Johnson County, AR tax sales
How tax deed sales work in Johnson County, seat of Clarksville: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
New to tax sales? Read how Arkansas tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.
- Next sale
- Late July, in a regional auction that covers several adjoining counties at once.
- Format
- County site
- Registration
- Bidding at the live auction is in person.
- County office
- 479-754-3371
On this page
How Johnson County sells delinquent taxes
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands (Johnson County conducts no tax sale of its own; the Collector certifies unredeemed parcels to the state, which auctions them)
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Late July, in a regional auction that covers several adjoining counties at once.
- Registration
- Bidding at the live auction is in person.
When it runs
Registration and deposit
Bidding at the live auction is in person. Registration takes place at the sale site before the 10:00 a.m. start as specified in the sale notice, and no bid is accepted until the bidder has registered and received a pre-numbered bid card. Bring photo identification plus a valid driver's license number, its expiration date and issuing state. Full payment is due at the time of sale and cash is not accepted: pay by personal or business check, credit or debit card, cashier's check or money order. Bidding on unsold parcels afterward is a separate online registration at auction.cosl.org that includes identity verification and a card kept on file.
Sale format and venue
Johnson County tax sale list and auction calendar
For Johnson County tax sale 2026 searches, use the county-run sources below rather than a copied parcel list, and confirm the parcel, registration cutoff, deposit, and payment deadline against the county before you bid.
Get the advertised list
Use Public Auction Catalog, Commissioner of State Lands for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.Register to bid
Sale day
Late July, in a regional auction that covers several adjoining counties at once. Bidding runs on County site; check posted sale dates, registration status, and bidding windows there.Confirm with the office
If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands (Johnson County conducts no tax sale of its own; the Collector certifies unredeemed parcels to the state, which auctions them) as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.
Before you bid in Johnson County
4 checks
Start with the live sale list
Pull the current advertised parcels from Public Auction Catalog, Commissioner of State Lands. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.Confirm registration and deposit
Bidding at the live auction is in person. Registration takes place at the sale site before the 10:00 a.m. start as specified in the sale notice, and no bid is accepted until the bidder has registered and received a pre-numbered bid card. Bring photo identification plus a valid driver's license number, its expiration date and issuing state. Full payment is due at the time of sale and cash is not accepted: pay by personal or business check, credit or debit card, cashier's check or money order. Bidding on unsold parcels afterward is a separate online registration at auction.cosl.org that includes identity verification and a card kept on file.
Check the state rules that change the bid
Read the Arkansas due-diligence checklist before bidding. Redemption, liens that survive a tax deed, title cleanup, and payment deadlines can change what a parcel is worth.Set a walk-away number
Work out what the parcel is actually worth with the rural land value estimator, then turn it into a ceiling with the tax deed max-bid calculator.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
unsold properties
Thirty calendar days after the live auction, every parcel that drew no qualifying bid moves to the Commissioner's online unsold-property auction and stays there until it sells, is redeemed, or is withdrawn. Nothing is priced over a counter: the first online bid starts a 30-calendar-day auction period that closes at 8:00 p.m. Central on the thirtieth day, other registered bidders may outbid during it, and the Commissioner mails the owner and interested parties notice when the first bid arrives. Within two years of the live auction the reserve stays at the taxes, penalty, interest, fees and costs; two years or more after it, the Commissioner may negotiate a price he determines is in the best interest of the state and the local taxing units. Online bidders must pass an identity check as a United States resident and keep a card on file; the winner's card is charged $100 in earnest money immediately and the balance is due in certified funds within 10 business days.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter purchases work.
Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.
County offices
Tax sale office
Johnson County Courthouse, 215 West Main Street, Clarksville, AR 72830 (mailing: P.O. Box 794, Clarksville, AR 72830)
Official websiteCounty notes
- Johnson County runs no tax sale. The Collector's office certifies unredeemed parcels to the Commissioner of State Lands, which conducts the auction for all 75 Arkansas counties.
- Taxes unpaid after October 15 are delinquent and carry a 10% penalty. The Collector prepares the delinquent list and delivers it to a legal newspaper for publication before December 1, so the local legal notices are where Johnson County parcels first surface.
- Johnson County parcels are auctioned in Russellville together with Conway, Pope and Yell counties. Bidders should confirm the host city and venue in the Public Auction Catalog instead of assuming the sale happens in Clarksville.
- Redemption money must reach the Commissioner of State Lands real estate office at 7003 Valley Ranch Drive, Little Rock, by 4 p.m. on the last business day before the sale. Postmarks do not count.
- Research parcels at the county level before bidding. The state guarantees neither title nor access nor the existence of any improvement described in the catalog, and a legal description using the words part or fractional can void the deed.
- The Collector's office is open Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and is reachable at 479-754-3371 (fax 479-754-4730).
Arkansas rules
- Redemption
- The clock is long even though the deadline is hard. The county collector holds the delinquent land for one year after the October 15 delinquency date, certification to the Commissioner of State Lands follows no later than July 1 of the next year, and the sale date must be no earlier than one year after certification, so an owner normally has more than two years from the missed payment. What the owner does not get is any post-sale window. The Commissioner's office states that, effective July 1, 2023, parcels sold through its office cannot be redeemed and all sales are final, at live auctions and through the online unsold-property auction alike. Payment has to be received by the 4:00 p.m. deadline; postmarks are not accepted. A quoted redemption figure holds for 30 days unless the parcel sells, the county amends its records, or further costs accrue.
- Deed deposit
- There is no statutory bidder deposit at the live auction and no registration fee. Registration opens one hour before the sale at the sale site against a photo ID and a driver's license number, and the successful bidder tenders the full purchase price at the time of the sale. The online unsold-property auction works differently: registration requires identity verification and a card on file, and the winning bidder's card is charged $100 in earnest money immediately on notification.
- Surplus proceeds
- Money above the taxes, fees, penalties, interest and costs due at the time of sale is excess proceeds. Within one year of receipt the Commissioner pays penalties, collection fees and sale costs to his own office and the delinquent taxes, interest and costs to the county. The remainder is held for one year from the date of the limited warranty deed, then applied on application to delinquent personal property taxes, state tax certificates of indebtedness and delinquent solid waste assessments. Of whatever is left, 10 percent up to a maximum of $500 goes to the Commissioner for administering the distribution and the rest is payable to the former owner on a complete claim packet. Excess proceeds are held two years and then escheat by operation of law to the county. A former owner, part owner or interested party who buys the parcel at the tax sale is not entitled to any distribution, and a third-party recovery agent's fee may not exceed 10 percent.
A tax deed does not convey marketable title. Most buyers file a quiet title action before they can resell or insure the property. See the due diligence guide.
Frequently asked questions
Does Johnson County, Arkansas sell tax liens or tax deeds?
How often does Johnson County hold tax deed sales?
I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?
Where can I find the Johnson County tax sale list?
Verified Aug 22, 2026 against official county and state sources.
Tax Sale Atlas publishes educational information about public tax sale processes. This is not legal, financial, or investment advice. Rules, dates, and fees change; confirm with the county office before you bid.
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