Behind on Property Taxes in Massachusetts? Tax Title, the 2024 Reform, and How to Sell Before Land Court (2026)

A Massachusetts tax title starts when a city or town records a taking for unpaid property taxes. The town does not sell your house at that point. It holds legal title as security until you pay the tax title account, or until the Land Court ends your right to redeem.

The rules changed in 2024 and 2025, and which version applies depends on the date of your taking. This guide covers each stage, payment plans, excess equity, and how a sale can pay the account at closing.

What is a Massachusetts tax title?

A Massachusetts tax title is the town's recorded claim to a house after it takes the land for unpaid property taxes. Once the instrument of taking is recorded, "title to the land so taken shall thereupon vest in the town, subject to the right of redemption" (M.G.L. c. 60, § 54). That title is "held as security" for the taxes, costs, and interest.

In plain terms, the town becomes a secured creditor with its name on the title. You can still live in the house and sell it. The debt sits in a "tax title account" at the treasurer's office, and it grows with interest and charges.

A town may also sell its tax receivables to a private purchaser, who can then "take tax title in its own name" (c. 60, § 2C). It may not transfer a parcel whose owner is keeping up with a payment agreement, or one owned by a veteran once the town is told.

From tax bill to tax taking: demand, notice, and recording

A Massachusetts tax taking follows three steps: a written demand, a 14-day notice of intent to take, and a recorded instrument of taking. They enforce the tax lien that attaches on January 1 of the assessment year (c. 60, § 37).

Step 1: the demand

Before taking land, the collector must mail a demand stating what is owed (c. 60, § 16). For a residential parcel, it includes a plain-language Department of Revenue notice. That notice warns that unpaid taxes can lead to a taking, and that you may qualify for exemptions, abatements, or deferrals.

Step 2: the notice of taking

If the tax stays unpaid 14 days after demand, the collector may take the land after "fourteen days' notice of his intention" (c. 60, § 53). For residential property, that notice must be mailed to you, posted on the house, and published on the town's website. It must state what is unpaid, your right to redeem, the earliest Land Court filing date, and your right to any excess equity.

Step 3: recording the instrument of taking

The instrument of taking lists the parcel, the assessed owner, the tax, and costs to date. It "shall not be valid unless recorded within sixty days of the date of taking" (§ 54). Its date tells you which set of rules applies.

Which rules apply to you: before or after November 1, 2024?

If your house was taken on or after November 1, 2024, redemption interest is 8% a year and the town waits 12 months before filing in Land Court. If it was taken before that date, the older 16% rate and 6-month wait still apply.

Chapter 140 of the Acts of 2024, the FY2025 state budget, cut the § 62 rate from 16% to 8%. It also raised the § 65 wait from 6 to 12 months, effective November 1, 2024 (§ 250). It did not say whether older tax titles were covered.

Chapter 14 of the Acts of 2025, approved August 5, 2025, settled it. Section 87 says the rate cut and the longer wait "shall only apply to land purchased or taken under a tax title on or after November 1, 2024." Section 24 did the same for the court-set rate in § 68.

The Division of Local Services agrees. It says "property already in tax title before November 1, 2024 will continue to accrue interest at a rate of 16%." The 12-month wait applies "only to tax titles entered into on or after November 1, 2024" (DLS, "Ask DLS: Tax Title Change," 2025).

Tax title timeline by taking date

How redemption works, and what it costs

You redeem a Massachusetts tax title by paying the treasurer the tax title account, interest, and charges added since the taking. Anyone "having an interest" in the land may redeem "at any time prior to the filing of a petition for foreclosure" (c. 60, § 62). That includes heirs and mortgage lenders.

What goes into the payoff

The payoff starts with the original amount taken. Later unpaid bills can be certified to the same account, and each earns interest from its certification date (§ 62). Allowed charges are added on top.

Illustrative only: $10,000 taken in 2023 at 16% accrues about $1,600 a year. The same amount taken in 2025 at 8% accrues about $800.

