Montgomery County, IA tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Montgomery County, seat of Red Oak: 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 Montgomery County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Montgomery County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Third Monday in June, starting at 9:00 a.m. The Treasurer's tax sale page states: "The annual tax sale will be held on the third Monday of each June as provided for in the Iowa Code, Section 446.7." The 2026 notice reads: "The 2026 annual Tax Sale will be held by the Montgomery County Treasurer on Monday, June 15, 2026, in the Treasurer's Office on the first floor of the Montgomery County Courthouse, 105 E Coolbaugh St, Red Oak, IA, beginning at 9:00 a.m." Bidding closes at 10:30 a.m. 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
Register online at iowataxauction.com. The Treasurer states "No mailed or emailed registrations will be accepted." For 2026 registration opened Monday, May 18, 2026 and closed Thursday, June 11, 2026, with all steps completed by 11:59 p.m. on June 11. Bidders pay a non-refundable $40.00 registration fee by ACH debit and complete an online W-9, and must be 18 or older on the sale date. Entity bidders need a federal tax ID plus either a designation of agent for service of process with the Iowa Secretary of State or a verified trade name statement with the Montgomery County Recorder. Auction site support is (800) 800-9588 or [email protected].
The sale is conducted by the Treasurer at the courthouse in Red Oak, but all bidding happens online through the Iowa Tax Auction site. Bids may be uploaded before the start and are applied when the sale opens at 9:00 a.m. Parcels are listed in published order and open at a 100 percent undivided interest, with bid downs in whole percentage points from 99 percent to 1 percent. The certificate goes to the smallest percentage bid, and ties are broken by random selection. Montgomery County does not use batches. Winners are invoiced at the close and the total is drawn by automatic ACH debit from the account used for the registration fee, including 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. Assignment of a certificate carries a $100.00 transaction fee that cannot be added to the redemption amount.
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)
Montgomery County Courthouse, 105 E Coolbaugh St, Red Oak, IA 51566. Mailing address: PO Box 469, Red Oak, IA 51566.
Official websiteNotes for Montgomery County
- The county does not post a parcel list on its own website. The 2026 notice states the Delinquent Tax List for Montgomery County is published the week of June 1 in the Red Oak Express, 2012 Commerce Dr., PO Box 377, Red Oak, IA 51566, (712) 623-2566. Parcels then appear on the Iowa Tax Auction site to registered bidders.
- Bidding is bid-down ownership percentage, not bid-down interest. Parcels open at a 100 percent undivided interest and bids step down in whole percentage points from 99 percent to 1 percent, with the certificate awarded to the smallest percentage bid.
- The Treasurer asks certificate holders to make subsequent tax payments through the subsequent tax payment module at iowataxandtags.org under Property Tax, at $0.30 per parcel. Online payments made outside that module are treated as voluntary and are omitted from redemption calculations.
- Redemption interest is 2 percent per month against the sale amount, with each fraction of a month counted as a whole month. The 90 day notice of right of redemption may be served after one year and nine months for a regular tax sale, or after nine months for a public bidder sale, which the county marks with an asterisk on the published list.
- If a certificate holder has not filed an affidavit of service under Iowa Code section 447.12 within three years of the sale, the Treasurer cancels the certificate.
- The Montgomery County page on the statewide iowatreasurers.org eGovernment site currently displays Clarke County contact details in its body text, so verify office phone and address against the county's own treasurer page rather than that portal.
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 Montgomery County, Iowa sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Montgomery County follows Iowa's tax lien state system.
When is the Montgomery County tax certificate sale?
- Third Monday in June, starting at 9:00 a.m. The Treasurer's tax sale page states: "The annual tax sale will be held on the third Monday of each June as provided for in the Iowa Code, Section 446.7." The 2026 notice reads: "The 2026 annual Tax Sale will be held by the Montgomery County Treasurer on Monday, June 15, 2026, in the Treasurer's Office on the first floor of the Montgomery County Courthouse, 105 E Coolbaugh St, Red Oak, IA, beginning at 9:00 a.m." Bidding closes at 10:30 a.m. 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 Montgomery 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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