How It Works in Elkhart County
Property taxes in Elkhart County are billed and collected by the County Treasurer in Goshen, at 117 N. Second St., in two installments each year. If they go unpaid, the parcel is eventually certified to the county's annual tax sale.
The important thing to understand about an Indiana tax sale is that a buyer does not walk away owning your house that day. They receive a tax sale certificate, and Indiana then provides a redemption period during which you can pay what is owed — taxes, interest, and costs — and keep the property. Only if that period passes without redemption does the certificate holder move toward a deed.
So there are two distinct deadlines that matter: the date the parcel is certified for sale, and the date the redemption period ends. Both are knowable, and the Treasurer's office in Goshen can tell you exactly where your parcel stands. That phone call is free and it is the first thing to do.
Vacant and Abandoned Parcels Are Treated Differently
This is the exception that catches people out, and it applies to a lot of Elkhart County property.
Indiana treats vacant and abandoned parcels differently from occupied ones in the tax sale process, and the protections available to an owner-occupier are not necessarily available on an empty house. If your delinquent property has been standing vacant — an inherited house, a rental you never re-let, a home you left when work took you elsewhere — do not assume you have the full redemption period you have read about.
Confirm your specific parcel's status with the Elkhart County Treasurer rather than relying on a general description of how Indiana tax sales work. The difference between the two tracks is the difference between having a year and having considerably less.
You Can Still Sell — Here's How the Money Works
Delinquent taxes are not an obstacle to selling. They are a lien that gets paid at closing out of the sale proceeds, exactly like a mortgage payoff. The title company handles it and you do not need to clear the balance beforehand — which is fortunate, since if you had the money to clear it you probably would have.
The arithmetic that matters is straightforward. If the property is worth meaningfully more than the taxes owed, selling converts that difference into cash in your hand. Letting the process run its course does not — the equity above the debt is simply absorbed.
We can also buy where a tax sale has already occurred and a certificate is outstanding, provided the redemption period has not expired. That is a tighter transaction and the timeline is unforgiving, so it is worth calling sooner rather than later if that is where you are.
| Sell before the deadline | Let it run | |
|---|---|---|
| Delinquent taxes | Paid from proceeds at closing | Continue accruing interest and costs |
| Equity above the debt | Comes to you | At risk |
| Timeline | 7–14 days | Fixed by the county calendar |
| Control | Yours | None |
Before You Sell, Try These
- Call the Elkhart County Treasurer in Goshen and ask for your exact balance and where the parcel stands. Ask specifically about payment plan options — counties often have them, and they are far more available earlier in the process than later.
- Check your deductions. Indiana's homestead and mortgage deductions meaningfully reduce a bill and are missed surprisingly often, particularly after an inheritance or a change in occupancy. The County Auditor in Goshen handles these.
- Consider an assessment appeal if the assessed value looks disconnected from what the property would actually sell for. There is an annual deadline, so timing matters.
- Get free legal help — Indiana Legal Services (1-844-243-8570) assists income-qualifying homeowners with tax and foreclosure matters at no cost.
If none of that closes the gap in the time available, selling is the option that preserves what is left. Read our Elkhart County tax sale and foreclosure guide for the fuller picture.
Elkhart County Tax Resources
Tax Offices & Free Help
- Elkhart County Treasurerelkhartcounty.comYour exact delinquent balance, whether a payment plan is available, and whether the parcel is headed for the next sale. 117 N. Second St., Goshen.
- Elkhart County Auditorelkhartcounty.comHomestead and mortgage deductions are filed here. A missing deduction can be part of why the bill got away from you.
- Indiana Legal Servicesindianalegalservices.orgFree legal help for income-qualifying owners whose house is on, or near, the tax sale list. 1-844-243-8570.