Washington County Clerk

Brett Barry

Waving American Flag

Our office is open
Monday – Friday 9 AM – 4:30 PM
2nd Saturday of the month 9 AM to NOON
Office Phone: 859-336-5425

Delinquent Taxes

Delinquent Property Tax Timeline

Each year the citizens of Washington County pay their annual property tax to the county. In the event, an individual fails to pay by the deadline (July 29th), the property tax bill will be transferred to the Washington County Clerk’s Office, and penalty fees will be assessed. The Clerk’s Office is responsible for collecting delinquent property tax bills.

  • October 1 – The Washington County Sheriff mails the tax bill postcards
  • October through April 15 – The Washington County Sheriff collects all property tax bills
  • April 16 – The delinquent tax bills are transferred to the Washington County Clerk’s Office for collection

If you do not receive your tax bill by the middle of October, please call the Property Value Assessor’s Office at 859-336-5420 to confirm your mailing address.

The Washington County Attorney’s Office will attempt to notify the property owner of their delinquency.

If the tax bill is not paid in full by the date of the tax sale, the tax bill (NOT the actual property) will go up for sale and may be purchased by a third property.

Click the link below if you need information on how to apply for the Homestead Exemption.

Annual Tax Sale

Delinquent bills must be advertised no more than 45 days and no less than 30 days before the tax sale.

Third Party Purchasers – All third party purchasers, purchasing one or more bills, are required to submit their registration form for the tax sale at Washington County Clerk’s Office. Any third party purchaser wishing to purchase five or more bills statewide and three in one county or invest more than $10,000 are also required to register with the Commonwealth of Kentucky Revenue Cabinet.

Payoff Information

The Clerk’s Office accepts delinquent property tax payments Monday through Friday during regular business hours.

Methods of Payment:

  • Cash
  • Certified Check
  • Cashier’s Check
  • Money Order
  • Debit Card ($2.50 processing fee will be added to total)
  • Credit Card (2.75% processing fee will be added to total)

Make checks payable to the Washington County Clerk

The Clerk’s Office CANNOT accept partial payments on delinquent tax bills. If you are unable to make your payment in full you may call the Washington County Attorney’s Office to make payment arrangements at (859) 336-3901

The current year’s taxes are collected at the Washington County Sheriff’s Office. For more information, please call (859) 336-5400, or contact them through their web site.

SMLLC Delinquent Tax Bill Look Up

The website you’re about to go to was designed to identify for third party purchasers the current year delinquent tax bills available for sale for the counties listed, in compliance with HB262 (2008) for the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

It is an information website only. The County Clerk’s office will be the sole determinant of the actual dollar amounts applicable to each bill at the time of sale.

Delinquent Taxes FAQ

Can you tell me about Third Party Purchaser Dates?

Tax Sale: Aug. 6th, 2024 at 10:00am
Last Day for Third Party Vendors to Register: July 29th, 2024 at 4:00pm  

All dates are close of business. Paperwork must be submitted by mail or in person. We will not accept any of the required documents via fax or email.

August: Third-Party Purchasers may need to register with the Department of Revenue (DOR) before being able to participate in the annual Clerk’s sale. This is the latest date that can show on your DOR registration as the date you may begin purchasing certificates of delinquency in and be eligible to participate in our sale. Department of Revenue Registration information is provided.

August: Last day to submit a list of current certificates of delinquency the purchaser is interested in purchasing at the sale if the purchaser was properly registered by the July deadline. The list must be prepared in order by tax bill number, lowest to highest.

August: Last day for each third party purchaser to register with the county clerk to participate in clerk’s sale of priority or current year certificates of delinquency.

August: Last day to submit list and payment of priority certificates of delinquency the purchaser intends to purchase. Payment should include 100% of the amount due for each certificate and the $45.00 lien assignment fee for each certificate listed.

How many people from my company can participate in the tax sales?

We are accepting only one representative per company to participate in the tax sale.

How does the sale process work?

The annual sale will be a lottery, serpentine style, with rounds as follows:

Rounds 1-2: 1 Bill
Rounds 3-4: 5 Bills
Rounds 5 and above: Up to 10 Bills

How can I view current delinquent tax bills?

What are the procedures for delinquent tax sales?

The annual sale of current year certificates of delinquency will be held in July, in the Washington County Clerk’s office located at 117 N Cross Main St # 1.

The published notice of all current year certificates of delinquency will be advertised in The State Journal in June. After publication of the advertisement, a listing of these certificates will also be available online at http://kydtax.smllc.us/ The website address for this listing will also be included in the published ad in June. Our office will not provide lists of available bills.

Copies of all lists of priority certificates shall be available, by request, no later than forty-eight (48) hours prior to the sale. However, once the priority certificates have been approved, a comprehensive listing will be available at http://kydtax.smllc.us/.  Additionally, purchasers may make a request by contacting our office at 606-784-5212.

Third party purchasers may also obtain delinquent tax information in our office during normal business hours.

Can you explain bankruptcy issues with delinquent tax sales?

KRS 134.128 provides that any certificate of delinquency involved in bankruptcy litigation in which the county attorney or department has filed a claim shall be prohibited from being sold by the county clerk. However, since local officials are often not informed timely of these filings, third party purchasers should be encouraged to do their own research before purchasing certificates of delinquency at a tax sale. A subscription service knows as “PACER” can be utilized by third-party purchasers to get up to date information about bankruptcy filings. Third-party purchasers can obtain more information about this service by visiting https://pacer.uscourts.gov/

Skip to content