Purchasers at judicial sales need not tender cash but, as an alternative, may tender a cashier’s or certified check which is drawn for the amount of the purchase price and which is issued by or certified by any financial institution insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation.
§ 9-13-166.[Effective until January 1, 2027] Form of tender
Chapter 13. Executions and Judicial Sales · Article 7. Judicial Sales · Last amended 1976 · Last verified July 17, 2026
In one sentenceO.C.G.A. § 9-13-166, effective until January 1, 2027, lets a purchaser at a judicial sale tender a cashier’s or certified check for the full purchase price, issued or certified by an FDIC- or FSLIC-insured financial institution, instead of tendering cash.
Full Text of § 9-13-166
Plain-English Summary
Carrying enough cash to a courthouse sale to cover a real estate purchase price is impractical and risky, and a strict reading of “tender” without this section might have demanded exactly that. This section supplies the alternative.
The purchaser may tender a cashier’s or certified check drawn for the amount of the purchase price, issued by or certified by a financial institution insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or, as the statute also lists, the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation — a savings-institution insurer that has since been folded into the FDIC’s broader deposit-insurance structure, though the statutory text still names it as originally written. The statute frames the check as something a purchaser “need not” replace cash with but “may” tender instead, which keeps cash acceptable as well rather than displacing it.
The bracketed heading on this section flags that it carries a sunset date of January 1, 2027, meaning Georgia has already enacted or will enact an updated version of the tender rules to take its place after that date. Anyone relying on this section for a sale occurring on or after that date should check the version of the Code Section then in force.
Frequently Asked Questions
Must a winning bidder at a Georgia judicial sale pay in cash on the spot?
No. This section lets the purchaser tender a cashier’s or certified check for the purchase price instead of cash.
What kind of institution can issue or certify the check?
A financial institution insured by the FDIC or, as the statute also names, the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation.
Does tendering a check take away the option to pay cash?
No. The statute presents the check as an alternative — “need not tender cash but, as an alternative, may tender” — leaving cash acceptable as well.
Is this version of the statute permanent?
No. Its own title states that it is effective only until January 1, 2027, after which a different version of the Code Section applies.
Does the check have to match the exact purchase price?
Yes. The statute requires the check to be drawn for the amount of the purchase price.
Amendment History
Ga. L. 1976, p. 367, § 1.
Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, published by the
Official Code of Georgia Annotated, Georgia Code Revision Commission / LexisNexis. Last verified July 17, 2026.
· Official source
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