Benton County, IN tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Benton County, seat of Fowler: 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 Benton County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Benton County Treasurer, with the Benton County Auditor advertising the sale and issuing tax deeds. SRI Incorporated administers the sale for the county.
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Early October, held in the afternoon at the courthouse. The county's posted notice reads "NOTICE OF REAL PROPERTY TAX SALE, Benton County Indiana, Beginning 01:00 PM Local Time, October 07, 2025, Courthouse Commissioners' Room" and states "Such sale will be held on 10/07/2025 at the Courthouse Commissioners' Room and that sale will continue until all tracts and real property have been offered for sale." Parcels that draw no bid roll into a Commissioners' Certificate Sale the following winter, noticed as "Beginning 10:00 AM Local Time, February 26, 2025, Courthouse Commissioners' Room."
Registration and deposit
Bidders register with SRI online at https://sriservices.com/. The notice states this registration "is good for all counties that SRI services. You need to register only once for all counties. Make sure to bring the completed form with you to each sale." It adds: "If you do not have access to a computer with internet service you may register the morning of the sale" and "Please arrive the morning of the tax sale at least 30 minutes before the beginning time to be assured you will receive your bid number before the start of the sale. Please bring your registration form and W9 form with you the morning of the tax sale." Under IC 6-1.1-24-5.1 a business entity must provide the Benton County Treasurer a Certificate of Existence or Foreign Registration Statement from the Indiana Secretary of State. Each bidder must also affirm under penalty of perjury that they owe no delinquent taxes, special assessments, penalties, interest, or costs attributable to a prior tax sale.
Benton County runs the sale live at the courthouse rather than on a bidding website, so no online platform is confirmed for a normal year. The county's own notice keeps an online option open: "At the discretion of local officials, the tax sale may switch to an online format. If those measures are taking place, the public auction will be conducted as an electronic sale under IC 6-1.1-24-2 (b) 10 at www.zeusauction.com commencing on the same date/time listed above. All location updates will be posted at www.sriservices.com prior to the tax sale." Confirm the format with the Treasurer before the sale date. The notice also says "A complete property list may be obtained at www.sriservices.com or in an alternative form upon request." The most recent posted notice is dated 08/13/2025 and listed 38 parcels; Benton publishes the notice roughly seven weeks before the sale, so the next year's date may not be posted yet. Minimum bid covers delinquent taxes and special assessments, current-year taxes, all penalties, a $25 postage and publication charge, and other county costs attributable to the sale. Redemption on a sold certificate is 110% of the minimum bid if redeemed within six months and 115% if redeemed after six months, plus 5% per annum on the amount the purchase price exceeded the minimum bid and on later taxes paid by the purchaser. The redemption period on the October 07, 2025 sale expires October 07, 2026; for certificates struck to the county it may expire February 04, 2026. Live in-person auction in the Benton County Courthouse Commissioners' Room, administered for the county by SRI Incorporated
From 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 Benton County
- Two distinct sales run under IC 6-1.1-24. The annual tax sale offers certificates on delinquent parcels in early October. Parcels that receive no bid are later offered at a Commissioners' Certificate Sale at reduced minimums; the February 26, 2025 commissioners' sale opened seven parcels at $50.00 each.
- The Auditor's office is the publishing office. Its stated duties include that it "Advertises all public meetings, budgets, bids, tax sales and other information the County must release to the public." Reach the Auditor at 765-884-0760, 706 E 5th Street, Suite 21, Fowler, IN 47944.
- The county notice directs readers to https://www.bentoncounty.in.gov for follow-up notices, since Indiana law now requires only a single newspaper publication. Check the Auditor page for the current year's document.
- Redemption on a Commissioners' Certificate Sale purchase differs from the regular sale: the redeemer pays the last minimum bid, plus 10% of the amount the certificate sold for, plus notice and title-search costs, plus 10% per annum on taxes the purchaser paid after the sale.
- Treasurer office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., closed on major holidays. The office is on the 2nd floor of the Benton County Courthouse in Fowler.
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 Benton County, Indiana sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Benton County follows Indiana's tax lien state system.
When is the Benton County tax certificate sale?
- Early October, held in the afternoon at the courthouse. The county's posted notice reads "NOTICE OF REAL PROPERTY TAX SALE, Benton County Indiana, Beginning 01:00 PM Local Time, October 07, 2025, Courthouse Commissioners' Room" and states "Such sale will be held on 10/07/2025 at the Courthouse Commissioners' Room and that sale will continue until all tracts and real property have been offered for sale." Parcels that draw no bid roll into a Commissioners' Certificate Sale the following winter, noticed as "Beginning 10:00 AM Local Time, February 26, 2025, Courthouse Commissioners' Room.". 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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