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Tax Sale Atlas

Polk County, IA tax sales

Tax Sale Atlas maps the Polk 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 Polk County, seat of Des Moines: 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
GovEase
Registration
Registration is online only through GovEase.
County office
515-286-3060
Every displayed fact carries a source badge. Verified Jul 29, 2026 against official county and state pages.How we verify
On this page

How Polk 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)

GovEase
Run by
Polk County Treasurer
Frequency
annual
Registration
Registration is online only through GovEase.
Next expected
on the third Monday in June, 2027 (window; exact date posts closer to the sale)
Sale list
Polk County Treasurer delinquent tax lists
When it runs
The Treasurer states "The annual tax sale takes place in June of each year." The 2026 terms set the sale for Monday, June 15, 2026, with bidding that "begins at 8:00 a.m. and closes at approximately 11:00 a.m." Online adjourned sales follow on July 20, 2026, September 21, 2026, November 16, 2026, January 18, 2027, March 15, 2027 and April 19, 2027 when bidders are registered by 5:00 p.m. 14 days before the adjourned date and parcels remain available.
Registration and deposit

Registration is online only through GovEase. The Treasurer's page says "To register for the Polk County Annual Tax Sale, visit www.govease.com" and the 2026 terms state "No mailed, emailed or in person registrations will be accepted." For 2026, registration opened at 8:00 a.m. on Monday, May 18, 2026 and closed at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, June 5, 2026. Each bidder pays a non-refundable $40.00 registration fee through GovEase, completes an online W-9 (or W-8BEN for non-resident aliens and foreign businesses), completes an online direct deposit authorization for a checking account, and uploads a Certificate of Existence from the Iowa Secretary of State or a Trade Name Verification Statement from the Polk County Recorder if applicable. Bidders must be 18 or older on the sale date. GovEase bidder support is listed at (769) 208-5050 or support@govease.com.

Sale format and venue
Polk County runs a bid-down-ownership-interest certificate sale under Iowa Code Chapter 446. Delinquent taxes on each parcel open at a 100% undivided interest and "bid downs" move in whole percentage points from 99% to 1%; ties at the lowest percentage are broken by random selection. The 2026 sale is not a live auction: pre-bids are required and were uploaded from 8:00 a.m. Thursday, June 11, 2026 through 7:45 a.m. Monday, June 15, 2026, with no bids accepted after that deadline. Winners pay by eCheck or ACH debit through a link on GovEase by 5:00 p.m. on the sale date, covering delinquent taxes, special assessments, interest, collection fees, publishing costs and a $20.00 certificate fee per certificate. Redemption carries interest of 2% per month, counting each fraction of a month as a whole month. Parcels advertised once are regular sales, where the 90-day Notice of Right of Redemption may issue after one year and nine months; parcels advertised for two years are public bidder sales, marked with an asterisk on the published list, where the 90-day notice may issue after nine months. Certificates are canceled if no affidavit of service under Iowa Code 447.12 is filed within three years. Subsequent taxes must be paid online at MyAccount.IowaTaxAndTags.org or they are omitted from the redemption calculation. Certificate assignment carries a $100.00 fee and a Treasurer's tax sale deed costs $25.00 per parcel. The 2026 delinquent tax list was published Wednesday, June 3, 2026 in the Altoona Herald, and parcels were viewable on GovEase to registered users no later than Monday, May 18, 2026. The Treasurer also publishes a Tax Sale Buyer Database at https://taxsale.polkcountyiowa.gov/ with delinquent lists, active sales and available redemption funds. Confirm current-year dates with the office before committing funds.
Register on GovEase
Source: Polk County Treasurer, 2026 Annual Tax Sale Terms and Conditions (PDF)· Verified Jul 29, 2026

Polk County tax sale list and auction calendar

For Polk 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 Polk County Treasurer delinquent tax lists for the current advertised parcels, then recheck it before the auction.

  2. Register to bid

    Registration is online only through GovEase. Full requirements are in the sale card above.

  3. Sale day

    Iowa holds no tax deed auction. Bidding runs on GovEase; check posted sale dates, registration status, and bidding windows there.

  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 Polk County

  1. Start with the live sale list

    Pull the current advertised parcels from Polk County Treasurer delinquent tax lists. Lists can change before the sale, so recheck the county source before you price a parcel.

  2. Confirm registration and deposit

    Registration is online only through GovEase. The Treasurer's page says "To register for the Polk County Annual Tax Sale, visit www.govease.com" and the 2026 terms state "No mailed, emailed or in person registrations will be accepted." For 2026, registration opened at 8:00 a.m. on Monday, May 18, 2026 and closed at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, June 5, 2026. Each bidder pays a non-refundable $40.00 registration fee through GovEase, completes an online W-9 (or W-8BEN for non-resident aliens and foreign businesses), completes an online direct deposit authorization for a checking account, and uploads a Certificate of Existence from the Iowa Secretary of State or a Trade Name Verification Statement from the Polk County Recorder if applicable. Bidders must be 18 or older on the sale date. GovEase bidder support is listed at (769) 208-5050 or support@govease.com.

  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)

Polk County Treasurer, Property Tax Division

515-286-3060

Polk County Administration Building, 111 Court Avenue, Room 154, Des Moines, IA 50309

Official website

County notes

  • The Treasurer of record is Mary L. Wells, who signs the annual tax sale terms and conditions.
  • Property Tax Division phone is 515-286-3060 and the fax is 515-323-5202; email is PropertyTax@PolkCountyIowa.gov. The terms and conditions list 515-286-3035 for tax sale certificate questions, duplicate certificates and 1099-INT requests.
  • Office hours listed are 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, opening at 9 a.m. on the third Thursday of each month.
  • The auction is hosted online by GovEase even though the terms describe the sale as held by the Treasurer at 111 Court Ave in Des Moines; all bids must be submitted through GovEase, so there is no in-person bidding.
  • Polk County does not use the Iowa Tax Auction / Zeus platform at iowataxauction.com that several other Iowa counties use. GovEase is the platform named on the county's own tax sale page and in its terms and conditions.
  • Delinquent lists are split by mobile home versus real estate, cities versus townships, and regular sale versus public bidder versus public nuisance.

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 Polk 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 Polk County tax certificate sale?

The Treasurer states "The annual tax sale takes place in June of each year." The 2026 terms set the sale for Monday, June 15, 2026, with bidding that "begins at 8:00 a.m. and closes at approximately 11:00 a.m." Online adjourned sales follow on July 20, 2026, September 21, 2026, November 16, 2026, January 18, 2027, March 15, 2027 and April 19, 2027 when bidders are registered by 5:00 p.m. 14 days before the adjourned date and parcels remain available. Registration and bidding happen on the county's online platform. Always confirm the exact date with the County Treasurer before the sale.

How often does Polk County hold tax deed sales?

Polk 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 Polk County tax sale list?

Polk County posts its tax sale list at taxsale.polkcountyiowa.gov. 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 Polk County TreasurerOpen auction