Orange County, IN tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Orange County, seat of Paoli: 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 Orange County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Orange County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- SRI's Orange County sale detail lists "Tax Sale" on "Tuesday, September 15, 2026" with "Sale Hours 10:00 AM" and method "In-person". SRI's Indiana guidance says "Indiana tax sales are typically held in late August - October" and that "Sales dates are normally finalized and posted by the end of June on our corporate website."
Registration and deposit
The sale is live, so there is no online bidding. Per SRI, bidders pre-register through an SRI account at sriservices.com: search for the Orange County, Indiana tax sale listing, open a parcel, then click Register for Auction and follow the prompts. SRI also takes registration at the sale location on the morning of the sale and says it "typically arrives onsite about an hour to hour and a half prior to the auction start time." The Orange County sale detail page publishes no registration period, so confirm any cutoff with the Treasurer.
Orange County holds a live, in-person tax sale rather than an online auction. SRI's sale detail for September 15, 2026 gives the method as "In-person", the time as 10:00 AM, and the sale location only as "Office Building", so confirm the exact room with the Treasurer at 812-723-7101 before travelling. No online bidding platform is confirmed for this county; verify with the office. The SRI property list for the September 15, 2026 sale runs to ten pages of delinquent parcels across Paoli, Orleans, French Lick, West Baden and surrounding areas, and offers a Download List option. SRI's Orange County page currently shows no scheduled Commissioners' certificate sale, and SRI states Indiana does not allow over-the-counter certificate purchases. In person, live auction administered 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 Orange County
- Orange County's annual tax sale is a live, in-person auction. SRI Incorporated administers it for the county, and SRI's Orange County sale detail shows the method as In-person with no online platform.
- SRI lists the next Orange County tax sale as Tuesday, September 15, 2026 at 10:00 AM, with the location given only as "Office Building".
- The county's own sites carry no tax sale page. orangecounty.in.gov (which resolves to gov.orangecounty59.us) links only to Property Tax Information, Pay Property Taxes, County Departments and Property Statistics, and neither the Treasurer nor the Auditor site has a tax sale section.
- The Treasurer does publish a searchable "Tax List" page with All Warnings, Tax Sale Flag, Demand Flag and Sheriff Sale filters, last updated 07/29/2026 and showing 279 flagged records. It is a delinquency lookup, not the certified sale list.
- SRI's Orange County page lists Auditor Sandy Hill at 812-723-7100 and Treasurer Shelley Hammack at 812-723-7102. The Treasurer's own site header lists 812-723-7101 as the office line, so either number may reach the office.
- Office hours per the county portal are Monday to Friday, 8:00 to 4:00.
- The county Treasurer and Auditor websites are served over plain HTTP only and reject non-browser fetchers, so automated re-verification of those pages needs a real browser.
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 Orange County, Indiana sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Orange County follows Indiana's tax lien state system.
When is the Orange County tax certificate sale?
- SRI's Orange County sale detail lists "Tax Sale" on "Tuesday, September 15, 2026" with "Sale Hours 10:00 AM" and method "In-person". SRI's Indiana guidance says "Indiana tax sales are typically held in late August - October" and that "Sales dates are normally finalized and posted by the end of June on our corporate website.". 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.
Explore all 92 Indiana counties
Compare sale calendars, platforms, and rules across the state, or read the guides before you bid.