Spencer County, KY tax sales
How tax lien sales work in Spencer County, seat of Taylorsville: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
New to tax sales? Read how Kentucky tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.
- Next sale
- between mid July and late August, 2026
- Format
- In person
- Registration
- Registration takes two steps.
- County office
- (502) 477-3215
On this page
How Spencer County sells delinquent taxes
From lien to deed
Kentucky holds no county tax deed auction. Title moves only through a lawsuit. The owner of a certificate of delinquency may sue to collect the debt, to enforce the KRS 134.420 lien, or both, at any time after one year has passed from the date the taxes became delinquent, and the action must be brought within eleven years of that date. A third-party purchaser has extra duties first: a notice to the delinquent taxpayer within 50 days of receiving the certificate, that notice repeated every six months, and a further notice to the taxpayer and every mortgagee at least 45 days before filing suit.
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Spencer County Clerk
- Frequency
- annual
- Registration
- Registration takes two steps.
- Next expected
- between mid July and late August, 2026 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
When it runs
Registration and deposit
Registration takes two steps. A purchaser who plans to buy more than three certificates in one county, more than five statewide, or to invest more than $10,000 must first register with the Kentucky Department of Revenue, which charges a $250 fee and makes the applicant eligible 60 days after it receives the application; the Department asks for applications "no later than May 15, 2026, to ensure you will be able to participate in every county's tax sale." Every bidder then registers with the Spencer County Clerk by the deadline the clerk advertises for that year's sale, including someone buying a single certificate. The county filing is the clerk's registration form, a copy of the state registration certificate, a priority list with a deposit of 100% of those certificates' value, a current year list with a deposit of 25% of that list's value, and the registration fees of $5 per priority certificate and $10 per current year certificate, capped at $250 per purchaser per calendar year. Call the Spencer County Clerk at (502) 477-3215 for the form, the accepted forms of payment and the exact cutoff date.
Sale format and venue
Spencer County tax sale list and auction calendar
For Spencer County tax sale 2026 searches, use the county-run sources below rather than a copied parcel list, and confirm the parcel, registration cutoff, deposit, and payment deadline against the county before you bid.
Get the advertised list
Use Spencer County advertised delinquent tax bills for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.Register to bid
Sale day
between mid July and late August, 2026 The sale is live and in person; there is no online bidding platform. Confirm the venue and hour with the county office before you go.Confirm with the office
If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use Spencer County Clerk as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.
Before you bid in Spencer County
4 checks
Start with the live sale list
Pull the current advertised parcels from Spencer County advertised delinquent tax bills. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.Confirm registration and deposit
Registration takes two steps. A purchaser who plans to buy more than three certificates in one county, more than five statewide, or to invest more than $10,000 must first register with the Kentucky Department of Revenue, which charges a $250 fee and makes the applicant eligible 60 days after it receives the application; the Department asks for applications "no later than May 15, 2026, to ensure you will be able to participate in every county's tax sale." Every bidder then registers with the Spencer County Clerk by the deadline the clerk advertises for that year's sale, including someone buying a single certificate. The county filing is the clerk's registration form, a copy of the state registration certificate, a priority list with a deposit of 100% of those certificates' value, a current year list with a deposit of 25% of that list's value, and the registration fees of $5 per priority certificate and $10 per current year certificate, capped at $250 per purchaser per calendar year. Call the Spencer County Clerk at (502) 477-3215 for the form, the accepted forms of payment and the exact cutoff date.
Check the state rules that change the bid
Read the Kentucky due-diligence checklist before bidding. Redemption, liens that survive a tax deed, title cleanup, and payment deadlines can change what a parcel is worth.Set a walk-away number
Work out what the parcel is actually worth with the rural land value estimator, then turn it into a ceiling with the tax deed max-bid calculator.
Over-the-counter (leftover) purchases
unsold certificates
A certificate that goes unpaid at the annual sale may be paid to the county clerk at any time afterward by any person, unless it is under a payment plan with the Department of Revenue or the county attorney or is known to be in litigation. You need a current Department of Revenue certificate of registration if you will hold more than three certificates in this county, more than five statewide, or invest more than 10,000 dollars statewide in the calendar year, and you register with the county clerk and pay the county fee if you have not already done so that year. Separately, 90 days after the sheriff files the tax claims, any person may pay a certificate the taxing jurisdictions still own. Certificates that arrive too late for one year's sale are held for the next one.
New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work.
Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.
County offices
Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)
Spencer County Courthouse, 2 W. Main St., P.O. Box 544, Taylorsville, KY 40071
Official websiteCounty notes
- The Spencer County Clerk sells the certificates of delinquency, while the Sheriff collects current year property taxes and turns the uncollected bills over to the clerk on April 15, the point at which they become certificates of delinquency and liens on the real property.
- Spencer County's advertised bill list is published on the delinquent tax bill site the county clerk uses, which the Department of Revenue also names as the county's advertising address, and it is reached from the Delinquent Tax List page on the county government site. The clerk's office quotes current payoff amounts by phone at (502) 477-3215.
- The list advertised for the July 2026 sale carried 92 bills for the 2025 tax year totaling a little under $120,000, with individual amounts running from $27.82 to $8,065.14, so this is a small county sale where a handful of large bills carry most of the value.
- The list mixes real property bills coded R with a few personal property bills coded P, and the P bills carry no parcel map number. Check the code before committing money to a lot.
- Owners can pay right up to the time of the sale and some bills are flagged as pending on the advertised list, so expect the clerk to announce deletions and refresh the available bills the night before or the morning of the sale.
- The clerk's office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm, until 6:30 pm on Thursdays, and on the last Saturday of the month, which matters if you are delivering a registration package and deposit in person.
- Spencer's late July slot is near the front of Kentucky's sale season, so a Department of Revenue application filed by the May 15 request date clears the 60 day eligibility wait with time to spare.
Kentucky rules
- Redemption
- Kentucky's redemption window is a property of where the parcel is in the process, not a single statewide clock, and it runs in four tracks. Track one, and by far the most common, is an outstanding certificate of delinquency: the delinquent taxpayer or anyone holding a legal or equitable estate in the property may pay the third-party purchaser the total amount due at any time, and the purchaser may accept payment from anyone at any time. No statute closes that window, so it stays open until a court forecloses. Track two is a foreclosure sale that brought less than two thirds of the property's appraised value, where the defendant and the defendant's representatives may redeem within six months of the day of sale. Track three is a foreclosure sale that brought two thirds or more of the appraised value, where no right of redemption exists at all; the purchaser takes the property outright. Track four is land the state, county, and taxing districts acquired through a KRS 134.546 action, which the taxpayer may redeem at any time before the commissioner delivers a deed to a purchaser. A third-party purchaser must also offer a monthly installment plan on written request for certificates bought after June 1, 2012, if the purchaser is one who has to register with the department.
- Surplus proceeds
- If nobody bids at the foreclosure sale, the master commissioner deeds the property to the person or persons the record shows own the certificate or certificates of delinquency, each taking a pro rata interest matching the size of their certificate. Where the state, county, or a taxing district ends up owning the land, the commissioner's designated agent may advertise and sell it at public sale after posting notice at the courthouse door for fifteen days and publishing under KRS Chapter 424, the department keeps an administration fee of 15 percent of the sale price, and the balance is paid to the county and taxing districts within thirty days.
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 Spencer County, Kentucky sell tax liens or tax deeds?
When is the Spencer County tax certificate sale?
I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?
Where can I find the Spencer County tax sale list?
Verified Aug 23, 2026 against official county and state 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.
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