Bexar County

The sale day and the place

The County Clerk's foreclosure page sets the rule: the sale is held on the first Tuesday of every month between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., moving to the first Wednesday when that Tuesday is January 1 or July 4. November 3 is an ordinary first Tuesday. The place is the west side of the Bexar County Courthouse, 100 Dolorosa, between the courthouse and the Paul Elizondo Tower, unless Commissioners Court designates another site. Both mortgage foreclosures and tax foreclosures are sold there, and it is open to the public. The county's Public Works information sheet adds that the tax foreclosure auction starts at 10 a.m. and is conducted by the Bexar County Sheriff's Office.

The two are not the same sale. Mortgage foreclosures need no registration. Tax foreclosures do, and the clerk sends bidders to the county's delinquent tax attorneys, Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson (210-225-4422, taxsales.lgbs.com), both to register and for the list of properties. Registration on the day of the sale is not permitted, and holidays do not extend the registration deadline.

Finding the November list

Linebarger keeps the list of tax foreclosures for each sale, by phone or on its tax sales site. The County Clerk also maps upcoming foreclosures: its GIS foreclosure map is updated twice a month, on the first Friday after each auction and about 18 days before the next sale, which puts the November update around October 16. Our checker could not open Linebarger's site on October 10, so we give no number of properties for November 3. Read the list yourself and check it again close to the date, because properties are pulled when owners pay.

For each property, the Public Works department points to three public sources: the Bexar Appraisal District at 411 North Frio Street (bcad.org) for the legal description, size and exemptions, using the tax account number; the County Clerk's land records, free online after registration, for liens; and the District Clerk's records in the Paul Elizondo Tower for the judgment in the tax suit, which are only available at that office.

Cash, verified before you bid

Both kinds of foreclosure are cash auctions. Only cash or certified funds are accepted at the time of sale, no personal checks, and the clerk's page says the method of payment is verified before bidding. Texas law adds one more step. A deed can only be made out to the person who won the bid, and in most large counties the officer may not deliver it until the buyer shows an unexpired statement from the county tax assessor-collector that they owe no delinquent taxes to the county or to any school district or city in it (Tax Code § 34.015). The statement costs up to $10 and expires after 90 days. Ask Linebarger when you register what Bexar's sale requires.

The sale is without warranty of any kind. The County Clerk does not guarantee a clear title and is not responsible for any encumbrance; title companies sell title searches and insurance, and an attorney can advise on a particular property.

Redemption: six months or two years

The County Clerk's FAQ answers the question most bidders ask: yes, there is a redemption period on a tax foreclosure. For property identified as a homestead or for agricultural use, it is two years; for everything else, six months. It runs from the date the deed is recorded, and the Public Works sheet says redemptions are handled by the Bexar County Tax Assessor-Collector at the Vista Verde Plaza Building, 233 North Pecos La Trinidad. Under Tax Code § 34.21, the owner who redeems pays your bid, the recording fee, the taxes you paid and your allowable costs, plus a premium of 25% in the first year, or 50% in the second year of a two-year redemption. On a six-month redemption the premium cannot exceed 25%.

That makes the first six months on a rental lot a waiting period with a known return if the owner pays, and the two years on a homestead a long one. Count only costs the statute allows, such as insurance and code-required repairs, and keep receipts. More on the statute on our Texas page.

Struck-off property: the other way to buy

Properties that do not sell at the monthly sheriff's sale are struck off and deeded in trust to Bexar County. They can then be bought at a private sale through the Asset Management Division of Public Works, or at the semi-annual Commissioners Court resale auction. The minimum is the court judgment or the adjudged value, whichever is less, and the buyer also pays any code compliance liens not in the tax suit, the interim taxes for years not in the judgment, and the recording fee for a quitclaim deed. Every purchase goes to Commissioners Court for approval, and the county gives only a quitclaim deed, without warranty. The resale auctions, usually twice a year, are also run by the sheriff at the same spot by the courthouse, with the same advance registration through Linebarger.

Excess proceeds

When a property sells for more than the judgment, the excess is paid to the clerk of the court that ordered the sale. The clerk notifies the former owner within 31 days if it is over $25 and keeps it for two years, and claims are filed by petition before the second anniversary of the sale (Tax Code §§ 34.02, 34.03, 34.04). A lawyer can charge no more than 25% or $1,000, whichever is less, to recover it. The other Texas counties selling on November 3 are on our November 3 Texas list.

Three ways people lose money here

1. 1. Trying to register on sale day

   Bexar does not allow it, and holidays do not move the deadline. Register through Linebarger beforehand.

2. 2. Confusing a mortgage foreclosure with a tax sale

   Both are sold at the courthouse on the same Tuesday. Only tax foreclosures need registration, and the redemption rules differ.

3. 3. Skipping the District Clerk

   The judgment, which says which liens and tax years were in the suit, is only available at the District Clerk's office.