Kootenai County, ID tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •Two offices split the work. The Kootenai County Treasurer publishes the auction list, the results of the last sale and the list of parcels that went unsold, and answers questions at 208-446-1005. The Board of County Commissioners conducts the auction and handles anything that does not sell.
• •Parcels that draw no bid at auction stay available by sealed written bid to the Board of County Commissioners at 451 Government Way, 3rd Floor, PO Box 9000, Coeur d'Alene, ID 83816-9000, phone 208-446-1600. Each parcel needs its own sealed envelope marked with the parcel number, property address and bidder contact details, containing a letter of intent and a cashier's check for the full bid amount made out to the Kootenai County Treasurer. The board reserves the right to reject any and all written bids, and may sell without further notice by public or private sale on terms it sets. A running list of prior parcels still unsold is posted at https://www.kcgov.us/DocumentCenter/View/4671/Tax-Deed-Property-Not-Sold-PDF.
• •The sale is advertised in the Coeur d'Alene Press no later than two weeks before any auction. The auction list is also available in print at the Treasurer's office and at the front office of the Board of County Commissioners, and online from the Treasurer's Property Tax Sale page.
• •Idaho issues no tax lien certificates, and the document a buyer receives here is a county deed. Redemption ends at the start time of each parcel's lot in the auction, so a successful bidder takes the property with no further redemption window.
• •The county recommends contacting a local title company about title or legal description questions before bidding, since parcels sell as is with no guarantee of legal access or of building or septic permits.
• •Sale proceeds above what the county is owed become surplus funds claimable through the Treasurer's office at 208-446-1005, with a posted claim deadline each year. Unclaimed balances transfer to the Idaho State Treasurer under Idaho Code 31-808.

Idaho rules

Redemption

The window belongs to the county's holding period, not to the auction. After the tax deed issues to the county, the record owner or a party in interest may redeem by paying the delinquency with late charges, accrued interest and costs including title search and professional fees, plus the taxes that accrued after the deed. That right runs only up to the moment the commissioners enter into a contract of sale or the property is transferred by county deed. Fourteen months after issuance it expires regardless. Since 31-808 requires the auction within those same fourteen months, a buyer at the county auction takes the property with the redemption already extinguished, and the tax deed is presumptive evidence of the regularity of everything before it.Idaho Code 63-1007 - Redemption, expiration of rightIdaho Code 63-1007Verified Sep 7, 2026

Deed deposit

No statutory deposit. The commissioners set a minimum bid covering all property taxes owing, interest and costs, and the parcel goes to the highest bidder over it. Payment terms are set by each county's own terms of sale, so confirm them before you bid.Idaho Code 31-808 - Sale of county property, including property acquired through tax deedIdaho Code 31-808Verified Sep 7, 2026

Governing statute

Idaho Code title 63, chapter 10Idaho Code 63-1005 - Pending issue of tax deedIdaho Code 63-1005Verified Sep 7, 2026

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.

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