Scott County, MO tax sales

County offices

County notes

• •The statutory notice runs in the Standard Democrat for three consecutive weeks, one insertion weekly, with the last insertion at least 15 days before the sale. The 2026 insertions ran July 21, July 28 and August 4, and the same list is posted on the collector's website.
• •Scott County runs the standard Chapter 140 Jones-Munger certificate sale, so a winning bidder on a first, second or third offering receives a certificate of purchase and a tax lien, not the property. Taking possession, improving, demolishing, renting or otherwise using the parcel before a collector's deed issues is not permitted.
• •Owners pay off parcels right up to sale day and those entries are marked PAID on the published list, so pull the current list before travelling to Benton to bid.
• •Before a collector's deed can issue on a first or second offering, the holder must obtain a title search from a licensed attorney or title company, notify the owner of record and every publicly recorded interest holder of the right to redeem at least 90 days ahead by both first class and certified mail, pay all subsequent county and city taxes and special assessments, and file the required documents and a sworn affidavit with the collector. The certificate of purchase itself must be surrendered on redemption or on deed issuance.
• •Budget for clearing title. The collector gives no guarantee of title, liens, addresses or encumbrances, and most title insurance underwriters restrict a property for thirty years from the date a collector's deed is issued, which usually means a quiet title action before the parcel is financeable or insurable.

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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