Paying in installments

Section 62 lets you pay the treasurer in installments, with interest running on the balance. On accepting a payment, the treasurer may delay foreclosure for up to 2 years beyond the normal § 65 wait.

Local payment plans under § 62A

A formal payment plan exists only if your town adopted one by bylaw or ordinance (c. 60, § 62A). Where adopted, the agreement can run up to 10 years and can waive accrued interest. It requires at least 10% of the redemption amount at the start. While you keep to the schedule, "the treasurer may not bring an action to foreclose."

Before Chapter 140, the limits were 5 years and 25% down (§§ 89 to 91). Ask the treasurer whether your town has adopted § 62A.

When can the town petition the Land Court?

A Massachusetts town can petition the Land Court to foreclose the right of redemption 12 months after a taking made on or after November 1, 2024. For an older taking, it can file after 6 months (c. 60, § 65; St. 2025, c. 14, § 87). The town "may" file then; it is not required to.

Section 65 lets a town file sooner in three cases:

• the buildings were found abandoned under § 81A;
• the treasurer certified under § 81B that the redemption amount exceeds the assessed value;
• the record owner consented in writing.

Legal fees the court awards the town are added to the account. They may not exceed actual costs, and "the judge shall consider the taxpayer's ability to pay" (§ 65).

Redeeming after the petition is filed

Once the petition is filed, you redeem through the case. You file an answer and an offer to redeem, and the court can set an amount, including costs and a counsel fee, and a deadline (c. 60, § 68).

The decree

If no one redeems, the court enters a decree that "shall forever bar all rights of redemption" (c. 60, § 69). A motion to vacate is possible within 1 year, but only in "extraordinary circumstances" (§ 69A). For abandoned buildings, the window is 90 days.

Excess equity after Tyler v. Hennepin

Since November 1, 2024, a Massachusetts town that forecloses a tax title must account to the former owner for any excess equity. Before then, a town could keep the full value, even when the tax debt was small.

In May 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a county keeping the surplus above a tax debt violates the Takings Clause (Tyler v. Hennepin County, 598 U.S. 631 (2023)). Massachusetts answered in Chapter 140 of the Acts of 2024 with new §§ 64 and 64A.

The § 64A process

Section 64 preserves the right "to receive any excess equity," and § 64A sets the steps:

• Election: Within 30 days after the judgment is final, the town elects to keep or sell. The deadline was 14 days until August 5, 2025 (St. 2025, c. 14, § 23).
• If kept: An independent licensed appraiser values the house, with reasonable best efforts to finish within 120 days.
• If sold: The town lists it with a licensed Massachusetts real estate broker within 180 days. If it has not sold after 12 months, the statute moves it to a public sale with a floor of two-thirds of the appraised value.
• Accounting: Within 30 days after the sale or appraisal, the town mails an itemized accounting, with payment to a known owner.

If the owner is unknown, claims are due "not more than 18 months after the date of the notice," and unclaimed funds go to the state after 19 months. Disputes go to Superior Court within 12 months of the accounting notice.

Excess equity is not the full sale price. It is what remains after the tax title balance, later charges, and post-judgment costs such as commissions and legal fees (Chapter 140, § 80).

The § 212 look-back

Section 212 of Chapter 140 reached back to judgments entered on or after May 25, 2021, but before the act took effect. Those former owners could sue in Superior Court within 12 months after the effective date. That window has likely passed, so ask a Massachusetts attorney whether any claim survives.

Behind on property taxes in Massachusetts: the 2026 numbers

The average Massachusetts single-family tax bill reached $8,113 for fiscal 2026, based on 346 reporting communities. That is up from $7,730 in fiscal 2025, about 5% (DLS, February 2026). The average single-family value was $742,986.

The equity behind many of those bills is large. The statewide median single-family sale price was $695,000 in August 2026, up 2.2% from a year earlier (Massachusetts Association of REALTORS, August 2026). Zillow put the typical Massachusetts house value at $661,896 the same month, up 2.3% (Zillow ZHVI, August 2026).

