Whiteside County, IL tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Whiteside County, seat of Morrison: 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 Whiteside County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Whiteside County Collector (the Whiteside County Treasurer, Penny VanKampen, serving as ex officio County Collector)
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- The annual tax sale is held at the courthouse in the fall. The county's Tax Sale Information page states "The tax sale will be held November 6, 2025 and begin promptly at 9:00 am" in "Room 117 at the Whiteside County Courthouse, Morrison, IL 61270". The county's own registration form lists the same date but an 11:30 am start and a registration deadline of October 23, 2025, so confirm the current-year date and start time with the Collector's office before planning a trip.
Registration and deposit
Register in writing with the Whiteside County Collector's office at least 10 business days before the sale. The county's registration form requires the completed form, a signed W-9, a $500 registration check payable to the Whiteside County Collector (applied to your purchases at the sale), and, if you want the delinquent buyer's list, a separate $100 non-refundable check payable to the Whiteside County Treasurer. Only one name is accepted as the registered bidder, and the person who signs the form must appear in person to bid.
This sale runs in person at the Whiteside County Courthouse, Room 117, not on a public online auction site, so there is no online bidding portal to register on. Bidding is automated through R.A.M.S. 2: RAMS Auctions describes collecting "the bids for each registered buyer by having them bring a USB Drive" with their percentage bids for each parcel, awarding each parcel to the lowest interest-rate bid, and breaking ties by random selection, after which bidders may leave. The county notes buyers are purchasing "real estate taxes and not property" and points bidders to the Illinois Compiled Statutes, Chapter 35, and to their own attorney. Parcels no tax buyer takes at the annual sale go into the county trustee program run by Joseph E. Meyer & Associates, which later obtains tax deeds and resells those properties verbally or by sealed bid; the Treasurer's office has sealed-bid catalogs about 30 days ahead for a $5 fee, and the trustee's site iltaxsale.com carries a separate Whiteside sealed-bid listing dated 08/21/2026 with an $810 minimum bid. Treat that trustee sale as a different event from the annual tax sale described here. The county's own list is not posted online in full; it is published in part in local newspapers and sold by the Collector. R.A.M.S. 2 (Randomized Auction Management System) bidding software from RAMS Auctions, used at the in-person sale; the county page states "We will be conducting the sale using R.A.M.S 2."
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 Whiteside County
- The Collector/Treasurer office is open 8:30 am to 4:30 pm and lists a fax of 815-772-5244.
- Property tax records for the county are searchable at the DevNet Wedge portal linked from the county homepage (whitesideil.devnetwedge.com).
- The county page and the county registration form disagree on the sale start time (9:00 am versus 11:30 am), which is worth verifying by phone each cycle.
- As checked in July 2026, the county's Tax Sale Information page and registration form still described the November 2025 sale cycle, so the next sale date had not been posted yet.
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 Whiteside County, Illinois sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Whiteside County follows Illinois's tax lien state system.
When is the Whiteside County tax certificate sale?
- The annual tax sale is held at the courthouse in the fall. The county's Tax Sale Information page states "The tax sale will be held November 6, 2025 and begin promptly at 9:00 am" in "Room 117 at the Whiteside County Courthouse, Morrison, IL 61270". The county's own registration form lists the same date but an 11:30 am start and a registration deadline of October 23, 2025, so confirm the current-year date and start time with the Collector'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 Whiteside 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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