St. Francois County, MO tax sales
How tax lien and tax deed sales work in St. Francois County, seat of Farmington: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.
New to tax sales? Read how Missouri tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.
- Next sale
- There is no separate deed auction.
- Format
- In person
- County office
- 573-756-2645
On this page
How St. Francois County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- St. Francois County Collector of Revenue
- Frequency
- annual
When it runs
Registration and deposit
Bidders pre-register at the Collector's office during the week before the sale, which the office lists as August 17 through 21 for the 2026 sale. Every bidder must sign an affidavit, supplied by the Collector, stating that he or she is not currently delinquent on any tax payment on any property; the office warns that failing to sign, or signing a false affidavit, may invalidate the purchase. Non-residents of Missouri may not bid unless special arrangements are made with the Collector before the sale.
Sale format and venue
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- County Collector
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- There is no separate deed auction.
When it runs
Sale format and venue
St. Francois County tax sale list and auction calendar
For St. Francois 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 Tax Sale Information and annual sale notices for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.Register to bid
Ask the county office how and when to register; many counties close registration days or weeks before the sale.Sale day
There is no separate deed auction. 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 County Collector as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.
Before you bid in St. Francois County
4 checks
Start with the live sale list
Pull the current advertised parcels from Tax Sale Information and annual sale notices. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.Confirm registration and deposit
Bidders pre-register at the Collector's office during the week before the sale, which the office lists as August 17 through 21 for the 2026 sale. Every bidder must sign an affidavit, supplied by the Collector, stating that he or she is not currently delinquent on any tax payment on any property; the office warns that failing to sign, or signing a false affidavit, may invalidate the purchase. Non-residents of Missouri may not bid unless special arrangements are made with the Collector before the sale.
Check the state rules that change the bid
Read the Missouri 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 liens and deeds
Missouri publishes no standing over the counter certificate list. The equivalent route is the post third offering sale. Parcels that draw no buyer at a third offering must be advertised or offered again once every 30 days, and where the county's appointed trustee declines to take a parcel the collector may sell it at any time and for any amount. A buyer at any of these sales gets an immediate collector's deed, no redemption period, and must first pay every tax that fell due after the taxes named in the advertisement. Parcels the trustee did take are held for the taxing funds and sold on order of the county commission. Ask the collector for the current post third offering list and its bidding terms, because the format varies by county.
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)
County notes
- The sale runs at the St. Francois County Annex on West Liberty Street in Farmington, the same building that houses the Collector's office in Suite 201. Plan to attend in person, since bidding is not offered online.
- Parcels leave the list right up to the Friday before the sale. Any statement owed after June 30 must be paid in full by cash, money order, or cashier's check, and the Collector set that cutoff at 4:00 p.m. on August 21 for the 2026 sale. Partial payments are not accepted, so re-check the list immediately before bidding.
- The Collector posts sale records year by year back to 2019 on its Tax Sale Information page, which is the practical way to gauge how many tracts in this county carry over to a second or third offering.
Missouri rules
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
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 St. Francois County, Missouri sell tax liens or tax deeds?
When is the St. Francois County tax certificate sale?
How often does St. Francois County hold tax deed sales?
I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?
Where can I find the St. Francois County tax sale list?
Verified Aug 22, 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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