Sioux County, IA tax sales
How tax lien certificate sales work in Sioux County, seat of Orange City: 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 Sioux County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Sioux County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- Annual tax sale each June. The Treasurer's notice states: "The 2026 annual Tax Sale will be held by the Sioux County Treasurer on Monday, June 15, 2026, in the Treasurer's Office, 211 Central Ave SE, Orange City, Iowa, beginning at 10:00 a.m." Bidding closes at 11:00 a.m. that same morning. The notice adds that "An adjourned tax sale will be held on any business day following the annual tax sale in which there are bidders present and there are parcels still available for sale." The 2026 terms document is stated to cover taxes sold between June 15, 2026 and June 20, 2027.
- Next expected
- on the third Monday in June, 2027 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Registration and deposit
Bidders register online at iowataxauction.com. The Treasurer states that "No mailed or emailed registrations will be accepted." For the 2026 sale, registration opened Monday, May 18, 2026 and ended Thursday, June 11, 2026, with all steps completed by 11:59 p.m. on June 11. Each bidder pays a non-refundable $36.00 registration fee by ACH debit and completes an online W-9 by the registration deadline. All bidders must be 18 or older as of sale day. 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 Sioux County Recorder. Registration and auction site help: (800) 800-9588 or [email protected].
Bidding runs online through iowataxauction.com even though the sale is conducted from the Treasurer's Office in Orange City. Bids may be uploaded before the sale but are not applied until the sale opens. Each parcel starts at a 100 percent undivided interest and bid-downs move in whole percentage points from 99 percent to 1 percent. Sioux County states it does not use batches. The certificate goes to the bidder naming the smallest percentage, and equal low bids are broken by random selection. Bids may not be withdrawn. Winners are invoiced at the close and the total is drawn by automatic ACH debit from the account used for registration fees, covering delinquent taxes, special assessments, interest, special assessment collection fees, publishing costs, and a $20.00 certificate fee per certificate. Certificates arrive roughly 7 to 15 days after the sale. Redemption interest runs at 2 percent per month, with each partial month counted whole. Subsequent taxes should be paid online through the Login To Pay Subsequent Tax module at iowatreasurers.org at $0.25 per parcel; payments made outside that module are treated as voluntary and left out of the redemption calculation. On the deed side, a regular tax sale allows the 90 day Notice of Right of Redemption after one year and nine months, while a public bidder tax sale (parcels advertised two years, marked with an asterisk on the published list) allows it after nine months. Certificates are assignable by endorsement with a $100.00 assignment transaction fee, and the Treasurer's tax sale deed issuance fee is $25.00 per parcel. The Delinquent Tax List is published the week of June 1 in a local newspaper, and the 2026 notice leaves the newspaper name unfilled; parcels on the published list were also viewable on the auction site by Friday, May 29, 2026, but only after completing registration.
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 Sioux County
- County seat is Orange City. The Treasurer is Daniel D. Zomermaand, appointed June 2020.
- Sioux County publishes its tax sale notice and terms on its Treasurer page at iowatreasurers.org rather than on the county's general website, so investors should check that page for each year's notice.
- Property tax line is (712) 737-3505 and the office fax is (712) 737-8170. Office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, with the office closed every Tuesday from 8:00 to 9:00 for training.
- General office email listed by the Treasurer is [email protected].
- The Treasurer's notice cites Iowa Code Chapters 446, 447, and 448 as the governing chapters for tax sales, tax redemption, and tax deeds.
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 Sioux County, Iowa sell tax liens or tax deeds?
- Sioux County follows Iowa's tax lien state system.
When is the Sioux County tax certificate sale?
- Annual tax sale each June. The Treasurer's notice states: "The 2026 annual Tax Sale will be held by the Sioux County Treasurer on Monday, June 15, 2026, in the Treasurer's Office, 211 Central Ave SE, Orange City, Iowa, beginning at 10:00 a.m." Bidding closes at 11:00 a.m. that same morning. The notice adds that "An adjourned tax sale will be held on any business day following the annual tax sale in which there are bidders present and there are parcels still available for sale." The 2026 terms document is stated to cover taxes sold between June 15, 2026 and June 20, 2027.. 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 Sioux 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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