Jackson County, IN tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Jackson County, seat of Brownstown: 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 Jackson County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Jackson County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- The county does not publish a fixed annual sale date. The Auditor states that "Jackson County does not hold a yearly tax sale" and that a property becomes eligible only after taxes go unpaid for three installments (a year and a half). When a sale is scheduled, the Treasurer's page says that "In mid-July (usually), the SRI sends a certified letter to each property owner listed for the tax sale," and delinquent names are then published in local newspapers if the balance is not paid by a specified date.
- Sale list
- Treasurer real estate tax sale page
Registration and deposit
The county pages do not publish a bidder registration process or an online bidding portal. The Treasurer states that "The high bid wins and must be paid in the treasurer's office on the day of the sale with cash or certified funds," which points to payment handled at the county office rather than through an online checkout. Confirm current registration steps and sale format with the Auditor's office at (812) 358-6181 or the Treasurer at (812) 358-6125 before bidding.
SRI Incorporated of Indianapolis is named on the Treasurer's page as "the vendor for tax sales for delinquent real estate tax in Jackson County." No online auction platform is confirmed for this county on any official page, so verify the sale format with the office. Parcels with a balance due from the spring of the prior year or earlier are tentatively scheduled for sale. The minimum bid is the total amount owed on the parcel through the current year, and the winning bid is paid at the Treasurer's office on the day of the sale in cash or certified funds. The Treasurer then issues a tax sale certificate, the prior owner has one year to redeem, and after that year the Auditor's office issues the deed to the certificate holder. Taxpayers may pay the amount due up to the time of the sale, so the roster shrinks right up to sale day. The county does not post a parcel list on its own site; watch for the newspaper publication and contact the Auditor for parcels scheduled for sale or sold at previous sales. Caution: the SRI link printed on the Auditor's tax sale page (sri-taxsale.com) no longer resolves, and SRI's current site is sriservices.com.
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 Jackson County
- The Treasurer's office collects the delinquent taxes and receives the winning bid, and the Auditor's office issues the tax deed once the one year redemption period passes.
- The Auditor's tax sale contact line is (812) 358-6181, which differs from the main Auditor number of (812) 358-6161 listed on the department page.
- Auditor's office address: 111 S Main Street, Brownstown, IN 47220. Email: [email protected].
- Because Jackson County does not run a sale every year, investors should confirm whether a sale is scheduled before planning around a July timeline.
- SRI's property listing pages load as a JavaScript application, so a Jackson County parcel list could not be confirmed at the source. Call the county to obtain the current list.
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 Jackson County, Indiana sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Jackson County follows Indiana's tax lien state system.
When is the Jackson County tax certificate sale?
- The county does not publish a fixed annual sale date. The Auditor states that "Jackson County does not hold a yearly tax sale" and that a property becomes eligible only after taxes go unpaid for three installments (a year and a half). When a sale is scheduled, the Treasurer's page says that "In mid-July (usually), the SRI sends a certified letter to each property owner listed for the tax sale," and delinquent names are then published in local newspapers if the balance is not paid by a specified date.. 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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