View a list of the properties currently for sale.
Shawnee County Sheriff's Sales Frequently Asked Questions
This is an attempt to answer general questions that are presented to the Sheriff's Office and should not be considered legal advice.
When and where are the Sheriff's sales held?
Mortgage foreclosure sales and other property sales ordered by the Court to be sold by the Sheriff are held each Tuesday (except holidays) at 10:00 am sharp in the sub-basem*nt of the Shawnee County Courthouse, 200 SE 7th Street.
All forfeiture, converted, or retired agency vehicles auctioned by the Sheriff's Office is done through GovDeals.com. This is open to the public after an account is registered. The Sheriff's Office will not ship vehicles. All vehicles are sold as is, with absolutely no implied warranty what-so-ever.
Unclaimed found or seized property is sold online at www.propertyroom.com.
Judicial tax foreclosure sales are set by the Shawnee County Counselor's Office (785.251.4042). Any questions relating to tax foreclosures should be directed to the County Counselor's Office. This includes all property being sold for delinquent real estate taxes.
How do I find out more information about a sheriff's sale?
The Shawnee County Sheriff's Office posts a property sale list as a courtesy only, it is not required by statute and is not a legally binding list of properties being sold. Sales may be cancelled or added last minute and due to this ever changing nature there is no guarantee the posted list of sales will be current and up to date.
Sales are tracked by case number, defendants name and sale date. If you call requesting information on a property you must have at least one of these items in order for us to be able to pull information from our system.
By Statute, sales must be advertised for three weeks prior to being held, this is typically done via Topeka Metro News, but any newspaper published in Shawnee County may be utilized by the seller. Additional information may be found from the Courts website at www.shawneecourt.org or from the sellers representing attorney. It is the representing attorney's discretion of whether they release their starting bid amount.
The winning bidder has NO Right to personally inspect any property prior to sale. The homeowner still has legal possession of the property until redemption rights are extinguished. The redemption period can be anywhere from 90-365 days.
Anyone other than the plaintiff who purchases a bank foreclosure property must provide payment at the time of sale. Payment must be in the form of a certified bankers check. Checks must be made payable to the Clerk of the District Court.
It is the prospective buyers' responsibility to thoroughly research properties to be sold at Sheriff Auction.
What happens at the Sheriff's sale?
Sales begin at 10:00 am sharp! The plaintiff(s) name, defendant(s) name and case number will be read by the Sheriff's Office representative. The plaintiff's representative (usually the attorney representing the bank) will open bidding. After the plaintiff's bid the bid is open to other bidders. If someone other than the plaintiff purchases the property they must immediately present FULL payment in the form of a certified bank check. The Sheriff's Office WILL NOT provide change for any transaction! If the certified check is for an overage or less than the bid amount, the Sheriff's Office will retain that check and the successful bidder will have until 12:00 pm the day of sale to secure a certified check for the correct amount. The new check may be exchanged at the Clerk of the District Court, 200 SE 7th, Rm 209. If, the successful bidder does not return with a new check the original check may be deposited with the Clerk of the District Court and the successful bidder then must make arrangements with the Clerk's Office to recover the overage amount. If the winning bidder is someone other than the plaintiff's representing attorney that person must provide picture ID, current residence and telephone number.
Checks must be made out to Clerk of the District Court.
What happens after the sale?
If the plaintiff is the successful bidder they are responsible for completing and submitting the required paperwork to the Sheriff's Office. If a third party wins the bid, the third party is responsible for completing all the required paperwork. The Sheriff's Office Will Not provide legal guidance in completing the required paperwork to complete the sale. When a third party wins the bid the Sheriff's Office will escort the buyer to deposit the certified check with the Clerk of the District Court. The Clerk of the District Court will then wait for a disbursem*nt order from the Court. Most properties have a redemption period which can be anywhere from 90-365 days. The purchaser has no legal right to the property until after the redemption rights have been extinguished and the defendant may remain on and maintain custody of the property until redemption rights have been extinguished. Should the property be redeemed the purchaser will need to contact the plaintiff's attorney so the funds can be disbursed back to the winning bidder. If a third party is the successful bidder, that person may attempt to contact the plaintiffs representing attorney and request them to complete the return of sale, certificate of purchase and Sheriff's Deed. This documentation must be provided to the Sheriff's Office Civil Process Unit. Once the Sheriff's Deed has been executed and delivered to the winning bidder they may then begin to make arrangements to take custody of the property. If there are individuals remaining on the property that refuse to leave you will need to make legal arrangements for a Writ of Assistance (eviction).
Plaintiff's Responsibilities in order for the Sheriff to call the sale.
The Plaintiff will publish the sale as per K.S.A. 60-2410.
The Sheriff's fee is due whether the sale is called or cancelled.
The Sheriff's fee is due prior to calling the sale or cancelling the sale. If the Sheriff does not have the fee prior to the date and time of sale the Sheriff will cancel the sale due to lack of payment per K.S.A. 28-110. The return of sale/no sale will not be filed until payment is made.
A new sale cannot be applied for until the return cancelling the original sale has been filed with the Clerk of the District Court.
The plaintiff shall provide the Notice of Sale to the Sheriff's Office as early as possible in order to get the Sheriff's file started. Typically the Sheriff's fee is provided with the Notice of Sale. The Court Case number of the foreclosure must be labeled on the check for the Sheriff's fee.
The Certificate of Purchase (COP) should be presented to the Sheriff's representative at the time of sale. If the Plaintiff purchases the property the COP will be completed and returned to the representing attorney. The ORIGINAL COP must be surrendered to the Sheriff in order to have the Deed executed. Please do not file the original COP with the Court as you must surrender it to receive the Deed.
The Plaintiff's representative is responsible for providing the return of sale or no sale to the Sheriff for execution. The return will not be filed until the Sheriff's fee is paid.
It is the Plaintiff's representative's responsibility for completing the Deed and submitting it to the Sheriff for execution. The Deed will not be executed until all fees and delinquent property taxes are paid as well as required paperwork being submitted to the Sheriff.
If the plaintiff's representative E-files the case, it is the plaintiff's representative responsibility to submit ALL paperwork to the Sheriff. The Clerk of the District Court will not provide any of the paperwork to the Sheriff when the case is filed using the E-filing method.
