State laws / Kansas
Kansas tax sales: liens, deeds, rates & redemption
Quick answerKansas sells tax deeds for unpaid property taxes. Redemption: No post-sale redemption. The owner may redeem at any time before the sheriff's sale; the county generally may not file its judicial foreclosure action until the parcel has remained unredeemed on September 1 of the second year after it was bid in by the county (September 1 of the first year for certain abandoned / low-value categories) - K.S.A. 79-2801 and 79-2401a. Sales: No statewide sale date; counties file judicial tax foreclosure actions periodically (commonly one sale cycle per year per county) and the sheriff sells after judgment, on a court-set date, with notice published for three consecutive weeks and the sale at least 30 days after first publication (K.S.A. 79-2804). Governing law: Kansas Statutes Annotated 79-2801 et seq. (Article 28, Judicial Foreclosure and Sale of Real Estate by County), esp. 79-2801 and 79-2804; redemption at 79-2401 / 79-2401a.
Where to bid: County-specific: some counties run the sheriff's sale online via GovEase (e.g., Shawnee County) or CivicSource (e.g., Sedgwick County historically); many counties still hold in-person sheriff's sales at the courthouse.
| What is sold | Tax deeds |
|---|---|
| Interest / penalty | n/a - Kansas sells no lien certificates to private investors; the county bids in delinquent parcels itself and later forecloses judicially. Interest and penalties on delinquent taxes accrue to the county, and the sheriff-sale buyer acquires the property itself. |
| Redemption period | No post-sale redemption. The owner may redeem at any time before the sheriff's sale; the county generally may not file its judicial foreclosure action until the parcel has remained unredeemed on September 1 of the second year after it was bid in by the county (September 1 of the first year for certain abandoned / low-value categories) - K.S.A. 79-2801 and 79-2401a. |
| When sales happen | No statewide sale date; counties file judicial tax foreclosure actions periodically (commonly one sale cycle per year per county) and the sheriff sells after judgment, on a court-set date, with notice published for three consecutive weeks and the sale at least 30 days after first publication (K.S.A. 79-2804). |
| Governing law | Kansas Statutes Annotated 79-2801 et seq. (Article 28, Judicial Foreclosure and Sale of Real Estate by County), esp. 79-2801 and 79-2804; redemption at 79-2401 / 79-2401a |
| Investor notes | Even though there is no redemption after the sale, K.S.A. 79-2804b allows a legal challenge to set aside the sale for procedural defects for 12 months after court confirmation, so title is not fully settled in year one. A sheriff's deed issues only after the court confirms the sale, which can take up to about 90 days in some counties. |
Sources
- https://taxlien.io/rankings/
- https://snco.gov/counselor/tax_sale.php
- https://www.taxsaleatlas.com/state-held-land-by-state/
Law verified 2026-10-30 against the sources above. Confirm current details with the county tax collector / clerk before bidding — counties can change dates and procedures.
Go deeper: all Kansas counties · Kansas sale calendar · Kansas investing guide