grant-merced match rightNMSA 1978, 7-38-67Verified Sep 25, 2026

Surplus proceeds

Sale money goes first to the department's costs, then to penalties and interest, then to the delinquent taxes, which are remitted to the county treasurer. Since July 1, 2026, a fourth step comes next: if the former owner is a delinquent taxpayer to the Taxation and Revenue Department on any tax program it administers, the department keeps enough to satisfy that debt. The balance is then paid to the former owner, or to anyone a court orders, after the department may first apply it to other property taxes that person owes, and the department may require proof of former ownership. If no former owner claims the balance within two years of the sale after a reasonable search, it is treated as abandoned property under the Uniform Unclaimed Property Act.NMSA 1978, 7-38-71, sale proceeds waterfall and excess to the former ownerNMSA 1978, 7-38-71Verified Sep 26, 2026

Governing statute

NMSA 1978, Chapter 7, Article 38 (7-38-60 through 7-38-74)NMSA 1978, 7-38-65, sale after three years, offer within four years, annual sale in each countyNMSA 1978, 7-38-65Verified Sep 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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