Orange County, New York auctions properties it took for unpaid taxes. The 2026 sale is online on Thursday, October 22, 2026 at 10:00 AM, run by Absolute Auctions & Realty (auction page). We ran every lot through the same six desktop checks from our tax sale due diligence checklist.
The results
| Verdict | Lots | Share |
|---|---|---|
| No red flags in the desktop checks | 13 | 28% |
| Worth a closer look (one caution) | 16 | 35% |
| Concern (a likely deal-breaker) | 17 | 37% |
| Total screened (list of October 18, 2026) | 46 |
Our sale calendar showed 44 lots on the catalog on October 19; counties pull lots when owners pay before the sale.
What we found
| Problem | Lots | What it looked like |
|---|---|---|
| Strip, sliver or road right-of-way | 17 | Several vacant lots 1 to 6 feet wide; one listed as a road |
| Steep slope | 14 | One lot entirely steeper than 15%, averaging a 39% grade |
| No mapped public road along the lot | 10 | Nearest road 74 to 173 feet away where measured |
| Wetland or open water | 5 | Two lots 62% and 78% wet |
| Record acres don’t match the outline | 5 | One lot: 15.17 acres on record, 4.6 measured |
| FEMA high-risk flood zone | 3 | One lot 100% in the zone, one 70% |
Some lots have more than one problem: 33 lots had at least one, and 15 had two or more.
Houses screened better than land
| Lot type | Lots | No red flags |
|---|---|---|
| With a house or building | 24 | 11 |
| Vacant land | 22 | 2 |
That’s the usual pattern at a tax sale. Vacant pieces end up on the list because nobody wanted them: leftover strips, steep hillsides, wet ground and lots with no road. If you’re buying land rather than houses, the honest answer for this sale is that there are very few clean vacant lots.
Acres on paper vs. usable acres
| Acres | |
|---|---|
| On the tax records (all 46 lots) | 42.6 |
| Measured from the parcel outlines | 32.0 |
| Usable (minus water, wetland, steep ground and flood zone) | 27.2 |
Most of the gap is one lot whose record says 15.17 acres but whose outline measures 4.6. Check the deed or a survey on any lot where the two disagree.
Price vs. value
The listed prices ran from about 1% to 44% of the county’s market value (median about 12.5%). The 13 clean lots were listed at 6% to 17% of market value. The opening figure is where bidding starts; final prices are usually higher.
Before you bid
- Read AAR’s terms for deposit, buyer’s premium and closing deadline.
- Sales like this are usually final and as-is (the AAR terms say exactly what applies). Check occupancy, title and any liens on the lots you want, and talk to an attorney if you’re new to the county.
- Look up zoning with the town: Orange County has no countywide zoning map online, so it’s town by town.
- Visit, or send someone, before the 22nd.
Get the data
How we checked: parcel outlines from the New York State tax parcel layer; roads from the Census Bureau; flood zones from FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer; wetlands from the US Fish & Wildlife Service National Wetlands Inventory; slope from USGS elevation; screened October 18, 2026. Desktop checks find likely problems from public maps; they don’t replace a site visit or a title search.
Frequently asked questions
When is the Orange County, NY 2026 tax auction?
Thursday, October 22, 2026 at 10:00 AM, as an online auction run by Absolute Auctions & Realty (AAR). Registration, deposit and payment terms are on the AAR auction page; read them before you bid.
How many properties are in the Orange County, NY 2026 tax sale?
The list we screened on October 18, 2026 had 46 lots; the auction catalog listed 44 on October 19. Counties often pull lots before the sale when an owner pays, so check the catalog the morning of the auction.
What share of the Orange County tax-sale lots are buildable?
13 of 46 lots (28%) had no red flags in our desktop checks for road access, flood zone, wetlands, slope, shape and acreage. Most were lots with houses; only 2 of the 22 vacant-land lots came through clean. A clean desktop check is a starting point, not a guarantee; zoning, title and a site visit still matter.
How low are the opening bids compared with market value?
Across the 46 lots, the listed price ranged from about 1% to 44% of the county's market value, with a median of about 12.5%. The 13 clean lots were listed at 6% to 17% of market value. Final prices at auction are usually higher than the opening figure.
Where can I get the full results?
The summary PDF and a CSV with every lot and every check (owner names removed) are free on acreandatlas.com. The ranked shortlist for future sales is part of the Tax Sale Shortlist plans.
Screen a whole county list in minutes. Tax Sale Shortlist runs these checks on every lot of a tax sale and ranks them. See a real sample (PDF).
Get early accessThis guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. Sale rules change: confirm with the county and an attorney before you bid.