Bartholomew County, IN tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Bartholomew County, seat of Columbus: 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 Indiana tax sales work, the difference between a lien and a deed, and redemption periods.
How Bartholomew County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Bartholomew County Treasurer and Bartholomew County Auditor, with the sale administered by SRI Incorporated
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- The annual tax sale runs in the fall. The notice posted by the county opens "Beginning 10:00 AM Local Time, October 18, 2023" and states the properties "will commence closing in batches at 1:00 PM local time." That posted notice is from the 2023 sale, so treat the October window as the pattern rather than a current date. SRI, which administers Indiana sales, states "Indiana tax sales are typically held in late August through October" and that sale dates are "normally finalized and posted by the end of June" on its corporate site. Confirm the current year's date with the Treasurer before you register.
Registration and deposit
Bidding is online. The county notice states the sale "will be conducted as an electronic sale under IC 6-1.1-24-2(b)10, at the following web site: www.zeusauction.com," and that "in order to bid in the online public auction, you must both complete IRS Form W-9 and agree to the registration statement described at IC 6-1.1-24-5.3(c) electronically, through the auction web site." Registration opens and closes on fixed dates before the sale; in the posted notice the window ran from 8:00 AM on September 18 to 5:00 PM on October 13, and the notice warns "If you do not complete the full registration process for the sale you will not be approved to bid on the auction." Under IC 6-1.1-24-5.1 a business entity must also provide a Certificate of Existence or Foreign Registration Statement from the Secretary of State to the Bartholomew County Treasurer. SRI instructs online bidders to create an account at zeusauction.com, locate the sale, and select "Click to Register" before the registration deadline.
Bartholomew County sells tax lien certificates at an annual online auction on the Zeus Auction platform rather than at a live courthouse sale. The Treasurer's office page directs bidders to SRI Incorporated for sale information, listing SRISERVICES.COM and 1-800-800-9588, and a Treasurer staff member is assigned to bankruptcy and tax sale matters. The county notice states properties are sold "at public auction to the highest bidder, subject to the right of redemption," that each property has its own posted closing time on the auction site, and that the Auditor and Treasurer "reserve the right to withhold from the sale any parcel which has been listed in error, or which otherwise becomes ineligible for sale." Owners can pull a parcel before the sale: the notice requires payment in cash or certified funds payable to the Bartholomew County Treasurer, received by 4:00 PM local time on the business day before the sale, at 440 3rd Street, Columbus, IN 47201. Bidders should expect the certified parcel list to be published roughly a month before the auction. Two verification cautions: the tax sale notice the county currently posts is from the 2023 sale, and the SRI link on the Treasurer's page points to a host that no longer resolves, so confirm the current sale date, registration window, and parcel list directly with the Treasurer or on the SRI and Zeus sites. Third-party sites that republish Indiana tax sale lists are not the auction of record for this county.
Register on SRI / ZEUSFrom lien to deed
Indiana holds no general public tax deed auction. Once the redemption period runs out, the certificate holder files a verified petition in the same court that entered the judgment of sale, and the court directs the county auditor to issue the deed. That petition must be filed no later than three months after the redemption period expires, or the purchaser's lien terminates. One narrow exception exists: real property a county, city, or town executive has certified as vacant or abandoned is auctioned separately, and there the county auditor deeds fee simple title straight to the highest bidder with no right of redemption.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
Parcels that draw no bid at the treasurer's tax sale pass to the county executive, which acquires a lien for the minimum sale price and receives a tax sale certificate. The county executive may then adopt a resolution and offer those certificates at a separate advertised public sale, often called the commissioners' certificate sale, priced below the minimum bid that failed at the tax sale. Notice runs once a week for three consecutive weeks with the final advertisement at least 30 days before the sale. This is a scheduled sale rather than a walk-in list, and redemption on a certificate bought this way is 120 days. Check the county auditor page for the next commissioners' certificate sale date.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work.
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Notes for Bartholomew County
- County seat is Columbus. The Treasurer's office sits on the first floor of the Governmental Office Building at 440 Third Street, open Monday through Friday, 8:00am to 5:00pm.
- The Treasurer's office is listed at (812) 379-1530 and the Auditor's office at (812) 379-1510 on the county phone directory.
- The Auditor issues the tax deed after redemption expires. The Auditor page carries no separate tax sale content, so the Treasurer's page and the published sale notice are the county-side sources.
- The notice the county has posted is the 2023 sale advertisement, and its stated redemption deadline has long passed. Use it for the sale mechanics and platform, not for dates.
- The SRI link on the Treasurer's page points to properties.sriservices.com, a host that no longer resolves. SRI's live corporate site at sriservices.com is where the current listings and sale calendar are published.
- Zeus Auction is the bidding platform for the online sale. SRI's corporate site carries the parcel lists and sale calendar, so bidders normally need an account on Zeus to place bids.
Indiana statewide rules
- Redemption
- The standard period is one year after the date of the treasurer's tax sale. Several tracks run 120 days instead: a certificate bought at the county executive's certificate sale, a lien the county executive holds that was never sold on, a sale to a purchasing agency qualified under IC 36-7-17 or IC 36-7-17.1, a certificate the county executive assigns to another political subdivision, and a parcel that was not offered at the tax sale at all. Property on the county auditor's vacant and abandoned list carries no right of redemption after its sale. A county treasurer may also extend redemption by agreement with the owner, in which case the extended period ends one year after the date of that agreement.
- Surplus proceeds
- The treasurer applies the payment first to the taxes, assessments, penalties, and costs in the minimum bid, then to other delinquent property taxes, then deposits the remainder in a tax sale surplus fund. The owner of record at the time the parcel was certified for sale, or the purchaser on a redemption, may file a verified claim against that fund. Unclaimed surplus transfers to the county general fund three years after it was received.
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 Bartholomew County, Indiana sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Bartholomew County follows Indiana's tax lien state system.
When is the Bartholomew County tax certificate sale?
- The annual tax sale runs in the fall. The notice posted by the county opens "Beginning 10:00 AM Local Time, October 18, 2023" and states the properties "will commence closing in batches at 1:00 PM local time." That posted notice is from the 2023 sale, so treat the October window as the pattern rather than a current date. SRI, which administers Indiana sales, states "Indiana tax sales are typically held in late August through October" and that sale dates are "normally finalized and posted by the end of June" on its corporate site. Confirm the current year's date with the Treasurer before you register.. Registration and bidding happen on the county's online platform. Always confirm the exact date with the Tax Collector before the sale.
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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