Behind on Property Taxes in Indiana?

Back Taxes in Indiana: Your Options

This page explains what happens in Indiana when property taxes on a lot or acreage go unpaid. It covers the spring and fall due dates, the late penalties, the county tax sale, how long you have to redeem after a sale, what redemption costs, and how to check what you owe. It is written for owners of vacant land, including heirs who found out about back taxes late.

Back taxes do not stop you from selling. An Indiana tax sale does not take your land on the sale day. The buyer gets a certificate, and you keep the right to redeem until the redemption period ends. Until a tax deed is issued, you can pay the taxes or sell the land and have the taxes paid from the sale at closing. This page is general information, not legal or tax advice; for your own parcel, ask your county treasurer or auditor, or an Indiana attorney.

When Indiana property taxes are due and when they become delinquent

Indiana property tax is paid in two installments. By state law the spring installment is due May 10 and the fall installment is due November 10 (IC 6-1.1-22-9). If a due date falls on a weekend or holiday, payment is on time the next business day.

An installment that is not paid by its due date is delinquent. The penalty starts the next day.

Penalties on late Indiana property taxes

Indiana county treasurers apply the state penalty rule (IC 6-1.1-37-10). If you pay the whole late installment within 30 days after the due date, and the parcel has no earlier delinquent taxes, the penalty is 5 percent of the unpaid tax. If you pay later than that, or the parcel already owes delinquent taxes, the penalty is 10 percent.

If the tax is still unpaid in later years, another 10 percent penalty on the unpaid tax is added the day after each May and November due date. Ask your county treasurer for the exact total for your parcel.

What the county does next: the tax sale

A parcel becomes eligible for the tax sale when taxes from the previous year's spring installment or earlier are still unpaid and the delinquent amount is more than $25. Within 51 days after the spring due date (about the end of June), the county treasurer certifies to the county auditor a list of these parcels (IC 6-1.1-24-1). Counties then advertise the list and hold the sale later in the year. Monroe County, for example, holds its sale online in the fall.

The minimum bid at the sale covers the delinquent taxes, current taxes, penalties and sale costs. Monroe County, for example, adds $50 for postage and publication and $150 for notice to interested parties. The buyer pays that amount and gets a certificate of sale. The buyer does not own your land yet.

A parcel can be removed from the sale list only when all delinquent taxes, special assessments, penalties, interest and sale costs are paid in full. If the county commissioners acquire the lien (IC 6-1.1-24-6), the redemption period is shorter.

Redemption: getting your land back after a tax sale

After a regular Indiana tax sale, you can redeem for one year from the sale date. If the county commissioners acquired the lien, the period is 120 days (IC 6-1.1-25-4). There is no right to redeem a parcel that the county auditor put on its vacant and abandoned property list.

To redeem, you pay the county, not the buyer. State law sets the amount (IC 6-1.1-25-2):

• 110 percent of the minimum bid if you redeem within 6 months of the sale, or 115 percent after 6 months.
• Interest of 5 percent per year on any amount the buyer bid above the minimum bid (the overbid).
• Any later taxes and assessments the buyer paid, plus 5 percent interest on them.
• Costs the buyer had, such as attorney fees and title search costs.

If the land is not redeemed

When the redemption period ends without redemption, a tax deed can be issued to the buyer. Once the deed is issued, the old owner loses the land.

If the land sold at the tax sale for more than the minimum bid, the extra money may be claimed by the owner of record. Monroe County calls this the surplus. Ask your county auditor how to file a claim and how long you have.

Your options if you owe back taxes on Indiana land

You have more choices before the tax sale than after it. After the sale, the cost to redeem rises to 110 or 115 percent of the minimum bid.

• Pay the delinquent taxes, penalties and costs to the county treasurer before the parcel is sold.
• Ask the treasurer whether a payment arrangement is possible for your parcel.
• Redeem after the sale, within one year (or 120 days when the commissioners hold the lien), through the county.
• Sell the land. The taxes and any redemption amount are paid from the sale price at closing.

Selling Indiana land that has back taxes

You can sell land with delinquent taxes, and you can sell after a tax sale while the redemption period is still open. At closing, the title company pays the county treasurer the taxes, penalties and any redemption amount from the sale price. The buyer receives clear title, and you receive the rest.

EasyLotBuyer buys vacant land with back taxes, liens and title issues. We make a cash offer within 24 hours, charge no fees or commissions, pay the closing costs, and can close in as few as 7 days. The back taxes are paid at closing from the sale.

Where to check your Indiana tax status

The county treasurer collects taxes and can tell you the exact amount owed. The county auditor runs the tax sale and keeps the list of parcels on it. Find your county's website through the state's Indiana counties directory. Have your parcel number ready; it is on your tax bill.