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Tax Sale Atlas

Greene County, IA tax sales

Tax Sale Atlas maps the Greene County, IA tax sale, one of 2,553 counties in 30 states. Iowa sells tax lien certificates paying up to 24%. Sale office, calendar and list locations read from the county’s own official pages on Jul 29, 2026.

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

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

Next sale
Iowa holds no tax deed auction.
Format
In person
Registration
Register with the Treasurer's office ahead of the sale.
County office
515-386-5675
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Jul 29, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Greene County sells delinquent taxes

From lien to deed

Iowa holds no separate tax deed auction. The county treasurer makes out a deed for each parcel sold and unredeemed immediately after 90 days have expired from the date of completed service of the notice of expiration of the right of redemption, once the holder returns the certificate of purchase and pays the deed and recording fees.

Tax certificate sale (lien)

In person
Run by
Greene County Treasurer
Frequency
annual
Typical timing
Annually in June, matching Iowa Code Chapter 446.
Registration
Register with the Treasurer's office ahead of the sale.
Next expected
on the third Monday in June, 2027 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Sale list
Greene County Delinquent Tax List and Notice of Regular Tax Sale (2026)
When it runs
Annually in June, matching Iowa Code Chapter 446. The county's 2026 notice reads: "Notice is hereby given that on Monday, June 15, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. at the Jefferson Community Golf Course the Greene County Treasurer will offer for sale all taxes that remain unpaid at the time of sale." The same notice sets the bidder deadline: "All Bidders must be registered by Thursday, June 11, 2026."
Registration and deposit

Register with the Treasurer's office ahead of the sale. The 2026 notice states "All Bidders must be registered by Thursday, June 11, 2026" and directs questions to 515-386-5675. The county's posted terms require a completed Registration of Bidder or Assignee form, a W-9, and an agent authorization form if someone bids on your behalf, plus a registration fee of $15.00 per entity paid at the time of registration. Bidders and agents must be 18 or older and should bring photo identification to the sale. A bidder that is not an individual needs a federal tax identification number and either a designation of agent for service of process on file with the Iowa Secretary of State or a verified statement under Iowa Code Chapter 547 on file with the Greene County Recorder. The terms state registration forms are posted at iowatreasurers.org after selecting Greene County.

Sale format and venue
Greene County runs its tax sale in person, not online. The 2026 notice places the sale at the Jefferson Community Golf Course in Jefferson, and the county's terms have bidders register through the Treasurer's office, so no online bidding platform is confirmed for this county. Confirm with the office before planning to bid remotely. Bidding follows Iowa's bid-down-interest method: the party willing to buy for the least interest in the property, no lower than one percent, becomes the purchaser, and when two bidders want the same parcel at the same rate the certificate is sold on a random drawing selection basis. Parcels are offered by item number in numerical sequence by taxing district, with real estate delinquencies first, then public bidder items, then mobile home delinquencies, then public bidder mobile homes. Payment is due at the conclusion of the sale and covers delinquent taxes, special assessments, interest, fees, and a $20 certificate fee for each certificate issued. Redemption accrues interest of 2% per month against the original tax sale amount, and recorded subsequent tax payments accrue at the same 2% per month. The 2026 notice states a treasurer's deed may be issued at the expiration of two years from the date of sale. Issuing a treasurer's tax sale deed costs $25 per parcel, and assigning a certificate carries a $100 assignment transaction fee. Certificates for parcels advertised twice fall under the public bidder track, where the 90 day Notice of Right of Redemption may be issued nine months from the date of sale instead of one year and nine months. Fee figures and the registration workflow come from the county's posted terms and conditions document, which is headed for the June 21, 2021 sale, so verify current amounts and forms with the Treasurer before registering.
Source: Greene County Delinquent Tax List, Notice of Regular Tax Sale (2026), signed Katlynn Mechaelsen, Greene County Treasurer· Verified Jul 29, 2026

Greene County tax sale list and auction calendar

For Greene 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.

  1. Get the advertised list

    Use Greene County Delinquent Tax List and Notice of Regular Tax Sale (2026) for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.

  2. Register to bid

    Register with the Treasurer's office ahead of the sale. Full requirements are in the sale card above.

  3. Sale day

    Iowa holds no tax 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.

  4. Confirm with the office

    If the list, platform, and notice disagree, use County Treasurer as the source to confirm which parcels are actually offered.

Before you bid in Greene County

  1. Start with the live sale list

    Pull the current advertised parcels from Greene County Delinquent Tax List and Notice of Regular Tax Sale (2026). Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.

