Behind on Property Taxes in Luzerne or Lackawanna County? How PA Tax Sales Work

• A certified notice of return and claim by July 31 of the year after the tax year
• Certified mail and newspaper ads at least 30 days before the sale
• A notice posted on the property at least 10 days before the sale
• Personal service at least 10 days before, if you live in the house

A new law helps if you're worried about missing mail. Act 27 of 2026, in effect since September 10, 2026, lets owners name a relative or legal representative to receive delinquent-tax notices too. Ask your county bureau for the form.

Once the winning bidder pays, the sale is final. There is no right of redemption after an upset sale in these counties. The bureau must notify the owner within 30 days and report the sale to the court, and objections are due within 30 days after the court's first confirmation. Objections are about how the sale was handled, such as notice problems. In January 2026 the Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld a sale at about 18% of the property's appraised value, holding that a low price alone isn't grounds to undo it.

An upset sale doesn't wipe out your mortgage: the buyer takes the house subject to mortgages and liens that weren't in the upset price. If the house doesn't sell, the bureau can later hold a judicial sale that clears mortgages and most liens, and properties that still don't sell go to the repository. After that point the former owner can't buy the property back at a later sale.

The proceeds pay state liens, the taxing districts, municipal claims and mortgages first. Anything left goes to the owner, who has 3 years to claim it before it goes to the taxing districts. Luzerne County posts its distribution sheets and unclaimed surplus list online.

In 2023 the U.S. Supreme Court held in Tyler v. Hennepin County that a county can't keep value above the tax debt. In April 2026 a federal appeals court panel found no violation in a Pennsylvania case, because the state's law returns the excess to the owner. The catch is the price: a surplus only exists if the auction brings more than what's owed.

Any owner or interested person can pay off the claim, and the bureau issues a discharge certificate. At a normal closing, real estate tax liens are among the seller obligations paid from the sale proceeds, so the title company pays the bureau and you receive the rest. You don't need cash up front.

• Get the exact payoff from the bureau. Luzerne sells certified tax searches; Lackawanna offers lien certificates online.
• Tell the buyer and the title company the sale date on your notice
• Sign an agreement that can close well before auction day
• Keep copies of every notice and receipt

If your taxes are paid through your mortgage escrow, federal rules require the servicer to pay them on time as long as you're no more than 30 days behind on the mortgage. Without escrow, unpaid taxes can lead to tax liens and can also put you in default on the mortgage. Either way, call your servicer the day a delinquent-tax notice arrives.

Pennsylvania's Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program pays up to $1,000 to eligible owners who are 65 or older, widows and widowers 50 or older, and people with disabilities 18 or older, with household income up to $48,110. Claims for 2025 are due December 31, 2026.