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Tax Sale Atlas

Macon County, IL tax sales

Tax Sale Atlas maps the Macon County, IL tax sale, one of 2,553 counties in 30 states. Illinois sells tax lien certificates paying up to 9%. Sale office, calendar and list locations read from state rules plus what the county publishes on Jul 30, 2026.

How tax lien and tax deed sales work in Macon County, seat of Decatur: sale calendar, auction platform, over-the-counter lists, and the offices that run each sale.

New to tax sales? Read how Illinois tax sales work or look terms up in the glossary.

Next sale
Within 120 days after the court order authorizing the auction.
County office
(217) 424-1426
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Jul 30, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Macon County sells delinquent taxes

Tax certificate sale (lien)

Run by
Macon County Treasurer's Office, the County Treasurer serving as ex officio County Collector
Frequency
annual
Typical timing
Macon County does not publish an annual tax sale date online.
Sale list
Macon County surplus auction catalog and assignable certificate list (ILTaxSale.com)
When it runs
Macon County does not publish an annual tax sale date online. The county FAQ says only that "The Treasurer is required by law to apply to the court and sell any unpaid taxes at the annual tax sale," with no month named, so confirm the date with the Treasurer's office at (217) 424-1426. The separate county tax agent surplus auction runs in September: the ILTaxSale.com Macon County page lists 09/18/2026, after sales dated 09/01/2023, 09/06/2024 and 09/12/2025.
Registration and deposit

No tax buyer registration form or registration deadline is posted on the Macon County website, so request the current requirements from the Treasurer's office at (217) 424-1426 before the annual sale. For the separate county tax agent surplus auction, the ILTaxSale.com FAQ says bid forms come from the county catalog, the Treasurer's Office, or an online download, that you submit one sealed bid at or above the published minimum because "You only have one chance to bid," that "Payment must be made by certified funds or personal check," and that "Bids received after the deadline will not be accepted," with results mailed roughly 7 to 10 days after the deadline. Online bidding requires an account at ILTaxSaleBids.com.

Sale format and venue
No online platform is confirmed for Macon County's annual tax sale, so verify the format and location with the Treasurer's office. The county FAQ describes the bidding: "At the tax sale, the tax buyers are bidding an interest percentage beginning at 9% and bidding downward. The tax buyer bidding the least amount of interest is awarded the bid," and buyers receive a "certificate of tax purchased (similar to a lien)." The county posts no free delinquent list; the Treasurer "must also publish a list of the owner's name, parcel number, and amount due in a newspaper in the county." Treat ILTaxSale.com as a distinct program, not the annual sale: it is operated by Joseph E. Meyer and Associates as county tax agent, its 2025 results are headed "MACON COUNTY SURPLUS AUCTION," the sale type is "Real Estate - Sealed Bid," the 09/18/2026 minimum bid is $822.00, bids are received at the Treasurer's office at 141 S. Main Street, Room 302, Decatur, the catalog "will be available approximately 30 days prior to the auction," and the Macon County list of assignable tax lien certificates is sold for $25. The county tax agent contact on the results sheet is PO Box 96, 141 St Andrews Ave, Edwardsville, IL 62025, (618) 656-5744. Redemption of sold taxes is not handled by the Treasurer: the county FAQ states "Redemption of sold taxes takes place in the County Clerk's Office," the Clerk is "Responsible for computing tax rates and the redemption of delinquent taxes," and the FAQ adds that interest is "bid up to 9% compounded every six months" with owner occupied property usually given at least 30 but not more than 36 months to redeem.
Source: Macon County FAQ: What happens if I am late paying my taxes? (annual tax sale mechanics)· Verified Jul 30, 2026

Tax deed sale

Run by
Sheriff or a court-appointed private selling officer, under an order of the circuit court. A county acting as trustee runs its own tax deed auctions.
Frequency
as ordered by the circuit court
Typical timing
Within 120 days after the court order authorizing the auction.
When it runs
Within 120 days after the court order authorizing the auction. Public Act 104-0553 created this route for tax certificates issued on or after July 10, 2026, so the earliest Illinois judicial tax deed auctions fall in 2027, after the 1 year short redemption track runs.
Registration and deposit

Terms of a judicial tax deed auction, including whether it runs online, in person, or both, and what deposit is required, are set in the court's order and published in the notice of tax deed auction. That notice runs once a week for 3 consecutive weeks, starting no more than 45 days and ending no less than 7 days before the auction. Read the notice for each parcel; there is no statewide platform or standing bidder registration.

