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Orleans County

New York · Upcoming sale ·

Sale dateNovember 17, 2026
Sale typedeed
PlatformNYSAuctions.com (online, Nov 13 – Nov 17 10am)
New York rate / penaltyNone at county auctions; Nassau liens bid down from 10% per 6 months

Orleans County, New York sells tax-foreclosed real estate online at NYSAuctions.com, with bidding from Friday, November 13 at 10:00 a.m. to Tuesday, November 17, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. The County's terms are stricter than many: 25% down on the day, a 1.5% advertising fee on top of the buyer's premium, every bid subject to approval by the County Legislature, and the balance due by December 18.

Dates and approval to bid

The auction listing runs online only: bidding opens Friday, November 13 at 10:00 a.m. and the auction ends Tuesday, November 17 at 10:00 a.m. Showings are online only, through photos. On October 16 the catalog held one parcel, in the Town of Murray; check it again closer to the sale.

To bid online you register for this specific auction, receive a Google form and then an Internet Bidding Packet by e-signature link, and return it with a copy of your driver's license or passport. The completed packet must reach the auctioneer by 4:00 p.m. on Friday, November 13, 2026, no exceptions. Your account switches to approved when bidding opens.

Anyone other than a lawyer acting for someone not present (spouses included) needs a notarized power of attorney. Companies register with the state filing receipt, the EIN and a sealed corporate resolution. A bidder may not bid for anyone on the county's prohibited bidder list.

Premium, fees and the 25% down payment

The buyer's premium is 10% if your deposit is in cash or guaranteed funds and 11% if you pay the deposit by credit card. The county also charges an advertising fee of 1.5% of the bid.

As soon as you are declared the high bidder you sign an Offer to Purchase and pay 25% of the total contract price (high bid plus premium). If the total contract price is $250 or less, you pay it all at once. Closing costs are paid with the down payment, for each parcel: New York State transfer tax ($4 for the first $1,000 and $2 for each further $500 of the bid), the Real Property Transfer Report fee ($125 for residential classes 100–299 and 411-C, $250 otherwise), $5 for the combined gains transfer affidavit, the County Clerk's recording fees ($50 for a one-page deed plus $5 a page) and the 1.5% advertising fee.

A credit card can cover the minimum deposit only, never the full price, and a chargeback triggers a $750 recovery fee. A bidder who fails to pay the deposit immediately is barred from this and any other auction, and the parcel is resold.

The Legislature, December 18, and the runner-up

Every bid is subject to approval by the Orleans County Legislature, which may reject any bid for any reason; even its approval is not a contract, and the county can reject a bid up to the closing and recording of the deed. The county does not have to tell you it accepted your bid.

The balance, the buyer's premium and all closing costs are due in cash or guaranteed funds at the Orleans County Treasurer's office on or before December 18, 2026. If you do not pay, the deposit is forfeited, and the county may offer the parcel to the second-highest bidder on the same terms. Win several parcels and you must close on all of them; a default on one forfeits every deposit.

Title vests only when the deed is recorded. Possession is forbidden until the quitclaim deed is recorded with the Orleans County Clerk, and the county records it only after full payment.

What you take on

The county acquired the parcels under Article 11 of the Real Property Tax Law, and known redemption rights are gone. You buy as is, subject to whatever a survey or inspection would show, zoning, agricultural district rules and water assessments, whether billed yet or not.

You also pay the taxes that follow the sale: the levied 2026 town and county bill with any relevied amounts, the 2026/27 school taxes and the 2027 town and county bill available on January 1, 2027, with penalties and interest. For tax purposes you are treated as the owner from the next taxable status date.

The quitclaim deed says it conveys no more than the assessed owner held and makes no promise about acreage. Personal property is not included unless abandoned. Evictions after recording are the buyer's job, under New York law. If a former owner buys back the parcel, every lien that existed before foreclosure is reinstated. When a parcel sells for more than was owed, the former owner may claim the surplus under RPTL § 1196.

