How to get a tax delinquent list in Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, unpaid property tax is collected by the county Tax Claim Bureau. The system for unpaid tax is: upset sale (county Tax Claim Bureau). LeadCounty tracks 92,879 tax-delinquent properties in 4 Pennsylvania counties, refreshed weekly. Some counties publish their list free; LeadCounty matches, scores and filters the records for you.
Where the official list lives
The office is the county Tax Claim Bureau. Whether it shows a full delinquent list, a parcel-by-parcel search or a sale notice, and whether there is a fee, is decided by each county, so check the office's website for your county.
Property tax rolls and ownership come from the county auditor, assessor or appraiser. A parcel number links the tax record to the deed and the owner's mailing address.
The free route
Many counties let you look up a parcel's tax status for free, and some publish the whole list. If you only need one list in one county, the county office may be enough. LeadCounty is useful when you want the records of many offices matched to the right property, scored with reasons, and refreshed every week, with filters such as years behind, amount owed and absentee owner.
Tax delinquent properties in Pennsylvania counties we cover
| County | Tax delinquent | Properties |
|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia County | 78,062 | 583,713 |
| Montgomery County | 6,930 | 311,252 |
| Delaware County (Media) | 6,641 | 188,305 |
| Lancaster County | 1,246 | 188,978 |
Pennsylvania tax sale rules at a glance
- Unpaid tax
- Upset sale (county Tax Claim Bureau). County Tax Claim Bureaus hold an upset sale in the fall; parcels nobody buys go to a judicial sale and then the repository. Philadelphia sells through sheriff sales.
- Redemption period
- There is no redemption after a county upset sale; in Philadelphia an occupied home can be redeemed for 9 months after a sheriff tax sale.
- Mortgage foreclosure
- Judicial. Foreclosures go through the court of common pleas and end with a sheriff sale.
- Statute
- 72 P.S. §5860.101 and following (Real Estate Tax Sale Law)
General information, not legal advice. Check the statute and the county office before you act.
Questions
Who has the tax delinquent list in Pennsylvania?
Unpaid property tax is collected by the county Tax Claim Bureau. Some counties publish the full list on that office's website; others only let you search one parcel at a time. The format and any fee are set by each county.
Is the tax delinquent list in Pennsylvania free?
Often the county shows delinquent accounts for free, one parcel at a time. Some publish a full list or sell it. LeadCounty's value is matching, scoring and filtering the records, not owning them.
What happens to a tax delinquent property in Pennsylvania?
See the table above for the sale type and redemption period. Check the statute and your county office for the current rules.
How we make these guides
Written by the LeadCounty editorial and data team from official county, court and state sources and our own weekly counts. We name the office behind every number, say what we cannot see, and fix mistakes when you tell us. See our editorial standards and methodology. General information, not legal or financial advice. Refreshed weekly.
Find the owners behind these records.
Official county records, scored with reasons, refreshed weekly. 7-day free trial.
- 7 days free
- Explore: no card
- Full access: cancel before day 7, pay nothing
- Max 10 investors per county
