Woodford County, IL tax sales
How tax lien certificate and tax deed sales work in Woodford County, seat of Eureka: 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 Woodford County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Woodford County Treasurer, who also serves as County Collector
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- The Treasurer's department page states: "The annual tax sale is held in late October each year." No specific date for the current year is posted on the county website. Separately, the Illinois delinquent tax agent lists a Woodford County real estate sealed bid auction dated August 7, 2026, which is a trustee resale and not the annual tax sale.
Registration and deposit
The county publishes no bidder registration details for the annual tax sale. Contact the Treasurer's office at 309-467-4621 or [email protected] for registration requirements and deadlines. For the delinquent tax agent's separate sealed bid auctions, bid forms can be downloaded from iltaxsale.com, picked up at the Treasurer's office, or taken from the county catalog, and bidders can open an account at iltaxsalebids.com. That program requires payment in full in certified funds or personal check when the bid is submitted, and bids received after the deadline are not accepted.
The Woodford County Treasurer also serves as County Collector and runs the annual tax sale, where delinquent taxes are sold to bidders. The county website has no dedicated tax sale page. The only sale detail published is the late October timing on the Treasurer's department page, with no platform, no exact date, no registration terms, and no delinquent list. No online bidding platform is confirmed for this county, so confirm the sale format, exact date, and registration deadline with the Treasurer's office before planning to bid. Redemption is handled by the County Clerk and Recorder in Room 202 at 309-467-2822, which states it receives delinquent tax payments once the property tax has been sold at the tax sale. Caution on a common mix-up: iltaxsale.com is run by Joseph E. Meyer & Associates, the delinquent tax agent for 94 of 102 Illinois counties, and that firm does not conduct the county's annual tax sale. It takes parcels that went unsold at county tax sales, obtains tax deeds on behalf of the taxing districts after the redemption period expires, and resells those properties along with assignable tax certificates by sealed bid. Its Woodford County entry shows a real estate sealed bid auction on August 7, 2026 with a minimum bid of $823. Catalogs are posted roughly 30 days ahead through the courthouse or online, results are mailed 7 to 10 days after the bid deadline, an auctioneer fee of 1 to 1.5 percent of the sale price applies, and the deed follows about 90 days after final payment.
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 Woodford County
- Melissa Andrews is the Woodford County Treasurer. The office fax is 309-467-4728 and the email listed is [email protected].
- Parcel level tax and assessment records can be searched at the county's tax inquiry portal, woodfordil.devnetwedge.com, linked from the Treasurer's page. It is a records lookup, not a sale list.
- Redemption contact: Woodford County Clerk and Recorder, 115 N Main Street, Room 202, Eureka, IL 61530, 309-467-2822, [email protected].
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 Woodford County, Illinois sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Woodford County follows Illinois's tax lien state system.
When is the Woodford County tax certificate sale?
- The Treasurer's department page states: "The annual tax sale is held in late October each year." No specific date for the current year is posted on the county website. Separately, the Illinois delinquent tax agent lists a Woodford County real estate sealed bid auction dated August 7, 2026, which is a trustee resale and not the annual tax sale.. 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 Woodford 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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