Clay County, MO tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •The sale list is published on the Collector's tax sale page and on GovEase starting July 20, 2026, and in the Liberty Courier Tribune starting July 22, 2026. Sale numbers encode the offering: the 1000s are first offerings, the 2000s are second offerings, and so on.
• •Winning bidders must pay the full bid by 5:00 PM CST on Tuesday, August 25, 2026. Wire transfer through GovEase is available at the buyer's expense, and cash, cashier's check or money order is accepted in person at the Liberty office only. ACH is not accepted for final payment, and payments by mail, courier or drop box are refused. Failure to pay forfeits the statutory 25 percent penalty, and the parcel goes to the second-place bidder or is reoffered.
• •Parcels that go unsold after the third offering are published on the Collector's tax sale page and become available over the counter beginning the week of September 14, 2026.
• •Some parcels carry federal or state liens, hazardous conditions, uncertain legal descriptions, or special assessments that the tax sale cannot collect. Known liens are flagged with an asterisk on the published list, but the absence of an asterisk is not a warranty of title, and a Collector's deed may not extinguish non tax sale liens or deeds of trust.
• •The Collector's office states that it does not partner with or endorse Title Bridge and will not accept due diligence performed by that company. The office coordinates the required due diligence itself, and only Collector-approved due diligence is reimbursed as part of a redemption under RSMo 140.405.7.
• •Owners of property struck off at the 2025 sale had an absolute right to redeem through 5:00 PM CST on August 25, 2026, with certified funds or cash physically received at the Liberty office; postmarks and drop-box payments do not count. Owners keep a continuing right to redeem until the investor claims a deed.
• •Missouri law recognizes no unclaimed surplus or excess proceeds category, and the office keeps no such list. Overbid funds are held in trust: during redemption the overbid returns to the investor if the certificate interest is lost, and for 90 days after a Collector's deed is claimed, recorded lienholders in priority order and then the former owner may apply. Ninety-one days after a timely deed claim, surplus escheats to the county school fund.
• •Delinquency fees escalate ahead of the sale: $135 is added to bills still delinquent on May 4, 2026, and another $115 on June 1, 2026. June 14, 2026 is the last day to pay by card, personal check or online; after that, payments on scheduled parcels must be cash, cashier's check or money order.

Missouri rules

Max interest rate

10% per year, set by statute (bidding is on price)Missouri Revised Statutes 140.290 - Certificate of purchase, contents, fee, nonresidentsMo. Rev. Stat. 140.290Verified Aug 18, 2026

Minimum return

No statutory minimum return; what you earn is set by the price at the saleMissouri Revised Statutes 140.340 - Redemption, when, mannerMo. Rev. Stat. 140.340Verified Aug 18, 2026

Redemption

After a first or second offering sale, the owner and other interested parties hold an absolute right to redeem for one year, then a defeasible right that lasts until the purchaser actually acquires the deed. A purchaser must serve the 90 day notice of the right to redeem before the date on which the deed can be acquired, so the practical window usually runs past the one year mark. After a third offering sale, redemption runs 90 days, and the purchaser must give notice to recorded claimants within 45 days of the sale. After a post third offering sale, there is no redemption period and the deed issues immediately. Minors and incapacitated or disabled persons have a longer right, running five years from the last payment of taxes by that person or a predecessor. The right also ends if the certificate lapses because the purchaser failed to record the deed within 18 months.Missouri Revised Statutes 140.340 - Redemption, when, mannerMo. Rev. Stat. 140.340Verified Aug 18, 2026

Deed deposit

The winning bidder must pay the full amount of the bid to the collector immediately at the sale. Chapter 140 sets no advance bidder deposit and no balance due window. A bidder who fails to pay forfeits a penalty of 25 percent of the bid to the county school fund and the parcel is offered again at once as though no sale had been made. Counties running an online or registered sale may impose their own deposit and registration terms on top of the statute, so confirm them with the collector.Missouri Revised Statutes 140.250 - Third offering of delinquent lands and lots, redemption, subsequent sale, collector's deedMo. Rev. Stat. 140.250Verified Aug 18, 2026

Surplus proceeds

Any amount above the taxes and costs is surplus. The collector pays it into the county treasury, where the treasurer holds it in trust for the lesser of three years or 90 days after the redemption period expires. It is distributed first to the former lienholders of record in the priority their liens held on the date of the sale, then to the former owner. No distribution other than through the redemption process may occur until 90 days after the redemption period ends, and a claimant must file a written claim with the county commission within those 90 days, referencing the recorded lien it rests on. The county pays no interest on the fund. Anything still unclaimed at three years becomes the permanent school fund of the county.Missouri Revised Statutes 140.230 - Foreclosure sale surplus, deposited in treasury, escheats, proof of claimsMo. Rev. Stat. 140.230Verified Aug 18, 2026

Governing statute

Mo. Rev. Stat. Chapter 140Missouri Revised Statutes 140.150 - Lands, lots, mineral rights, and royalty interests subject to sale, whenMo. Rev. Stat. 140.150Verified Aug 18, 2026

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.

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