Union County, IL tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Union County, seat of Jonesboro: 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 Union County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Union County Treasurer and Ex-Officio County Collector
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Union County runs one annual delinquent tax sale in early February. The Treasurer's page posts a "Tax Sale Date" of "Wednesday, February 4, 2026" at 11:00 am. The county publishes only the current sale date, so confirm the next date with the Treasurer's office.
Registration and deposit
Registration with the Treasurer's Office is required under 35 ILCS 200/21-220. The Tax Sale Information page states that "A letter of registration must be received in the Treasurer's Office at least ten (10) days prior to the day of the tax sale." The county's Tax Sale Buyer Registration Form doubles as a Substitute W-9 and asks for bidder name, SSN or FEIN, bidding company, email, address, phone, and full ownership detail for a corporation, partnership, or other structure; the form states it "must be received, without exception, by the Union County Treasurer's office by the end of the business day ten days before the date of the Tax Sale." A signed blank check payable to "Union County Treasurer" must reach the Treasurer's Office no later than 9:45 am on the day of the sale. The County Collector may refuse admission to anyone not previously registered.
Union County sells tax lien certificates, one certificate per parcel. The county describes the sale this way: "Each year the Union County Treasurer's Office in conjunction with the Union County Clerk's Office conducts a sale of tax lien certificates." Bidding runs on penalty percentage and the winner is the "person or entity with the lowest penalty percentage bid pursuant to 35 ILCS 200/21-215"; the county states "The range of acceptable bids is from a minimum of 0% up to and including a maximum of 18% as per Illinois State Statutes." The sale is held in person, not online. The county's conditions sheet refers to bidders being removed "from the premises at which the sale is occurring" and states "Position at the sale is awarded on a first come, first served basis. No preferred or reserved seating is provided." No online auction platform is confirmed for this county, so verify the sale room and format with the Treasurer's office before you travel. The delinquent list is not published free online: "This list is currently available upon request to the Treasurer's Office. The current fee is $200.00 plus a $15.00 mailing fee (if applicable)." Payment for the list must be made in advance and the fee can change. Per-parcel fees added on top of delinquent taxes, accrued interest, and cost are a $20.00 indemnity fee, $10.00 advertising fee, $4.00 clerk fee, $10.00 Treasurer's automation fee, and $25.00 sale in error interest fund fee. A successful bidder who fails to pay the County Collector faces civil proceedings by the Union County State's Attorney under 35 ILCS 200/21-240, and the Collector may suspend the sale for lack of competitive bidding or collusion. Third-party sites that republish Illinois delinquent tax notices are not the auction venue here; only the Union County Treasurer as Ex-Officio Collector conducts this sale. In-person live auction run by the County Collector, no online auction platform
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
Notes for Union County
- The Treasurer's office is at 309 West Market Street, Room 123, Jonesboro, Illinois 62952, open Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Phone (618) 833-5621, fax (618) 833-5496, email [email protected].
- The county's 2021 conditions sheet prints the office as Room 104 while the current Treasurer page and buyer registration form both print Room 123. Confirm the room with the office before mailing a registration letter or blank check.
- The County Clerk and Recorder (Stephanie Cox) is at 309 West Market Street, Room 116, Jonesboro, Illinois 62952, phone (618) 833-5711. The Treasurer's page describes the sale as run by the Treasurer's Office together with the County Clerk's Office.
- Property tax records are searchable through the county's Devnet Wedge portal linked from the Treasurer and Taxes pages at unionil.devnetwedge.com. It is a tax inquiry and payment portal, not a sale platform or bidding site.
- The county's Taxes page hosts archived Real Estate Judgement Books (2010 through 2020) and Mobile Home Judgement Books (2012 through 2021). These are historical judgment records rather than the current sale list, which the Treasurer sells on request.
- Posted 2026 property tax installment due dates are August 6, 2026 for the first real estate installment and October 6, 2026 for the second installment and for mobile home tax, which sets up the delinquencies feeding the next annual sale.
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 Union County, Illinois sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Union County follows Illinois's tax lien state system.
When is the Union County tax certificate sale?
- Union County runs one annual delinquent tax sale in early February. The Treasurer's page posts a "Tax Sale Date" of "Wednesday, February 4, 2026" at 11:00 am. The county publishes only the current sale date, so confirm the next date with the Treasurer's office.. 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 Union 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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