Franklin County, IL tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Franklin County, seat of Benton: 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 Franklin County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Franklin County Treasurer's Office (the County Treasurer acting as the county collector). The County Clerk's page states that the County Treasurer conducts the annual tax sale and that the County Clerk handles redemption.
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- December. The Tax Sale Procedures posted by the Treasurer set that year's sale for "Friday, December 19, 2014" at "10:30 am" at the "Franklin County Courthouse," and that packet is still the version posted on the Treasurer's page. Recent sale results reports carry December dates as well, December 22, 2025 for the 2024 payable 2025 sale and December 30, 2024 for the 2023 payable 2024 sale. Confirm the current year's exact date with the Treasurer's Office before planning a trip.
Registration and deposit
Register in advance with the Treasurer's Office using the Tax Sale Registration Packet posted on the Treasurer's page. The posted procedures require registration "on or before" the Friday one week ahead of the sale, state that "No registrations will be accepted after this date," and require that "The registration must be accompanied by a $250 registration deposit." The deposit is applied to purchases; it is forfeited if a registrant does not attend, and refunded if the registrant attends and bids but buys nothing. A separate registration form and deposit is required for each individual bidder. A registrant who cannot attend may name a substitute in writing to the tax collector by the Wednesday before the sale, with no additional deposit. Completed forms and deposits go to the Franklin County Treasurer, PO Box 967, Benton, IL 62812. Winning bidders must pay the taxes, penalties, and costs on the day of the sale. Because the posted packet was prepared for an earlier sale year, confirm the current deadline and deposit amount by phone.
Franklin County runs a live, in person annual tax sale, not an online auction. The Treasurer's posted Tax Sale Procedures describe an interest bid down: "bidders at this auction are bidding on the interest rate that he or she will charge the taxpayer to redeem the property. Bidding starts at 18% and can be bid down to 0%. Bidding is done via computerized terminals, and sale is awarded to the bidder who bids the lowest percentage first." The county's own FAQ repeats the 18% initial maximum and adds that a buyer who pays later years' taxes charges "an initial interest rate of 12%." The sale conveys a lien, not the property: "After the sale, the winning bidder has a lien against the property. The property is still owned by the taxpayer." Redemption runs through the County Clerk, not the Treasurer. The Clerk's page states owner occupants have "two and a half years during which to redeem their property," and that redemption "must be in full and can only be paid in cash, money order or bank cashier's check." The list of parcels for the annual sale is published in local newspapers roughly two weeks before the sale, and the collector sells a copy of the list, priced at $100 in the posted packet; the county does not post that list on its website. Separately, Joseph E. Meyer and Associates serves as the county's delinquent tax agent and runs sealed bid sales of trustee held real estate and mobile homes at ILTaxSale.com, and also sells a list of assignable tax lien certificates. That is a different sale from the Treasurer's annual tax sale; the agent's page lists an upcoming sealed bid auction on 10/30/2026 with catalogs posted about 30 days ahead. Treat the dates and dollar figures in the posted registration packet as the county's published procedure rather than a current calendar, since the packet was prepared for an earlier sale year, and verify with the office. In person at the county courthouse in Benton. No online auction platform is named by the county.
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)
Franklin County Treasurer's Office
Franklin County Government Annex Building, 901 Public Square, Benton, IL 62812. Mailing address: PO Box 967, Benton, IL 62812.
Official websiteNotes for Franklin County
- County seat is Benton. The Treasurer's Office is in the Franklin County Government Annex Building at 901 Public Square, open Monday through Friday, 8:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. Fax is (618) 438-3510. The current Treasurer is Steve Vercellino.
- Redemption is handled by the Franklin County Clerk and Recorder, Paris Dunk, at the Government Annex, 901 Public Square, Benton, IL 62812, mailing P.O. Box 607, Benton, IL 62812, phone (618) 435-9800 or (618) 438-3221.
- The Treasurer posts Tax Sale Results by Buyer reports for recent years, which show the winning bid column as a whole percentage interest rate, consistent with the bid down interest format.
- Parcel level tax data is searchable at the county's property tax inquiry portal linked from the county site.
- The registration packet posted on the Treasurer's page is a scanned document prepared for an earlier sale year, so its specific dates should be treated as illustrative of the county's process rather than as the current calendar.
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 Franklin County, Illinois sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Franklin County follows Illinois's tax lien state system.
When is the Franklin County tax certificate sale?
- December. The Tax Sale Procedures posted by the Treasurer set that year's sale for "Friday, December 19, 2014" at "10:30 am" at the "Franklin County Courthouse," and that packet is still the version posted on the Treasurer's page. Recent sale results reports carry December dates as well, December 22, 2025 for the 2024 payable 2025 sale and December 30, 2024 for the 2023 payable 2024 sale. Confirm the current year's exact date with the Treasurer's Office before planning a trip.. 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 Franklin 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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