Sale format and venue
Bidding opens at the tax deed judgment amount plus 0.75 percent per month since judgment, plus publication and selling officer costs. The petitioning certificate holder is entered as a credit bidder at that minimum. Surplus above the minimum goes to the county treasurer for the former owner to claim.
Source: Public Act 104-0553 (HB 4537), enrolled text of 35 ILCS 200/22-42 (new), effective July 10, 202635 ILCS 200/22-42· Verified Jul 29, 2026

Macon County tax sale list and auction calendar

For Macon 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. If the parcels on this list are vacant land rather than houses, what buying land at a tax sale hands you is the place to start.

  1. Get the advertised list

    Use Macon County surplus auction catalog and assignable certificate list (ILTaxSale.com) for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.

  2. Register to bid

    Ask the county office how and when to register; many counties close registration days or weeks before the sale.

  3. Sale day

    Within 120 days after the court order authorizing the auction. The auction platform is still being verified. Confirm the next sale date and registration window with the county before you bid.

  4. Confirm with the office

    If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use Sheriff or a court-appointed private selling officer, under an order of the circuit court. A county acting as trustee runs its own tax deed auctions. as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.

Before you bid in Macon County

  1. Start with the live sale list

    Pull the current advertised parcels from Macon County surplus auction catalog and assignable certificate list (ILTaxSale.com). Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.

  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    Terms of a judicial tax deed auction, including whether it runs online, in person, or both, and what deposit is required, are set in the court's order and published in the notice of tax deed auction. That notice runs once a week for 3 consecutive weeks, starting no more than 45 days and ending no less than 7 days before the auction. Read the notice for each parcel; there is no statewide platform or standing bidder registration.

  3. Check the state rules that change the bid

    Read the Illinois due-diligence checklist before bidding. Redemption, liens that survive a tax deed, title cleanup, and payment deadlines can change what a parcel is worth. Which liens survive is state law, so read what survives a tax deed in Illinois before you price the title work.

  4. 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

Certificates nobody bids on at the annual sale are forfeited to the county as trustee for the taxing districts. The county may then assign a forfeited certificate to any party or sell property it has acquired, which many counties handle through a delinquent tax agent rather than a public counter. Counties may also offer county-held certificates at a scavenger sale with a minimum bid of $250, or half the tax when total liability is under $500. Ask the county collector and the county clerk which program the county runs and who may buy.

New to this path? Read how over-the-counter certificates work. Every state has its own name for what goes unsold, so check what Illinois calls its leftover tax-sale inventory.

Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.

County offices

Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)

Macon County Treasurer's Office (County Collector)

(217) 424-1426

Macon County Office Building, 141 South Main Street, Room 302, Decatur, IL 62523

Official website

County notes

  • Macon County has no dedicated tax sale page on its website. The Treasurer's department page and the county FAQ on late taxes are the only official sources describing the annual tax sale, and neither gives a sale date, a registration form, or a bidder deposit.
  • The Treasurer's listed duties include "Collecting delinquent taxes, including the selling of delinquent property tax liens." Treasurer of record is John D. Jackson; office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding legal holidays. Email is treasurer@maconcounty.illinois.gov.
  • Redemption happens at a different office. Macon County Clerk Josh Tanner, 141 South Main Street, Room 104, Decatur, IL 62523, (217) 424-1305, handles redemption of delinquent taxes.
  • The Illinois County Treasurers Association directory lists a separate property tax line for Macon County, (217) 424-1496, with fax (217) 423-0922, and confirms the 141 S. Main, Room 302 address. Use the county website number, (217) 424-1426, as the primary contact.
  • A stale search result points to a "2023 Macon County Tax Sale Registration Form" download, but that URL now redirects to the county's retired co.macon.il.us domain and serves no file. The current downloads library holds no tax sale documents, so registration paperwork has to be requested from the office.
  • ILTaxSale.com is transactional, not a courtesy listing, but it covers the county tax agent's surplus tax deed auction and assignable certificate inventory rather than the annual certificate sale. Investors researching the annual sale should not assume the September sealed bid date applies to it.
  • Payment portals seen on the Treasurer's page, propertytaxonline.org and maconcountyil.us, are current-year bill payment systems only and carry no tax sale information.

