County-held certificates
Iowa has no over-the-counter list in the Florida sense, but two routes reach parcels after the June sale. First, when parcels remain unsold for want of bidders the treasurer adjourns the sale to a date not more than two months out, gives notice at the time of adjournment, and repeats at intervals of not more than two months until the next annual sale, so an investor can buy at an adjourned sale. Second, parcels that draw no bid at the public bidder sale are struck to the county, and the county may assign a certificate it holds for the total amount due on the date of assignment, or compromise that amount and assign, by written agreement filed with the treasurer. The assignment transaction fee on a county-held certificate is 10 dollars; an ordinary investor-to-investor assignment carries a 100 dollar fee, or 10 dollars if the assignor is an estate. A certificate cannot be assigned to a person entitled to redeem that parcel, other than a municipality.
Lands available for taxes
Iowa keeps no Lands Available for Taxes list. A certificate held by a county is not subject to the three-year cancellation in section 446.37, so a county can hold it indefinitely. Once the county assigns it, the three-year cancellation clock restarts from the date the treasurer records the assignment, or one year for a public nuisance certificate issued under section 446.19B.
Either route skips the live auction, which means these are the parcels nobody bid on, so the due diligence matters even more. The national over-the-counter guide has the full cross-state playbook.
Verified Jul 29, 2026 against Iowa sources.
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.