Three ways people lose money here

  1. 1. Bringing 20%

    Orleans requires 25% of the total contract price on the day, plus closing costs.

  2. 2. Forgetting the 1.5% advertising fee

    It is charged on the bid in addition to the 10% or 11% premium.

  3. 3. Treating the hammer as final

    The County Legislature must approve every bid and can reject it until the deed is recorded.

Sources

Checked against these sources on 2026-10-16.

County snapshot

Population (2024)39,686
Change since 2020-1%
Net migration (2024)+391

Orleans County's population has been roughly flat since 2020 (-1%), with net migration of 391 in 2024. Stable counties tend to behave predictably: most certificates redeem, few end in a deed.

By population, Orleans County is the 54th largest of New York's 62 counties. It has grown more slowly than the state average (-0.6% across New York) — often where the less contested certificates are, and also where the risk sits. Of the 2024 change, 391 came from people moving in and 95 from deaths outnumbering births.

Counties of similar size in New York with a sale on our calendar: Essex County, Lewis County, Dutchess 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

Median home value$140,800
Median tax / year$3,823
Tax / home value2.7%
Owned outright43.4%
“Other vacant”5.2%
Median year built1955

The median homeowner in Orleans County pays $3,823 a year in property tax — below 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 $4,149; homes owned outright, $3,341.

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 Orleans County, 43.4% of owner-occupied homes are owned outright (New York: 42.2%, U.S.: 39.4%). About the same as the state as a whole.

11.5% of all housing units in Orleans 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 5.2% of all units (New York: 3.4%, U.S.: 3.6%). That is above the state rate, so expect more empty properties on the delinquent list: the ones least likely to redeem, and the most likely to need work if the deed ends up yours. Drive by before you bid.

Half of the homes in Orleans County were built in or before 1955 (New York: in or before 1959). The typical tax bill is 5.8% of the median household income of $65,969 (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.

Note

25% down, 1.5% advertising fee, bids subject to County Legislature approval; balance by Dec 18.

View official source ↗

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Quick answers

When is the Orleans County tax sale?+

The Orleans County, New York tax sale is scheduled for November 17, 2026, hosted via NYSAuctions.com (online, Nov 13 – Nov 17 10am).

Is Orleans County a good county to buy tax deed properties in?+

Orleans County's population has been roughly flat since 2020 (-1%), with net migration of 391 in 2024. Stable counties tend to behave predictably: most certificates redeem, few end in a deed. Population in 2024: 39,686. These are U.S. Census Bureau estimates, not a recommendation — the county's own delinquency and redemption history matters more, and only the New York treasurer publishes that.

How much is the property tax in Orleans County?+

The median homeowner in Orleans County pays $3,823 a year, about 2.7% of the median home value of $140,800 (New York: 1.6%). Homes with a mortgage pay a median of $4,149, homes owned outright $3,341. These are U.S. Census Bureau survey estimates (American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates); the exact bill for a parcel depends on its assessed value and local rates, and the county tax collector has it.

What type of sale is it?+

Orleans County holds a tax deed sale. New York's statewide system: tax deed (county foreclosure). What the buyer earns: none at county auctions; Nassau liens bid down from 10% per 6 months.

What's the redemption period in Orleans County?+

Orleans County follows New York's statewide redemption period: 2 years after lien date (3–4 if extended locally).

Other New York sales near this date

Every New York page →

Other sales in November 2026

All November 2026 sales →

Want the full statutory picture for New York, not just Orleans County? Read the New York state page for the rate, redemption period, and every other county we've sourced, or compare it with tax lien interest rates in every state. If a past sale left money over, how surplus funds are claimed in New York.

Before you bid: how to research a tax sale property, what a tax lien or deed really costs and the risks investors run.

See every other scheduled sale on the full auction calendar, every sale in November 2026, the upcoming New York sales, or sign up for deal alerts to hear about new New York dates as soon as we add them.

This page is general information, not financial or legal advice. Auction dates get postponed, cancelled, or rescheduled — always confirm against the official source above before showing up or bidding. Verified 2026-10-16.