Mercer County, OH tax sales
Mercer County, Ohio sells both tax lien certificates and tax deeds. The County Treasurer runs the certificate sale (18% maximum, bid down), and the County Sheriff holds the tax deed sale online via RealAuction on parcels whose certificates go unredeemed, from the county seat in Celina, under R.C. Chapter 5721.
New to tax sales? Read how Ohio tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.
- Next sale
- No public certificate auction date is posted.
- Format
- RealAuction
- Registration
- Bidding is online only.
- County office
- (419) 586-2259
On this page
How Mercer County sells delinquent taxes
Tax certificate sale (lien)
- Run by
- Mercer County Treasurer
- Frequency
- annual
- Typical timing
- No public certificate auction date is posted.
When it runs
Registration and deposit
Sale format and venue
Tax deed sale
- Run by
- Mercer County Sheriff's Office, Civil Division
- Frequency
- annual
- Registration
- Bidding is online only.
When it runs
Registration and deposit
Bidding is online only. Per the county auction FAQ, "To participate in a foreclosure auction in Ohio, you must register for a Username and Password and fill in all appropriate fields to transmit the Ohio Real Estate Judicial Sale Purchaser Information Form", and all changes must be made before the sale date. To be a qualified participant you must post a deposit covering every property you intend to bid on, by the posted deadline. Statutory deposit tiers are $2,000 if appraised value is $10,000 or less, $5,000 if appraised value is above $10,000 and up to $200,000, and $10,000 if appraised value is above $200,000, unless a judge orders otherwise. For tax foreclosure cases the deposit is set by the Treasurer instead. Deposits clear through an escrow module, so the FAQ advises funding the account well ahead of the sale.
Sale format and venue
Mercer County tax sale list and auction calendar
For Mercer 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 Mercer County Sheriff online auction calendar for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.Register to bid
Sale day
No public certificate auction date is posted. Bidding runs on RealAuction; check posted sale dates, registration status, and bidding windows there.Confirm with the office
If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use Mercer County Sheriff's Office, Civil Division as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.
Before you bid in Mercer County
4 checks
Start with the live sale list
Pull the current advertised parcels from Mercer County Sheriff online auction calendar. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.Confirm registration and deposit
Bidding is online only. Per the county auction FAQ, "To participate in a foreclosure auction in Ohio, you must register for a Username and Password and fill in all appropriate fields to transmit the Ohio Real Estate Judicial Sale Purchaser Information Form", and all changes must be made before the sale date. To be a qualified participant you must post a deposit covering every property you intend to bid on, by the posted deadline. Statutory deposit tiers are $2,000 if appraised value is $10,000 or less, $5,000 if appraised value is above $10,000 and up to $200,000, and $10,000 if appraised value is above $200,000, unless a judge orders otherwise. For tax foreclosure cases the deposit is set by the Treasurer instead. Deposits clear through an escrow module, so the FAQ advises funding the account well ahead of the sale.
Check the state rules that change the bid
Read the Ohio 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
Ohio has no over-the-counter tax certificate channel. The equivalent inventory is the county auditor's forfeited land list, made up of parcels that drew no qualifying bid at two foreclosure sales. The auditor offers that list at public auction at least annually, and a tract that still receives no bid meeting the statutory minimum may then be sold for the best price obtainable.
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
- Mercer County splits the two paths cleanly: the Sheriff's Office runs the deed-side judicial foreclosure auction online, while the Treasurer handles delinquency and does not hold an open certificate auction.
- The Treasurer is David E. Wolters. The office sits in Room 201 on the second floor of the courthouse at 101 North Main Street, Celina, open Monday 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Tuesday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- Real estate and manufactured home tax deadlines are February 20 for the first half and July 27 for the second half, with bills mailed on or shortly after January 20 and June 20. Late payments draw a 5 percent penalty within 10 days and 10 percent after that.
- The Sheriff's sale page notes that participants, including attorneys, must register separately in each county on the RealAuction system, and that under Ohio Rev. Code 2329.211 a judgment creditor who is the purchaser of residential property is not required to post a deposit.
- The county Auditor's site at auditor.mercercountyohio.gov was behind a bot challenge and could not be read, so nothing about a forfeited land sale is confirmed for this county.
- The county's main domain redirects: mercercountyohio.gov now resolves to mercercountyoh.gov.
Ohio rules
- Redemption
- Ohio has no post-sale redemption window. On the certificate track the owner or any other person entitled to redeem may pay the county treasurer at any time before the certificate holder pays to start foreclosure, and after that up until the entry of confirmation of sale, the expiration of the 28-day alternative redemption period, or the decree that conveys title to the certificate holder. On the direct foreclosure track, delinquent land may be redeemed before proceedings begin, and afterwards up to the entry of confirmation of sale or the end of the alternative redemption period. The alternative redemption period is 28 days after an adjudication of foreclosure is journalized, and when it expires the right and equity of redemption terminate without any further order. Once title vests, a decree conveying the parcel to a certificate holder is a permanent bar to redemption.
- Deed deposit
- For residential property the deposit is fixed by statute: $2,000 if the appraised value is $10,000 or less, $5,000 if it is above $10,000 and up to $200,000, and $10,000 if it is above $200,000. A judgment creditor buying at its own sale posts no deposit. For commercial property the deposit follows whatever requirements the sale sets. Deposit timing is set by the court or the officer conducting the sale and printed in the sale advertisement, and an online sale may take the deposit by card or other financial transaction device.
- Surplus proceeds
- Sale proceeds pay costs first, then the certificate holder or the taxing districts, and any residue goes to the clerk of the court within 45 days after confirmation. The clerk notifies the former owner. Residue left unclaimed 90 days after that final notice is paid into the county treasury and held for the owner, who may demand it within three years. After three years it is forfeited to the county's delinquent tax and assessment collection fund, or to the county land reutilization corporation fund where one exists.
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 Mercer County, Ohio sell tax liens or tax deeds?
When is the Mercer County tax certificate sale?
How often does Mercer County hold tax deed sales?
I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?
Where can I find the Mercer County tax sale list?
Verified Aug 7, 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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