Behind on Property Taxes in Costilla County, CO?

Back Taxes in Costilla County: Your Options

This page explains what happens in Costilla County, Colorado when property taxes on a lot go unpaid. It covers the due dates, the interest, the fall tax lien sale, redemption, the treasurer's deed process and the 2026 change in state law, how to find out what you owe, and the choices you have. It is written for owners of vacant land, including people who inherited a lot with back taxes.

Back taxes do not stop you from selling. A tax lien sale does not transfer your land. Until a treasurer's deed is issued, you still own the lot, and you can redeem the lien or sell the lot and have the taxes paid from the sale at closing. This page is general information, not legal advice; for your own case, ask the Costilla County Treasurer or a Colorado attorney.

When Costilla County property taxes are due and when they become delinquent

Colorado property tax is paid one year behind. The tax for one year is billed in January of the next year. The Costilla County Treasurer in San Luis sends the tax statements, and you can pull a copy of yours from the Treasurer's online lookup.

State law gives you two ways to pay. You can pay in two halves: the first half by the last day of February and the second half by June 15. Or you can pay the whole year by April 30 (C.R.S. 39-10-104.5).

Late taxes add delinquent interest of 1 percent per month. If you pay in halves, interest on a late first half starts March 1, and interest on a late second half starts June 16. If you pay the whole year in one payment after April 30, interest of 1 percent per month runs from May 1 (C.R.S. 39-10-104.5). Ask the Costilla County Treasurer for the exact amount due on the day you plan to pay.

What happens next: the tax lien sale and redemption

If taxes are still unpaid in the fall, the Treasurer advertises the property and sells a tax lien on it. State law says the sale must start on or before the second Monday in December (C.R.S. 39-11-109). The lien buyer pays your delinquent taxes, interest and costs, and receives a certificate of purchase. The buyer does not own your land. Costilla County holds its tax lien sale online through GovEase. The 2026 sale is set for early November 2026. Confirm the exact date, and the last day to pay to stay off the sale, with the Treasurer's office.

After the sale, you can redeem the lien. To redeem, you pay the Treasurer the delinquent taxes, interest and costs, redemption interest, and any later years' taxes the lien holder paid, with redemption interest on them (C.R.S. 39-12-103). The redemption interest rate is set each year at 9 percentage points above the federal discount rate, rounded to the nearest full percent. The Treasurer pays the lien holder. Costilla County takes redemption payments only in certified funds or cash, in person. It has not accepted credit cards for redemptions since March 20, 2023.

A lien holder often pays your later years' taxes too, and those amounts are added to what you must pay to redeem. So the total grows faster than the tax bill alone.

The treasurer's deed, the 2026 law change (SB 26-144) and the Costilla County pause

If the lien is not redeemed, the holder can ask for a treasurer's deed after about 3 years. Since 2024, a treasurer's deed in Colorado comes only after a public auction, so that an owner does not lose equity worth more than the tax debt. Colorado set up that auction in 2024 (HB 24-1056) after the U.S. Supreme Court's 2023 ruling in Tyler v. Hennepin County.

In 2026 the legislature rewrote that process in Senate Bill 26-144. The governor signed it on May 19, 2026, and it took effect June 1, 2026. It applies to every treasurer's deed issued on or after June 1, 2026, no matter when the lien was sold or the application was filed. The main changes are listed at the end of this section.

The Costilla County Treasurer says that, because of SB 26-144, it is not accepting new applications for treasurer's deeds until further notice. The county posted a letter, Important Notice regarding New Treasurer's Deeds, on its Treasurer page to explain how the new law affects future applications.

The pause covers new applications. Auctions on applications filed earlier are still on the county's calendar. The Treasurer lists treasurer's deed public auctions on GovEase on September 29, October 13 and October 27, 2026, then none from November through January because of the tax lien sale, year-end closeout and the tax roll import. Auctions resume February 9, February 23 and March 2, 2027. The Treasurer can continue an auction for good cause before it starts.

A pause does not end a tax lien. The lien still earns interest, and once the county takes applications again, a holder whose lien is old enough may apply under the 2026 rules. If you have received a notice about your lot, call the Treasurer at (719) 937-7672 to confirm where it stands.

The main changes in SB 26-144:

• The auction process is rebuilt on the model of a public trustee foreclosure, in a new article 11.5 of title 39 of the Colorado statutes. Treasurers may no longer issue a deed under the old article 11 process.
• A lien holder may apply for a treasurer's deed after August 1 of the third calendar year after the tax lien sale (C.R.S. 39-11.5-102).
• The Treasurer then mails, publishes and posts a notice of public auction. If the auction is online, the notice says where to find it and the bidding rules.
• Once an application is filed, the owner must file an intent to redeem with the Treasurer no later than 7 calendar days before the scheduled auction. The Treasurer sends a redemption statement within 3 business days. It is good for 10 business days, or until noon the day before the auction, whichever is first. The fee for this is no more than $25 (C.R.S. 39-11.5-106).
• If the property sells at auction for more than the total owed, the extra money (the overbid) goes first to junior lienholders who file a claim, and the rest must be paid to the property owner. Overbid money not claimed within 2 years goes to the state's unclaimed property program (C.R.S. 39-11.5-112).
• The law sets new standard treasurer fees for these steps, adjusted for inflation every two years.

How much you owe, and your options

Start with the Treasurer's online tax statement lookup, which shows each year's tax and whether it is paid. Current taxes can be paid through the county's online payment portal.

If a tax lien was sold on your lot, the online balance may not show the full redemption amount. Call the Treasurer's office at (719) 937-7672 and ask for a redemption amount good through a given date. Interest adds up each month, and the redemption rate changes each year, so the amount depends on the day you pay.

Redemptions in Costilla County must be paid in certified funds or cash, in person, and all fees must be paid by noon on the day a deed would issue. The office is open Monday to Thursday, 7:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Once you know the amount, you have several choices. Each one has costs and tradeoffs, so look at all of them before you decide.

• Pay in full. Pay the delinquent taxes and interest before the fall lien sale, or redeem the lien later.
• Ask about payment options. We did not find a payment plan on the Costilla County Treasurer's page. Call (719) 937-7672 to ask what is possible for your account.
• Sell the land. You can sell with back taxes or a tax lien. The title company pays the Treasurer from the sale price.
• Let it go. If you do nothing, a tax lien is sold and interest keeps growing. When the county takes deed applications again, the holder of a lien at least 3 years old can apply for a treasurer's deed, and you lose the land at the public auction. If it sells for more than is owed, you can claim the overbid that is left after junior liens.

How selling works when taxes are owed

In Colorado, a title company usually handles the closing. It searches the county records, finds unpaid taxes and any tax lien sold on the lot, and gets the exact amounts from the Treasurer.

At closing, the title company pays the Treasurer from the sale price. That pays the current and delinquent taxes and redeems any tax lien, so the buyer gets clear title. You receive the rest. Costilla County takes redemptions only in certified funds or cash, in person, so the title company arranges certified funds for the Treasurer in San Luis.

If a treasurer's deed application has already been filed, the timing matters more. The closing has to happen before the redemption deadline under the 2026 law, so tell the buyer and the title company about any notice you received.

What EasyLotBuyer does

EasyLotBuyer buys vacant land in Costilla County for cash, including lots with back taxes, liens, title issues or no road access. We make a cash offer within 24 hours. There are no fees or commissions, and we pay the closing costs. We can close in as few as 7 days.

When a lot has back taxes or a tax lien, they are paid off at closing from the sale. You do not need to pay them first. If you would rather keep the land, the contacts on this page are the right places to start.