Jackson County, MO tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •Jackson County does not hold the Chapter 140 fourth-Monday-in-August certificate sale. It sells under the Land Tax Collection Law, RSMo Chapter 141, where the county forecloses by court judgment after three or more years of delinquency and the buyer takes the property, so there is no certificate of purchase and no redemption interest to collect.
• •Two sale weeks at two courthouses. Parcels generally east of I-435 are called on the south steps of the Eastern Jackson County Courthouse, 308 W. Kansas Avenue, Independence, and parcels generally west of I-435 on the north steps of the Jackson County Courthouse, 415 E. 12th Street, Kansas City.
• •The August 2026 sale was canceled by county executive order to allow more time to verify property tax records and tax bill calculations, and the county states the cancellation does not forgive or eliminate the delinquent taxes. Confirm the next sale date with the Civil Process Department at (816) 881-3644 or the Collection Department at (816) 881-3232 before planning a trip.
• •A winning bid is not final at the auction. Confirmation hearings run roughly three months after the sale, usually in November and December, and the judge can order the buyer to raise the bid when it falls far below appraised value or cancel the sale outright. The buyer cannot enter or possess the property until the sale is confirmed.
• •The Court Administrator's Deed is issued 30 days after the confirmation judgment is signed, allowing for the 20-day appeal window, and must be recorded by the Recorder of Deeds. Evicting an occupant afterward requires a Writ of Execution for Possession from the Civil Process Department.
• •Do the diligence before the sale. The Collection Department's buyer guide tells bidders to print the parcel map, view the property from the street, check for recorded Certificates of Dangerous Building and city demolition orders, and search for federal liens and judgments, because parcels are sold by legal description only and a mistaken bid cannot be withdrawn.
• •Parcels outside the Kansas City and Blue Springs city limits that fail to sell on the courthouse steps pass to the Land Trust of Jackson County, which resells them by application, reachable at (816) 221-3366. Parcels inside Kansas City go to the Kansas City Land Bank at (816) 513-9020.
• •Past sale results are searchable on the court's Delinquent Land Tax records lookup by suit number, parcel number, property address, record owner or purchaser name, including purchase price, judgment amount, excess proceeds and confirmation status. Parcels from the current year appear only after both the Independence and Kansas City sales finish.
• •If a sale price exceeds the taxes and fees owed, the former owner or a lienholder can file an Application for Excess Proceeds with the Civil Process Department and a judge decides the award. Excess proceeds records are kept for three years.

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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