Orange County

County snapshot

Orange County has grown 2.7% since 2020 and still shows positive net migration (804 people in 2024). Demand for housing usually means owners redeem rather than walk away — good for the interest, less good if you were hoping to take the deed.

By population, Orange County is the 12th largest of New York's 62 counties. It has grown faster than the state average (-0.6% across New York), so competition at the auction is likely to be heavier here than in the quieter counties. Of the 2024 change, 804 came from people moving in and 2,519 from births outnumbering deaths.

Counties of similar size in New York with a sale on our calendar: Onondaga County, Dutchess County, Monroe County. Useful if this county's sale has already closed and you want the next comparable one.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Census population estimates. Population figures are estimates, not a count.

Property & tax profile

The median homeowner in Orange County pays $8,494 a year in property tax — above the New York median of $6,582 (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 $8,877; homes owned outright, $7,529.

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 Orange County, 33.5% of owner-occupied homes are owned outright (New York: 42.2%, U.S.: 39.4%). That is less than the state as a whole: more of the delinquent bills here sit on mortgaged homes, where the lender often steps in.

7.4% of all housing units in Orange 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 3.4% of all units (New York: 3.4%, U.S.: 3.6%). Close to the state rate.

Half of the homes in Orange County were built in or before 1975 (New York: in or before 1959) — newer than most of the state. The typical tax bill is 8.7% of the median household income of $97,178 (New York: 7.7%).

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.

Quick answers

• Oct 21, 2026

  Porter CountyIndianaTax lien certificate

  SRI Services

  Official source: portercountyin.gov ↗checked Aug 14, 2026
• Oct 22, 2026

  BrevardFloridaTax deed

  RealAuction (brevard.realforeclose.com)

  Online. The clerk's sale list shows Oct 22 and Dec 10, 2026. The deposit ($200 or 5%) comes out of your RealAuction account right after the sale; the clerk's FAQ gives noon the next business day for the balance and 3 p.m. as the cut-off before the sale is cancelled.

  Official source: brevardclerk.us ↗checked Oct 10, 2026
• Oct 26, 2026

  Adams CountyColoradoTax lien certificate

  RealAuction (online, adams.coloradotaxsale.com)

  Live tax sale Oct 26 – Nov 6; registration Oct 19–30. The county marks all dates as subject to change.

  Our write-upOfficial source: adamscountyco.gov ↗checked Oct 4, 2026
• Oct 26, 2026

  BrowardFloridaTax deed

  RealAuction (broward.realtaxdeed.com)

  Monthly online auction run by the county, not the clerk; bids from 9 a.m. ET. The county's notice for the Oct 26, 2026 auction lists 28 tax deed numbers. Final payment by wire, cashier's check or money order by 11 a.m. ET the next day.

  Official source: browardcountylegalnotices.com ↗checked Oct 10, 2026