Monroe County, IN tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Monroe County, seat of Bloomington: 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 Monroe County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Monroe County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- One sale a year in early October. The Auditor's Tax Sale FAQ states: "Monroe County has one tax lien sale a year and it is usually held within the first weeks of October using an online platform for the auction at www.zeusauction.com" and "For 2026, the Tax Sale Date is Wednesday, October 7, 2026". The Treasurer's bidder page adds: "Each year, the tax sale is held in October. The exact schedule is typically finalized sometime in June."
Registration and deposit
Bidding is online through Zeus Auction. The Treasurer's bidder page states: "Registration for the Tax Sale opens in September. Registration will be availble at zeusauction.com." Bidder questions go to the Treasurer's Office. The Auditor's FAQ adds that "Potential bidders must comply with procedures and auction rules set on the County Treasurer's site" and that accepted payment types and the payment schedule are published on the Treasurer's site and in the bidder registration and auction rules.
The Treasurer conducts the annual tax lien sale and the Auditor issues the tax title deed after the court order. The eligible-property list is certified July 1 each year and, per the Auditor's FAQ, "can be sent digitally or viewed from the County Auditor's website when available" and "can also be located in the Treasurer's Office and website, as well as the auction site." The sale is advertised for three consecutive weeks in late August or September in the Herald Times. Monroe County does not sell certificates on parcels that go unsold at the auction, and the county reports no Commissioners' Sale since 2017 with no future one scheduled. Owners can stop a sale by paying with certified funds (cash, cashier's check, or money order) plus a $200 tax sale fee before 4:00pm the business day before the sale; credit cards, debit cards, and personal checks are not accepted for that payoff. Redemption questions and deed issuance go through the Auditor's Office. When the redemption period ends without redemption, the buyer petitions the court for the tax title deed and the Auditor prepares the deed on the court order. As of the July 2026 check, the Auditor's tax sale page showed a "2026 Tax Sale Information Available Soon" banner with a 2026 tax sale listing document link that requires county sign-in, so the public listing is expected closer to the sale. Caution on third-party sites: a stale United Country / Coffey Realty & Auction page still advertises a Monroe County tax sale for October 4, 2018 held in person in the Nat U. Hill III Room of the courthouse. That is a past sale and does not reflect the current online format on Zeus Auction.
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)
Monroe County Courthouse, Room 204, 100 West Kirkwood Ave, Bloomington, IN 47404
Official websiteNotes for Monroe County
- Treasurer's Office is in Room 204 of the Monroe County Courthouse, open Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (source: treasurer-hours-location).
- The Treasurer's main page lists both (812) 349-7333 for office and payment questions and (812) 349-2530 in its courthouse contact block, plus [email protected] (source: treasurer-home).
- The Auditor's FAQ names Cailin Parsch, Assistant Property Director, Monroe County Auditor's Office, at 812-803-6330 or [email protected] as the direct contact for tax sale information (source: auditor-tax-sale-faqs).
- The Treasurer's bidder page cites Indiana Code 6-1.1-24-1 for tax sale rules and Indiana Code 6-1.1-25-1 for redemption and tax deed procedures (source: treasurer-tax-sale-bidders).
- Timing wording differs slightly between county pages: the Treasurer's eligible-property page says "The next Tax Sale will be on around the first week of October 2026" while the Auditor's FAQ gives the specific date of Wednesday, October 7, 2026. Confirm the final schedule with the Treasurer, since the county says the exact schedule is set around June.
- Pre-sale notice cadence for owners: courtesy letters go out around February and certified tax sale notifications in early September (source: treasurer-home).
- Zeus Auction is SRI's bidding platform; its site links to sriservices.com and describes a five-step flow of create account, apply to an auction, get approved to view listings, bid, then view results. The SRI property list page is a JavaScript application that did not render a county list on fetch, so the county Auditor page is the reliable list source (source: zeus-auction).
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 Monroe County, Indiana sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Monroe County follows Indiana's tax lien state system.
When is the Monroe County tax certificate sale?
- One sale a year in early October. The Auditor's Tax Sale FAQ states: "Monroe County has one tax lien sale a year and it is usually held within the first weeks of October using an online platform for the auction at www.zeusauction.com" and "For 2026, the Tax Sale Date is Wednesday, October 7, 2026". The Treasurer's bidder page adds: "Each year, the tax sale is held in October. The exact schedule is typically finalized sometime in June.". 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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