Kane County, IL tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Kane County, seat of Geneva: 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 Kane County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Kane County Treasurer, serving as ex officio Kane County Collector
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Late October, on a Monday. The Treasurer's posted notice reads: "Kane County will hold its annual Real Estate and Mobile Home Tax Sale on Monday, October 27, 2025. The tax sale will begin at 9 A.M. CST." The Treasurer's FAQ adds that an owner has "until the last Friday in October to pay your taxes in person," and anything unpaid at the close of that day goes to the annual sale. As of late July 2026 the Treasurer's site still carries the 2025 notice, so confirm the current year's date with the office before planning around it.
Registration and deposit
Register in advance with the Treasurer's Office. For the 2025 sale the packet states registration "will begin on September 10, 2025 and must be received by the Treasurer's Office at the close of business on October 09, 2025," and that "All registrations received after this time will be returned (no exceptions)." Registration entitles a buyer to one buyer number and is subject to the Single Bidder Rule (35 ILCS 200/21-205). A $500 registration deposit applies per buyer and is credited toward purchases, plus a separate $100 fee for the Tax Sale List. First-time Kane County buyers must pay both the registration deposit and the list fee with certified funds. Registration forms and checks are mailed to Kane County Treasurer, 719 S. Batavia Ave., Bldg. A, Geneva, IL 60134. Call 630-232-3565 for forms.
This is an in-person sale, not an online auction. The packet states the sale is "held at the Kane County Government Center, 719 S. Batavia Ave., Building A, Second Floor, Room 201, County Board Room, in Geneva, IL 60134," and that "You must be physically present to participate in the tax sale," citing 35 ILCS 200/21-205 ("All bidders are required to personally attend the sale"). Check-in for the purchase deposit and USB drop-off runs 8:30 A.M. to 9:00 A.M. on sale day and "ends promptly at 9:00am. NO EXCEPTIONS." Bidding uses R.A.M.S. 2: each registered buyer brings one USB drive holding a single bid file with a percentage bid per parcel, the county loads all files, and "Each parcel will be awarded to the lowest bid for a particular parcel. If there are multiple lowest bids, a random lowest bid is selected." Buyers receive an email confirmation with their original and processed bid files. The parcel list is not published free online: the county "advertise[s] delinquent taxes in local newspapers approximately three (3) weeks prior to the tax sale," and the Tax Sale List is sold by the Treasurer for $100. Deposits are not refunded unless requested in person at the Treasurer's Office before the sale begins. Subsequent tax payments were accepted September 10 to October 10, 2025 by appointment booked at least three days ahead. Rates are competitive here: the Treasurer's redemption handout states that "For the 2024 payable 2025 tax year, the delinquent tax was sold at an interest rate between 0 - 9%." Redemption is handled by a different office, the Kane County Clerk at 719 S. Batavia Ave., Bldg. B, Geneva, IL 60134, 630-232-5964, which issues Estimates of Redemption. Caution on third-party sites: the Treasurer's home page links to ILTaxSale.com, run by Joseph E. Meyer & Associates, which sells trustee-held certificates and tax deed foreclosed parcels by sealed bid. That is a separate secondary channel and is not where the county's annual tax sale is conducted. In person at the Kane County Government Center, with sealed percentage bids submitted on a USB drive and processed through R.A.M.S. 2 (Randomized Auction Management System)
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)
Notes for Kane County
- The Treasurer's office describes itself as the County Collector: "The County Collector is charged by the County Clerk to collect all of the taxes levied by approximately 270 local taxing bodies within Kane County."
- Kane County exceeds 275,000 inhabitants, so the Single Bidder Rule applies. A registered tax buying entity may have only one registered buyer, may not register a related bidding entity, and may not run a multiple-bidding strategy. Violations can void a purchase and bar future participation, at the Treasurer's sole discretion.
- Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Fax is 630-208-7549.
- The sale covers both real estate and mobile home delinquencies.
- Redemption is paid at the Kane County Clerk's office in certified funds or cash, with no partial payments accepted. The Clerk's page notes that deed proceedings can begin six months before the redemption expiration date and that costs incurred in the deed process are added to the redemption amount.
- A tax buyer must serve a take notice on the property owner within four and a half months of purchase unless a petition for tax deed has been filed.
- Subsequent taxes may be added to the certificate after the second installment goes past due or during the last six months of the redemption period. The Clerk's page notes the prior-year buyer can purchase the subsequent year at 12% interest.
- Treasurer staff will not give legal or bidding advice. The packet directs buyers to an attorney experienced in tax sale procedure.
- The 55 ILCS 55/1 County Officer Property Sale Act bar applies: county officers, their employees, and their relatives or representatives may not acquire an interest in a tax forfeiture or foreclosure in the county where the officer serves.
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 Kane County, Illinois sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Kane County follows Illinois's tax lien state system.
When is the Kane County tax certificate sale?
- Late October, on a Monday. The Treasurer's posted notice reads: "Kane County will hold its annual Real Estate and Mobile Home Tax Sale on Monday, October 27, 2025. The tax sale will begin at 9 A.M. CST." The Treasurer's FAQ adds that an owner has "until the last Friday in October to pay your taxes in person," and anything unpaid at the close of that day goes to the annual sale. As of late July 2026 the Treasurer's site still carries the 2025 notice, so confirm the current year's date with the office before planning around it.. 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 Kane 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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