  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    Register with the Treasurer's office ahead of the sale. The 2026 notice states "All Bidders must be registered by Thursday, June 11, 2026" and directs questions to 515-386-5675. The county's posted terms require a completed Registration of Bidder or Assignee form, a W-9, and an agent authorization form if someone bids on your behalf, plus a registration fee of $15.00 per entity paid at the time of registration. Bidders and agents must be 18 or older and should bring photo identification to the sale. A bidder that is not an individual needs a federal tax identification number and either a designation of agent for service of process on file with the Iowa Secretary of State or a verified statement under Iowa Code Chapter 547 on file with the Greene County Recorder. The terms state registration forms are posted at iowatreasurers.org after selecting Greene County.

  3. Check the state rules that change the bid

    Read the Iowa due-diligence checklist before bidding. Redemption, liens that survive a tax deed, title cleanup, and payment deadlines can change what a parcel is worth.

  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

Two routes reach parcels after the June sale. Parcels that remain unsold for want of bidders are carried to adjourned sales, which the treasurer sets at intervals of not more than two months until the next annual sale. Separately, certificates struck to the county at the public bidder sale may be assigned by the county for the total amount due on the date of assignment, or for a compromised amount, under a written agreement filed with the treasurer and a 10 dollar assignment transaction fee. Ask the county treasurer which county-held certificates are available for assignment.

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

Use the arrow keys to switch between these sections.

County offices

Tax Collector (runs the certificate sale)

Greene County Treasurer

515-386-5675

114 N Chestnut, Jefferson, IA 50129

Official website

County notes

  • The sale is conducted in person at the Jefferson Community Golf Course, so there is no online platform to register on. All bidder registration runs through the Treasurer's office.
  • The county treasurer named on both the 2026 notice and the terms document is Katlynn Mechaelsen.
  • Greene County's tax sale documents are published in the county's folder on iowatreasurers.org, the Iowa State County Treasurers Association portal. The county's own website was unreachable to automated retrieval during this research because of a bot-protection challenge, so contact and sale facts here come from the county-authored PDFs on the state treasurers portal.
  • The statewide treasurers portal links to a general Iowa tax auction site for counties that sell online. Greene County's own 2026 notice names a physical sale location instead, so that site was not treated as this county's platform.
  • Third-party tax lien listing sites carry Greene County pages. Treat them as unverified and rely on the Treasurer's published notice and terms.

Iowa rules

Max interest rate
24% per year, fixed by statute (not bid down)
Minimum return
No statutory minimum return; what you earn is set by the share of ownership taken at the sale
Redemption
A parcel may be redeemed at any time before the right of redemption expires. After one year and nine months from the date of sale, the certificate holder may serve a notice of expiration of the right of redemption on the person in possession, the person in whose name the parcel is taxed, and every mortgagee, contract vendor, recorded lessor, and other party of record. The right of redemption then ends 90 days after that service is complete, which means the affidavit of service has been filed with the county treasurer. Three shortened tracks exist: nine months from a public bidder sale under section 446.18, and three months from an abandoned-property or public nuisance sale under section 446.19A or 446.19B. After the treasurer delivers the deed, redemption is possible only through an equitable action in district court, and only by a person who could have redeemed during the 90-day window.
Surplus proceeds
No surplus arises. The deed conveys the parcel to the certificate holder rather than selling it to the highest bidder, so there are no excess proceeds to distribute. Where the winning bid was less than 100 percent, the deed conveys only that undivided percentage interest in the parcel.
Governing statute
Iowa Code Chapter 446

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 Iowarules and every county →

Frequently asked questions

Does Greene County, Iowa sell tax liens or tax deeds?

Tax lien certificates. In Iowa investors buy the lien, not the property; the County Treasurer runs the sale.

When is the Greene County tax certificate sale?

Annually in June, matching Iowa Code Chapter 446. The county's 2026 notice reads: "Notice is hereby given that on Monday, June 15, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. at the Jefferson Community Golf Course the Greene County Treasurer will offer for sale all taxes that remain unpaid at the time of sale." The same notice sets the bidder deadline: "All Bidders must be registered by Thursday, June 11, 2026." The sale is held in person. Always confirm the exact date with the County Treasurer before the sale.

How often does Greene County hold tax deed sales?

Greene County holds its tax deed sale none. Iowa holds no tax deed 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. Iowa's redemption rule: 1 year 9 months from the sale before the notice of expiration can be served, then 90 days after service is complete. Call the County Treasurer 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 Greene County tax sale list?

Greene County posts its tax sale list at iowatreasurers.org. 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 29, 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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Compare sale calendars, platforms, and rules across the state, or read the guides before you bid.

Iowa tax salesDue diligence guide
Call Greene County Treasurer