Illinois rules

Max interest rate
9% per redemption period maximum, bid down at auction
Minimum return
No statutory minimum return; what you earn is set by the penalty rate at the sale
Redemption
Property sold at an Illinois tax sale may be redeemed at any time before the redemption period expires. Public Act 104-0553 set the standard period at 3 years from the date of sale for tax certificates issued on or after July 10, 2026. Certificates issued between January 1, 2024 and July 9, 2026 run on the earlier 2.5 year (30 month) track, and on that track the certificate holder could file a written notice with the county clerk extending redemption to a date no later than 3 years from the sale. A short 1 year period applies when the parcel was, on the date of sale, vacant non-farm property, commercial or industrial property, or improved with a structure holding 7 or more residential units. Certificates the county holds or assigns as trustee run on their own schedule under Section 21-385, and an assignee must file notice within 60 days of assignment setting a redemption deadline no later than 3 years from the assignment.
Deed deposit
Illinois does not fix a statutory deposit percentage. Deposit and payment terms are set in the court's order authorizing the auction and by the selling officer, so read the notice of tax deed auction for each sale. A purchaser who fails to complete the sale forfeits any deposit already made to the county surplus equity fund, and the court orders a new auction of the property.
Surplus proceeds
Any amount by which the winning bid exceeds the minimum bid is surplus. Within 30 days after the court confirms the sale the selling officer deposits the surplus with the county treasurer, who notifies everyone who received the Section 22-10 take notice that the owner at the time of the sale may file a claim for it. A county running its own tax deed auction deposits surplus with the treasurer within 30 days of the sale and notifies interested parties within 60 days. Separately, a previous owner who lost equity through a tax deed can claim an award from the county surplus equity fund, capped at the value of the property when the deed issued less mortgages, liens, and the taxes the purchaser paid.
Governing statute
35 ILCS 200, Articles 21 and 22

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.

See the full Illinoisrules and every county →

Frequently asked questions

Does Macon County, Illinois sell tax liens or tax deeds?

Macon County follows Illinois's tax lien state system.

When is the Macon County tax certificate sale?

Macon County does not publish an annual tax sale date online. The county FAQ says only that "The Treasurer is required by law to apply to the court and sell any unpaid taxes at the annual tax sale," with no month named, so confirm the date with the Treasurer's office at (217) 424-1426. The separate county tax agent surplus auction runs in September: the ILTaxSale.com Macon County page lists 09/18/2026, after sales dated 09/01/2023, 09/06/2024 and 09/12/2025. Always confirm the exact date with the County Collector before the sale.

How often does Macon County hold tax deed sales?

Macon County holds its tax deed sale as ordered by the circuit court. Within 120 days after the court order authorizing the auction. Each sale is scheduled and advertised in advance, so check the county's tax deed calendar for the next posted date.

I own a property in this sale. Can I stop it?

Often yes, by paying the overdue taxes, interest, and costs before the deadline. Illinois's redemption rule: 3 years from the date of sale, or 1 year for vacant non-farm, commercial, industrial, and 7-or-more-unit residential property. Call the Sheriff or a court-appointed private selling officer, under an order of the circuit court. A county acting as trustee runs its own tax deed auctions. as early as possible for your exact payoff and options; deadlines are strict. Free help: lawhelp.org lists legal aid programs, and consumerfinance.gov lists HUD-approved housing counselors.

Where can I find the Macon County tax sale list?

Macon County posts its tax sale list at iltaxsale.com. Lists go up ahead of each sale and keep changing until the sale date, so confirm every parcel against the county's legal advertisement before you bid.

Verified Jul 30, 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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Call Macon County Treasurer's Office