Fayette County, IL tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Fayette County, seat of Vandalia: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
Verified Jul 30, 2026 against official county and state sources.
New here? Read how Illinois tax sales work, the difference between a lien and a deed, and redemption periods.
How Fayette County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Fayette County Treasurer, serving as ex officio Fayette County Collector
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- The Treasurer page posts the annual tax sale calendar for the most recent cycle as "Tax Sale - December 3, 2025 at 9:30 am", preceded by "Judgement Date - November 19, 2025 at 10 am". The same page lists "Delinquent list sent to newspapers October 8, 2025" and "Publication Date - October 15, 2025", with a $10 publication charge after the list goes to the newspapers. That page was last updated in August 2025, so those are the posted 2025 dates. Illinois sale dates shift each year because they follow the second installment due date and the circuit court judgment, so confirm the current year's date with the Treasurer's office at 618-283-5022.
Registration and deposit
The county page publishes the sale date and time only. It does not post a bidder registration packet, a deposit amount, a registration deadline, or bidding rules. Illinois county collectors require bidders to register before the annual tax sale, so request the current registration form and cutoff directly from the Fayette County Treasurer at 618-283-5022 or 221 S 7th St, Room 105, Vandalia, IL 62471.
No online auction platform is confirmed for Fayette County's annual tax sale. The Treasurer page gives a fixed date and a 9:30 am start time but names no vendor, no bidding website, and no room location, which is consistent with a sale conducted at the courthouse. Verify the format with the Treasurer before planning a trip or expecting to bid remotely. The delinquent list is published in local newspapers rather than posted as a file on the county site. A separate program covers parcels the county already holds: Joseph E. Meyer and Associates runs Fayette County's trustee auctions through ILTaxSale.com, listing a sealed bid "Real Estate / Mobile Home" sale dated 10/02/2026 with a $834.00 minimum bid, held at the Treasurer's office at 221 S. 7th Street, Room 105, with the catalog released roughly 30 days before the auction and bids submitted through iltaxsalebids.com. That trustee sale is not the annual tax sale, and the same page offers a list of assignable tax lien certificates for $25. The County Clerk and Recorder issues certificates of delinquent property taxes and is the office to contact on redemption.
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Sheriff or a court-appointed private selling officer, under an order of the circuit court. A county acting as trustee runs its own tax deed auctions.
- Frequency
- as ordered by the circuit court
- Typical timing
- Within 120 days after the court order authorizing the auction. Public Act 104-0553 created this route for tax certificates issued on or after July 10, 2026, so the earliest Illinois judicial tax deed auctions fall in 2027, after the 1 year short redemption track runs.
Registration and deposit
Terms of a judicial tax deed auction, including whether it runs online, in person, or both, and what deposit is required, are set in the court's order and published in the notice of tax deed auction. That notice runs once a week for 3 consecutive weeks, starting no more than 45 days and ending no less than 7 days before the auction. Read the notice for each parcel; there is no statewide platform or standing bidder registration.
Bidding opens at the tax deed judgment amount plus 0.75 percent per month since judgment, plus publication and selling officer costs. The petitioning certificate holder is entered as a credit bidder at that minimum. Surplus above the minimum goes to the county treasurer for the former owner to claim.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
Certificates nobody bids on at the annual sale are forfeited to the county as trustee for the taxing districts. The county may then assign a forfeited certificate to any party or sell property it has acquired, which many counties handle through a delinquent tax agent rather than a public counter. Counties may also offer county-held certificates at a scavenger sale with a minimum bid of $250, or half the tax when total liability is under $500. Ask the county collector and the county clerk which program the county runs and who may buy.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work.
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Fayette County Treasurer and ex officio County Collector
Fayette County Treasurer's Office, 221 S 7th St, Room 105, Vandalia, IL 62471
Official websiteNotes for Fayette County
- Michelle D. Hagy is the Fayette County Treasurer and ex officio County Collector, listed with a 2022 to 2026 term. The office asks that tax questions come by phone at 618-283-5022 rather than email.
- The county collects real estate and mobile home taxes in two installments. The posted 2025 cycle shows the first installment delinquent after August 29, 2025 and the second after September 29, 2025, with the tax sale following on December 3, 2025.
- Redemption and certificate paperwork sit with the County Clerk and Recorder, Kara Dugan, at 221 S 7th St, Room 106, Vandalia, IL 62471, phone 618-283-5000, open Monday through Friday 8 am to 4 pm. That office lists certificates of delinquent property taxes among its duties.
- Property records for pre-bid research are available through the county parcel portal at https://il1193.cichosting.com/atasportal/parcelSearch.aspx, linked from the county site.
- The Treasurer page was last modified in August 2025, so treat every date on it as the prior cycle until the office refreshes it. Call before relying on any date.
Illinois statewide rules
- Redemption
- Property sold at an Illinois tax sale may be redeemed at any time before the redemption period expires. Public Act 104-0553 set the standard period at 3 years from the date of sale for tax certificates issued on or after July 10, 2026. Certificates issued between January 1, 2024 and July 9, 2026 run on the earlier 2.5 year (30 month) track, and on that track the certificate holder could file a written notice with the county clerk extending redemption to a date no later than 3 years from the sale. A short 1 year period applies when the parcel was, on the date of sale, vacant non-farm property, commercial or industrial property, or improved with a structure holding 7 or more residential units. Certificates the county holds or assigns as trustee run on their own schedule under Section 21-385, and an assignee must file notice within 60 days of assignment setting a redemption deadline no later than 3 years from the assignment.
- Deed deposit
- Illinois does not fix a statutory deposit percentage. Deposit and payment terms are set in the court's order authorizing the auction and by the selling officer, so read the notice of tax deed auction for each sale. A purchaser who fails to complete the sale forfeits any deposit already made to the county surplus equity fund, and the court orders a new auction of the property.
- Surplus proceeds
- Any amount by which the winning bid exceeds the minimum bid is surplus. Within 30 days after the court confirms the sale the selling officer deposits the surplus with the county treasurer, who notifies everyone who received the Section 22-10 take notice that the owner at the time of the sale may file a claim for it. A county running its own tax deed auction deposits surplus with the treasurer within 30 days of the sale and notifies interested parties within 60 days. Separately, a previous owner who lost equity through a tax deed can claim an award from the county surplus equity fund, capped at the value of the property when the deed issued less mortgages, liens, and the taxes the purchaser paid.
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 Fayette County, Illinois sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Fayette County follows Illinois's tax lien state system.
When is the Fayette County tax certificate sale?
- The Treasurer page posts the annual tax sale calendar for the most recent cycle as "Tax Sale - December 3, 2025 at 9:30 am", preceded by "Judgement Date - November 19, 2025 at 10 am". The same page lists "Delinquent list sent to newspapers October 8, 2025" and "Publication Date - October 15, 2025", with a $10 publication charge after the list goes to the newspapers. That page was last updated in August 2025, so those are the posted 2025 dates. Illinois sale dates shift each year because they follow the second installment due date and the circuit court judgment, so confirm the current year's date with the Treasurer's office at 618-283-5022.. Registration and bidding happen on the county's online platform. Always confirm the exact date with the Tax Collector before the sale.
How often does Fayette County hold tax deed sales?
- as ordered by the circuit court. Each sale is scheduled and advertised in advance, so check the county's tax deed calendar for the next posted date.
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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