Steuben County, IN tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Steuben County, seat of Angola: 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 Steuben County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Steuben County Auditor and Steuben County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Annual sale in the fall. The county page states "The 2026 Tax Sale will be held on Wednesday, September 16th, 2026 in the Multi-Purpose Room - Basement of the Community Center Building, 317 S. Wayne St., Angola, and that sale will continue until all tracts and real property have been offered for sale." The published notice adds a start time of "Beginning 10:00 AM Local Time, September 16, 2026." The prior notice set the 2025 sale for October 03, 2025 at 10:00 AM at the same location, so expect a September or October date.
Registration and deposit
Register online with SRI at https://sriservices.com/. The notice states the registration "is good for all counties that SRI services. You need to register only once for all counties," and tells bidders to print the registration form and the W9 from the registration site and bring both on sale morning. Bidders without internet access may register the morning of the sale. The county asks bidders to arrive at least 30 minutes before the start time to receive a bid number and confirm their name and address. Under IC 6-1.1-24-5.1 a business entity must provide a Certificate of Existence or Foreign Registration Statement from the Secretary of State to the Steuben County Treasurer before bidding.
Steuben runs a live, in-person tax sale rather than an online auction, so no online bidding platform is confirmed for the annual sale. The 2026 notice does reserve a fallback: "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 before traveling. The complete parcel list is published in the county notice and, per that notice, may also be obtained at www.sriservices.com. The auditor and treasurer apply for the judgment and order of sale on or after 08/28/2026, and they reserve the right to withhold any parcel listed in error or otherwise ineligible before or during the sale, so the list shrinks up to sale day. Minimum bid covers delinquent taxes and assessments, taxes due and payable in the sale year, penalties, $75 for postage and publication plus other tax sale costs, and unpaid costs from a prior sale. Redemption runs 110% of the minimum bid within six months of the sale and 115% after six months, plus the amount the purchase price exceeded the minimum bid with 5% per year interest on that overage, plus any later taxes and assessments the buyer paid with 5% per year interest. For certificates sold in the 2026 sale the redemption period expires September 16, 2027, and certificates struck to the county may expire January 14, 2027. Call the Auditor's Office for a redemption figure; that office accepts certified funds only (cash, cashier's check, or money order) and redemption checks are payable to the Steuben County Treasurer. Separately, Steuben holds a Commissioners' Certificate Sale of county-held certificates that IS online: the notice for the June 05, 2025 sale lists "Online - www.zeusauction.com," a 10:00 AM local start, minimum bids as low as $100, and a requirement to register on that site for the Steuben County auction specifically. In person at the Community Center, 317 S. Wayne St., Angola, with SRI Incorporated administering the sale
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 Steuben County
- The county publishes its tax sale information under the Auditor, and the Auditor's Office quotes and takes redemption payments. The Treasurer's Office collects the taxes, states that it assists with certificate and tax sales, and is the payee on redemption checks.
- Steuben County Treasurer contact: 317 South Wayne Street, Suite 2K, Angola, IN 46703, phone (260) 668-1000 Ext 1900, fax (260) 668-8724, open Monday through Friday 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM. The Treasurer's resources page links tax sale information to SRI's site.
- Auditor's Office hours are Monday through Friday 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, fax (260) 665-8483. LeAnn Boots is listed as the elected County Treasurer.
- The Auditor's tax sale page keeps an archive of prior notices (2024 and 2025 tax sale ads, plus the 2024 Commissioners' Certificate Sale ads and registration instructions), which is the fastest way to check this county's timing pattern and format year over year.
- The notice states the newspaper publication now appears only once, and that "Subsequent notices can be found at https://www.co.steuben.in.us", so the county website is the authoritative place to track changes after the first ad.
- The sale is conducted under IC 6-1.1-24-1 et seq. Any defense to the application for judgment is filed with the Steuben County Circuit Court and served on the auditor and treasurer before 08/28/2026 for the 2026 sale.
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 Steuben County, Indiana sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Steuben County follows Indiana's tax lien state system.
When is the Steuben County tax certificate sale?
- Annual sale in the fall. The county page states "The 2026 Tax Sale will be held on Wednesday, September 16th, 2026 in the Multi-Purpose Room - Basement of the Community Center Building, 317 S. Wayne St., Angola, and that sale will continue until all tracts and real property have been offered for sale." The published notice adds a start time of "Beginning 10:00 AM Local Time, September 16, 2026." The prior notice set the 2025 sale for October 03, 2025 at 10:00 AM at the same location, so expect a September or October 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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