Phelps County, MO tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •County seat is Rolla. The Collector of Revenue is in room 129 of the Phelps County Courthouse at 200 N. Main Street, open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., phone 573-458-6155 or 573-458-6150 (sources: collector_contact, collector_hours, collector_hours).
• •The certificate sale is a live public auction in the Community Room of the courthouse, opening at 10:00 a.m. on the fourth Monday in August, with parcels called in newspaper-publication order and everything usually offered by noon (source: collector_tax_sale_faq).
• •Register in the Collector's office the week before the sale. Bring a Missouri driver's license or state ID and a notarized affidavit attesting you owe no delinquent property taxes, plus a notarized Bidder Affidavit-Business form if you are bidding under a company name (source: collector_tax_sale_faq).
• •The sale is small and volatile. The Collector puts it at anywhere from five to thirty-five properties and says most parcels advertised in the first newspaper insertion are paid before sale day and never reach the block (source: collector_tax_sale_faq).
• •A parcel becomes eligible when taxes are more than a year delinquent on the last business day in April and remain unpaid on the day of the sale (source: collector_tax_sale_faq).
• •On redemption the taxes and costs portion of the investment earns 10% simple interest per year, and any subsequent taxes the certificate holder pays earn 8% simple interest. No interest is paid on the premium bid above taxes and costs (source: collector_tax_sale_faq).
• •Winning bidders pay in the Collector's office within two hours after the last property is offered, by cash, cashier's check, money order, check, or credit card, with a 2.4% fee on card transactions (source: collector_tax_sale_faq).
• •Before a Collector's deed can issue, the purchaser must complete the RSMo 140.405 title search and give the owner of record and every holder of a publicly recorded unreleased deed of trust, mortgage, lease, lien, judgment or other claim at least ninety days notice of the right to redeem. The Collector stresses that receipts for the title search and mailings must be submitted immediately so the purchaser can be reimbursed if the property redeems (source: collector_tax_sale_faq).
• •There is no standing sale-list page between auctions. The list appears in the Rolla Daily News legal notices for three consecutive Wednesdays before the sale, is posted on the Collector's website once the first ad runs, and is available at the counter in room 129 the week before the sale (source: collector_tax_sale_faq).

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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