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Washington trustee sale auctions explained
A trustee's sale is the auction that ends a nonjudicial foreclosure of a deed of trust in Washington. The statute sets when it is held, who can bid, how the buyer pays and what the buyer gets. Here is how the auction itself works and where its date appears on record.
Published by BridgeLeads · Updated · Checked against the sources listed at the end
When and where the sale is held
The trustee sells the property at public auction to the highest bidder (RCW 61.24.040). The sale is on a Friday, or on the following Monday if that Friday is a legal holiday, during the hours set for execution sales of real estate (RCW 61.24.040): between nine o'clock in the morning and four o'clock in the afternoon (RCW 6.21.050).
The place of sale is a designated public place in the county where the property is located, and the notice of trustee's sale fixes the time and place (RCW 61.24.040).
The sale can't take place less than 190 days from the date of default, and the notice of trustee's sale must be recorded at least 90 days before it, or 120 days when a letter under RCW 61.24.031 is required (RCW 61.24.040). The pre-foreclosure guide walks through those earlier notices.
Postponements
The trustee has no obligation to postpone, but may continue the sale for any cause the trustee deems advantageous, for a period or periods not exceeding a total of 120 days (RCW 61.24.040).
A continuance is announced by public proclamation at the time and place fixed for the sale, and the trustee gives notice of the new time and place as the statute sets out (RCW 61.24.040). The date in a recorded notice can therefore move; confirm it before relying on it.
Who can bid, and how the buyer pays
The trustee may not bid. Any other person, including the beneficiary (the lender), may (RCW 61.24.070).
At the beneficiary's request, the trustee credits all or any part of the monetary obligations secured by the deed of trust toward the beneficiary's bid. If the beneficiary buys, any amount it bids above the credited amount is paid in the forms below (RCW 61.24.070).
If the buyer is not the beneficiary, the entire bid is paid to the trustee in cash, certified check, cashier's check, money order or funds received by verified electronic transfer, or any combination of them (RCW 61.24.070). The purchaser must pay the price bid forthwith (RCW 61.24.040).
What the buyer gets
On payment, the trustee executes its deed to the purchaser (RCW 61.24.040). The trustee's deed conveys all of the right, title and interest in the property sold that the grantor had or had the power to convey when the deed of trust was executed, and any the grantor acquired afterward (RCW 61.24.050).
If the trustee accepts a bid and the trustee's deed is recorded within fifteen days, the sale is final as of the date and time of acceptance. Up to the eleventh day after the sale, the trustee can declare the sale and deed void, but only for the reasons the statute lists (RCW 61.24.050).
There is no redemption afterward: no person has any right, by statute or otherwise, to redeem the property sold (RCW 61.24.050).
Possession and tenants
As against the borrower and grantor under the deed of trust and anyone having an interest junior to it, the purchaser is entitled to possession on the twentieth day after the sale, and may use the summary proceedings in chapter 59.12 RCW to obtain it (RCW 61.24.060).
Tenants have their own protections. If the trustee elects to foreclose the interest of an occupant of tenant-occupied property, it must post and mail a notice to the residents when it posts the notice of trustee's sale (RCW 61.24.143). After the sale, a residential tenant or subtenant in possession must be given sixty days' written notice to vacate; a tenant may still be evicted for waste or nuisance, and the rule doesn't apply if the borrower or grantor remains on the property as a tenant, subtenant or occupant (RCW 61.24.146).
Surplus funds and deficiencies
If the sale brings in more than is owed and the costs, the trustee deposits the surplus, less the clerk's filing fee, with the clerk of the superior court of the county where the sale took place. The clerk pays it out only on that court's order, after a party seeking it files a motion (RCW 61.24.080).
In general, a deficiency judgment can't be obtained on the obligations secured by a deed of trust after a trustee's sale under it; the statute lists limited exceptions (RCW 61.24.100).
Where to find auction dates
The notice of trustee's sale is recorded with the auditor of each county where the deed of trust is recorded and fixes the sale's time and place (RCW 61.24.040), so the county's recording index and the newspaper publications that follow are the sources. Because the trustee can postpone, check for a continuance before the date.
BridgeLeads' auction leads carry the sale date and the days left from the published notice where it is available, alongside the owner and property details we can match.
Before you bid
A trustee's sale is not a promise of clear title or vacant possession. Check title, liens and occupancy yourself, and talk to a Washington attorney before you bid.
Where BridgeLeads reads trustee sale filings today
The live list changes as counties are connected; each county page says which sources it reads.
Sources
- RCW 61.24.040: notice of sale, time and place, postponement, payment, possession
- RCW 61.24.050: trustee's deed, finality, no redemption
- RCW 61.24.060: purchaser's possession, notice to occupants
- RCW 61.24.070: who may bid, credit bids, payment
- RCW 61.24.080: proceeds and surplus funds
- RCW 61.24.100: deficiency judgments
- RCW 61.24.143: notice to residents of tenant-occupied property
- RCW 61.24.146: notice to vacate for tenants
- RCW 6.21.050: time and place of execution sales
This guide is general information about Washington law as of October 30, 2026, not legal advice. Statutes change and every case has its own facts; check the current text of each source and talk to a Washington attorney before relying on it. More about how BridgeLeads works is on the About page.