For many owners in tax title, the debt is a small share of the house's value. That gap is why timing matters.

Selling a Massachusetts tax title house before Land Court

You can sell a house in tax title before the Land Court petition, and the tax title account is paid from the sale proceeds at closing. The town holds title only as security, so it is cleared like any other lien.

What the closing attorney needs

In Massachusetts, a closing attorney handles the closing by long-standing practice. For a house in tax title, the attorney typically orders two items:

• A municipal lien certificate: It lists all taxes, water and sewer charges, and other municipal liens on the parcel. The collector must issue it within 10 business days in towns over 5,000 people, or 20 in smaller towns, for a $25 fee (c. 60, § 23).
• A redemption payoff: The certificate alone does not clear a recorded taking. After payment, the treasurer signs an instrument of redemption, which is recorded (§ 62).

The fire department's smoke and carbon monoxide inspection also needs lead time. A Massachusetts cash closing often takes as few as 14 days, and sometimes longer.

An illustrative comparison

Illustrative only: a house could sell for $500,000, with a $200,000 mortgage and a $20,000 tax title payoff. A sale before the petition pays both, and the rest after closing costs goes to you.

After a decree, the house belongs to the town, and you wait for the § 64A steps with post-judgment costs deducted first. For owners with real equity, a sale before the petition usually keeps more of the value.

If an heir or a vacant house is involved

Tax title can follow a death in the family. Our guide to selling an inherited house in Massachusetts covers who can sign the deed. If the house sits empty, see our page on selling a vacant house, since abandoned buildings can reach Land Court sooner (§ 65).

If a mortgage payment is also behind, the lender runs its own process under chapter 244; see how to stop foreclosure in Massachusetts.

Where a cash offer fits

Propcash is a direct cash homebuyer based in Nashville. You can get a cash offer on a Massachusetts house in tax title, with the payoff shown in the math. Propcash buys as-is, charges sellers no fees or commissions, and lets you pick the closing date.

If listing would likely net you more and you have the time, we will tell you and point you to a local agent. We may receive compensation from agents we refer. More statewide options are on our sell my house fast in Massachusetts page.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does it mean when a Massachusetts house is in tax title?

It means the town recorded a taking for unpaid property taxes, so legal title sits with the town as security for the debt (M.G.L. c. 60, § 54). You can still live in the house and sell it. The claim ends when the account is redeemed or the Land Court forecloses.

Is Massachusetts tax title interest 8% or 16%?

The rate is 8% or 16%, depending on the date of the taking. A tax title taken on or after November 1, 2024 accrues 8% a year, and one taken before that date keeps accruing 16% (St. 2025, c. 14, § 87). Check the taking date on your recorded instrument.

How long before a Massachusetts town can file in Land Court?

For a tax title taken on or after November 1, 2024, the town must generally wait 12 months after the taking. For an older taking, the wait is 6 months. The town can file sooner if the buildings are found abandoned, if the redemption amount exceeds the assessed value, or if the owner consents in writing (c. 60, § 65).

Can you sell a house while behind on property taxes in Massachusetts?

Yes, you can sell a house while behind on property taxes in Massachusetts. A tax taking does not remove your right to sell, and the tax title account can be paid from the sale proceeds at closing. The closing attorney orders a municipal lien certificate and a redemption payoff, pays the town, and records the instrument of redemption.

What is excess equity after a Massachusetts tax title foreclosure?

Excess equity is the value left after the tax title balance and the town's allowed post-judgment costs are paid. The town must elect within 30 days of a final judgment to keep or sell the house, then send an itemized accounting (c. 60, § 64A). The former owner can claim the surplus, but the house is gone.

Does every Massachusetts town offer a tax title payment plan?

No, a tax title payment plan exists only where the town adopted one. Only towns that adopt one by local vote offer it. Section 62A of chapter 60 lets a city or town authorize payment agreements by bylaw or ordinance, for up to 10 years with at least 10% paid at the start. Ask the treasurer's office whether your town has adopted it.