Anderson County, SC
In-person tax sale at the Civic Center of Anderson, Mon Oct 19 — online bidder registration
Anderson County's 2026 tax sale is on Monday, October 19, at the Civic Center of Anderson, 3027 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The County Treasurer's tax sale page has carried the details since September 30: the newspaper advertisement (current as of October 2), a 2026 FAQ and information sheet, a cover sheet, bidder information and a link to online bidder registration through the county's HiBid page, with a property map marked as coming soon. The sale is run by the Treasurer's Office, led by Treasurer Jason Phillips, at 401 East River Street in Anderson, which also has a branch office in Powdersville. The FAQ and bidder information are posted as PDFs on that page; read them before sale day rather than at the door.
South Carolina sells the property itself, not a lien. Each parcel opens with a bid made for the county's Forfeited Land Commission covering the taxes, penalties and costs (S.C. Code § 12-51-55), and investors bid up from there. The defaulting owner, a grantee, or a mortgage or judgment creditor then has twelve months to redeem by paying the taxes, penalties and costs plus interest on the bid: 3%, 6%, 9% or 12% depending on the quarter of the redemption year, never more than the opening bid (§ 12-51-90). Because of that cap, a large overbid earns a much smaller percentage than the headline 12%. If nobody redeems, the bidder receives a tax title (§ 12-51-130), and the amount bid above the taxes and costs — the overage — belongs to the former owner, not the county. A tax title isn't a warranty deed, so budget for a title search and, often, a quiet-title action before a lender or title insurer will treat the property as marketable.
South Carolina rules at a glance
South Carolina auctions the property itself, bid up from a mandatory opening bid equal to the taxes, penalties and costs (S.C. Code § 12-51-55). The owner may redeem within twelve months by paying the bid plus a lump sum of 3%, 6%, 9% or 12% depending on the quarter, never more than the opening bid (§ 12-51-90); otherwise the buyer receives a tax title (§ 12-51-130).
The statute, the bidding and what goes wrong for new buyers are on the South Carolina page; every sale date we have sourced for Anderson County is on the Anderson County page.
Property & tax profile
The median homeowner in Anderson County pays $1,043 a year in property tax — below the South Carolina median of $1,251 (U.S.: $3,119). That is roughly what a typical home here owes for each year it goes unpaid — the debt that the opening bid at a deed sale is usually built from, plus interest and costs. Homes with a mortgage pay a median of $1,245; homes owned outright, $779.
On a home with a mortgage, the lender has its own reason to pay a delinquent tax bill: the tax lien outranks the mortgage, and a tax deed can wipe out the loan. On a home owned outright, nobody but the owner — or the heirs — has that reason. In Anderson County, 45.3% of owner-occupied homes are owned outright (South Carolina: 42.9%, U.S.: 39.4%). About the same as the state as a whole.
9.1% of all housing units in Anderson County are vacant. The figure that matters for a buyer at the tax sale is the Census “other vacant” category — not for rent, not for sale, not a holiday home, but a catch-all that includes foreclosures, homes held up by legal proceedings or family reasons, homes needing repairs, and abandoned ones. Here it is 3.9% of all units (South Carolina: 5.3%, U.S.: 3.6%). That is below the state rate: fewer empty properties on the list than elsewhere in South Carolina.
Half of the homes in Anderson County were built in or before 1988 (South Carolina: in or before 1992). The typical tax bill is 1.6% of the median household income of $66,651 (South Carolina: 1.8%).
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates (tables B25077, B25103, B25081, B25002, B25004, B25035, B19013) — see the figures on data.census.gov. Survey estimates with margins of error; anything too uncertain to state is left out.
Before you bid: Register online through the link on the Treasurer's tax sale page before sale day, and read the county's 2026 FAQ and bidder information sheet for payment terms. Questions go to the Anderson County Treasurer's Office at (864) 260-4033.
Official source: andersoncountysc.org — checked October 4, 2026
More sales: 41 other county sales are on the calendar in October 2026 — see them by date; or the upcoming sales in South Carolina.
This page reflects publicly posted county auction notices as of publication and is general information, not financial or legal advice. Sale details can change — always confirm current terms with the county directly.