The City of Durham and the County of Durham are allowed by state law to acquire real estate property.  In addition to real estate they acquire for their own governmental, school, utility or highway purposes, they also acquire real estate through housing foreclosures, tax or assessment foreclosures (See RM&F Tax and Assessment Foreclosure Information Page) or even gifts and donations.  These properties can be vacant lots, improved land (house and lot) or acreage.

Once the City or County of Durham acquire real estate, they evaluate it to see if they want to keep the property for their use, or if they want to dispose of it.  Property which is to be disposed by the City and/or County of Durham is referred to as Surplus Property, and can only be sold through the procedures set out in North Carolina General Statutes 160A, Article 12, Sections 265 through 280.

If you are interested in acquiring Surplus Properties owned by the City of Durham and/or County of Durham, then you will need to contact their respective Property and Real Estate Administrators.  At the present time, this is the contact information for the City and County of Durham Property and Real Estate Administrators:

City of Durham
Ms. Sandra Harper
Telephone: 919-560-4197, Extension 243
E-mail:  sharper@ci.durham.nc.us

The City of Durham has a website which lists available properties for surplus sale:

Link to City of Durham Surplus Property Page

County of Durham
Ms. Jane Korest
Telephone:  919-560-7955
E-mail:  jkorest@co.durham.nc.us

The County of Durham has a website which lists available properties for surplus sale:

Link to County of Durham Surplus Property List

Link to County of Durham Information and Bid Procedures for Surplus Properties.