Lake County, IN tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Lake County, seat of Crown Point: 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 Lake County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Lake County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Lake County holds its annual Treasurer tax sale in early September. The county's 2026 notice reads "Sale Date Friday, September 4th, 2026 through Tuesday, September 8th, 2026", with online registration "Wednesday, July 22nd 2026 through Friday, August 14, 2026". The same notice lists publication dates of July 29, August 5 and August 12, 2026 in the Post and the Times and on the Treasurer's website. The county's tax sale information page states sales are scheduled between July 1 and March 1 and must be held no later than 171 days after the delinquent list is certified.
Registration and deposit
Registration is online only at zeusauction.com. The county's 2026 notice states "$100.00 to Register ($100.00 NON-Refundable Paddle Fee)" and sets the registration window at July 22 through August 14, 2026. Bidders create an account on Zeus Auction, apply for the Lake County sale, and bid once approved. Bidder questions go to the Auditor's Tax Sale Department at 219-755-3155 ext 135.
Indiana is a lien state under IC 6-1.1-24 and IC 6-1.1-25, and Lake County sells tax lien certificates rather than deeds at this sale. The county states the minimum acceptable bid is everything owed on the parcel through the current year as of the sale date, the lien is sold to the highest bid, and the winning bid must be paid the same day at the Treasurer's Office. Parcels that do not sell are certified to the Lake County Board of Commissioners and offered later at a separate Commissioners tax sale: the county's 2026 commissioners notice lists a sale of May 4 through May 7, 2026, registration February 4 through February 20 (online or in person, weekdays 9am to 2:30pm), and a $600 registration consisting of a $100 non-refundable paddle fee plus $500 applied toward the minimum bid, payable by cashier's check or money order to the Lake County Treasurer for in-person registration. That commissioners notice points bidders to onyxelectronics.com, which did not load when checked, so confirm the commissioners platform with the office before relying on it. Two stale links also sit on county pages: the Treasurer department page links a properties.sriservices.com listing URL and the Auditor page links legacy.sri-taxsale.com, and neither host resolved when checked. The Treasurer's older tax sale information page still describes the sale as held in the auditorium of the Lake County Government Center, but the current notice for the Treasurer sale is online only through Zeus Auction, so treat the notice as controlling and verify with the office. The Zeus Auction site references SRI Services, the vendor many Indiana counties use to administer tax sales.
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 Lake County
- The Treasurer collects the delinquent taxes and conducts the annual tax sale; the Auditor's Tax Sale Department administers registration and issues tax deeds after redemption expires.
- The Auditor's Tax Sale Department is at Building 'A', 2nd Floor, 2293 North Main Street, Crown Point, IN 46307, reachable at 219-755-3155 ext 135, open weekdays 8:30am to 4:30pm.
- The Treasurer's office also keeps counters in Hammond (232 Russell St) and Gary (400 Broadway), but tax sale business runs through Crown Point.
- Two distinct sales exist: the Treasurer tax sale of tax lien certificates each September, and the Commissioners tax sale of certificates on previously unsold parcels each spring.
- County pages carry links to two SRI-hosted listing hosts that no longer resolve, so use the Auditor Tax Sale Department page and the Zeus Auction site for current listings.
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 Lake County, Indiana sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Lake County follows Indiana's tax lien state system.
When is the Lake County tax certificate sale?
- Lake County holds its annual Treasurer tax sale in early September. The county's 2026 notice reads "Sale Date Friday, September 4th, 2026 through Tuesday, September 8th, 2026", with online registration "Wednesday, July 22nd 2026 through Friday, August 14, 2026". The same notice lists publication dates of July 29, August 5 and August 12, 2026 in the Post and the Times and on the Treasurer's website. The county's tax sale information page states sales are scheduled between July 1 and March 1 and must be held no later than 171 days after the delinquent list is certified.. 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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