Fremont County, IA tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Fremont County, seat of Sidney: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
Verified Jul 29, 2026 against official county and state sources.
New here? Read how Iowa tax sales work, the difference between a lien and a deed, and redemption periods.
How Fremont County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Fremont County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Third Monday in June. The Treasurer's tax calendar lists a "Third Monday in June annual tax sale of outstanding property taxes, manufactured homes, mobile homes, weed assessments, special assessments, rates or charges, and drainage taxes." The most recent posted terms document reads: "The 2024 annual Tax Sale will be held by the Fremont County Treasurer on Monday, June 17, 2024, in the Treasurer's office on the first floor of the Fremont County Courthouse, 501 Filmore, Sidney, IA beginning at 9:00 a.m." Bidding closes at 10:00 a.m. that same morning. An adjourned sale is held on any business day after the annual sale when bidders are present and parcels remain unsold.
- Next expected
- on the third Monday in June, 2027 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Registration and deposit
Registration is online at www.iowataxauction.com; the county accepts no mailed or emailed registrations. Bidders complete the online form, pay a non-refundable registration fee by ACH debit ($40.00 for the 2024 sale), and file an electronic W-9 so the Treasurer can issue an accurate 1099-INT. The 2024 registration window opened Monday, May 20 and closed at 11:59 p.m. Thursday, June 13, four days before the sale. Bidders must be 18 or older on the sale date. An entity bidder needs a federal tax identification number plus either a designation of agent for service of process on file with the Iowa Secretary of State or a verified statement of trade name on file with the Fremont County Recorder. Registration and auction-site help is available at (877) 243-9997 or [email protected].
Fremont County runs Iowa's standard annual tax sale as an online auction. Bidders place bids through www.iowataxauction.com while the Treasurer conducts the sale from the office on the first floor of the courthouse at 501 Filmore in Sidney. Bidding is a bid-down of the undivided percentage interest, starting at a 100% undivided interest with bid downs in whole percentage points from 99% to 1%; the county does not use batches. When the sale closes at 10:00 a.m., each parcel's certificate goes to the bidder naming the smallest percentage, and ties at the smallest percentage are broken by random selection. Bids may be uploaded before the sale opens but are not applied until 9:00 a.m. on sale day, and no bid may be withdrawn. Winners are invoiced at close and charged by ACH debit from the account used for the registration fee; the amount due covers delinquent taxes, special assessments, interest, collection fees, publishing costs, and a $20.00 certificate fee per certificate. Certificates typically arrive 7 to 15 days after the sale. Assigning a certificate costs the assignee a $100.00 assignment transaction fee. The newest full terms-and-conditions notice posted on the county website covers the 2024 sale, so confirm the current year's sale date, registration window, and fee with the Treasurer before bidding.
Register on SRI / ZEUSFrom lien to deed
- Run by
- County Treasurer
- Frequency
- none
- Typical timing
- Iowa holds no tax deed auction. The treasurer makes out a treasurer's deed to the certificate holder immediately after 90 days have expired from completed service of the notice of expiration of the right of redemption, once the holder returns the certificate and pays the deed and recording fees.
There is nothing for an investor to bid on at the deed stage in Iowa. The only auction is the June certificate sale. The certificate holder must return the certificate of purchase and remit the deed and recording fees within 90 calendar days after the redemption period expires, or the treasurer cancels the certificate.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
Two routes reach parcels after the June sale. Parcels that remain unsold for want of bidders are carried to adjourned sales, which the treasurer sets at intervals of not more than two months until the next annual sale. Separately, certificates struck to the county at the public bidder sale may be assigned by the county for the total amount due on the date of assignment, or for a compromised amount, under a written agreement filed with the treasurer and a 10 dollar assignment transaction fee. Ask the county treasurer which county-held certificates are available for assignment.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work.
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Notes for Fremont County
- The Treasurer's mailing address is 506 Filmore St., PO Box 299, Sidney, IA 51652. The sale itself is conducted from the Treasurer's office on the first floor of the Fremont County Courthouse at 501 Filmore, Sidney.
- Office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Treasurer: Alise Snyder.
- The delinquent tax list is published around the first week of June in the Tabor Beacon. Parcels on that published list are also posted on the auction site and the county website before the sale, though auction-site data requires a completed bidder registration.
- Delinquent notices go out to owners in May, ahead of the June sale.
- Beginning June 1 the Treasurer requires guaranteed funds for delinquent taxes and accepts no personal checks or eChecks online.
- The county posts a non-redeemed county-held certificates list, most recently generated 5/22/25, covering certificates dating back to 2004 that the county still holds. That list is separate from the annual sale list.
- Certificate holders may pay subsequent delinquent taxes starting the 15th of October and the 15th of April.
- iowatreasurers.org shows a different office phone, (712) 374-2344. The county's own Treasurer page and the Treasurer's letterhead both give (712) 374-2122, so use that number and treat the other as a secondary line.
Iowa statewide rules
- Minimum return
- No statutory minimum return; what you earn is set by the share of ownership taken at the sale
- Redemption
- A parcel may be redeemed at any time before the right of redemption expires. After one year and nine months from the date of sale, the certificate holder may serve a notice of expiration of the right of redemption on the person in possession, the person in whose name the parcel is taxed, and every mortgagee, contract vendor, recorded lessor, and other party of record. The right of redemption then ends 90 days after that service is complete, which means the affidavit of service has been filed with the county treasurer. Three shortened tracks exist: nine months from a public bidder sale under section 446.18, and three months from an abandoned-property or public nuisance sale under section 446.19A or 446.19B. After the treasurer delivers the deed, redemption is possible only through an equitable action in district court, and only by a person who could have redeemed during the 90-day window.
- Surplus proceeds
- No surplus arises. The deed conveys the parcel to the certificate holder rather than selling it to the highest bidder, so there are no excess proceeds to distribute. Where the winning bid was less than 100 percent, the deed conveys only that undivided percentage interest in the parcel.
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 Fremont County, Iowa sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Fremont County follows Iowa's tax lien state system.
When is the Fremont County tax certificate sale?
- Third Monday in June. The Treasurer's tax calendar lists a "Third Monday in June annual tax sale of outstanding property taxes, manufactured homes, mobile homes, weed assessments, special assessments, rates or charges, and drainage taxes." The most recent posted terms document reads: "The 2024 annual Tax Sale will be held by the Fremont County Treasurer on Monday, June 17, 2024, in the Treasurer's office on the first floor of the Fremont County Courthouse, 501 Filmore, Sidney, IA beginning at 9:00 a.m." Bidding closes at 10:00 a.m. that same morning. An adjourned sale is held on any business day after the annual sale when bidders are present and parcels remain unsold.. Registration and bidding happen on the county's online platform. Always confirm the exact date with the Tax Collector before the sale.
How often does Fremont County hold tax deed sales?
- none. Each sale is scheduled and advertised in advance, so check the county's tax deed calendar for the next posted date.
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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