Nebraska

Land sold for back taxes

Each county treasurer publishes the delinquent list in February and sells tax certificates to buyers who pay what is owed. The owner can redeem until the buyer applies for a deed, by paying the certificate amount, interest at 14 percent a year and any later taxes the buyer paid. Three years after the sale, the buyer has nine months to act. A treasurer's deed is allowed only when 110 percent of the land's assessed value, less the amount to redeem it, is $25,000 or less; otherwise the buyer must foreclose in district court, as a mortgage would be.

What to do: The Department of Revenue posts every county's list in one place. Treat a certificate as a loan at 14 percent, not a way into a farm: most owners redeem. On land of any real value, getting the land itself means a lawyer and a foreclosure suit, so price that in before you bid.

Source: Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-1804; Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-1824; Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-1837; Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-1902

Septic before you build

Most septic systems are built under the state's general permit, with no construction permit of their own; the rest need one, on plans by a professional engineer. Either way, every system built or altered must be registered with the Department of Water, Energy and Environment, and all the work must be done by state-certified professionals. Lots under three acres in a new development need subdivision review.

What to do: Search the Department's register for the system on a lot with a house. Hire a certified professional to look at the soil on bare land before you close.

Source: Nebraska DWEE, Onsite Wastewater Program; Nebraska DWEE, registered systems search

Being taxed as a farm

Farm and ranch land is its own class, assessed at 75 percent of its value where other property is assessed at all of it. It counts if it is used mainly for the commercial production of crops or livestock, whether or not it has been platted; land under buildings does not. Where land near a town is worth more than farming would make it, the owner can apply to the county assessor for special valuation, at its farm value, by June 30 of the first year.

What to do: The test is commercial production, so ask the assessor before assuming a few acres and a horse will be taxed as farmland. Apply for special valuation by June 30 if the parcel is near a town.

Source: Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-201; Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-1359; Neb. Rev. Stat. §77-1345

Old well records

Every well finished since July 1, 2001 had to be registered with the state within 60 days, with the driller's log. When the land changes hands, the owner must tell the Department of the new ownership, at no fee. Registered wells are on its interactive map.

What to do: Find the parcel on the map and read the logs of the nearest wells. After closing, send the Department the change of ownership so the registration is in your name.

Source: Neb. Rev. Stat. §46-602; Nebraska DWEE, groundwater interactive map

Nebraska counties, cheapest farmland first

What farmland and its buildings were worth an acre in each of the 93 counties in the 2022 Census of Agriculture, with the median value of a home. These compare one county with another; they are not the price of any parcel.

Source: USDA, 2022 Census of Agriculture, Nebraska county data; Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024, table B25077