Allen County
Sheriff's Office
(419) 227-3535

Allen County
Sheriff's Office

(419) 227-3535 • Sheriff Matthew B. Treglia
333 N. Main St. Lima, Ohio 45802

Sheriff’s Sales

A Sheriff’s Sale is a public auction of properties that have been foreclosed. During the auction members of the public may bid on the properties.

Terms of Sale:

The Allen County Sheriff’s Office will conduct the sale of all real estate subject to foreclosure on the “Official Public Sheriff’s Sale Website” which is operated by Realauction based on a contract with the Ohio Department of Administrative Services. The process and procedures under which these sales will be completed are detailed at the Realauction website https://allen.sheriffsaleauction.ohio.gov   All prospective bidders should familiarize themselves with this new process.

In general, the following key points are noted:

  1. All person(s) who want to bid on a property offered by the Allen County Sheriff’s Office must register with Realauction. Registration will include the completion of the Purchaser Information Form.
  2. Properties will be open for bid, at least seven days immediately prior to the date of sale. This is generally known as a proxy bid.
  3. On Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time (EST), the online auction will begin.  The auction will be conducted for each individual property; however, only one property will be sold at a time. After a property is sold the next scheduled property sale will begin.
  4. To be a qualified participant, bidders must submit a deposit based on the total deposit requirement: Plaintiff is the bank (a) $2,000 if the property appraised value is $1.00 – $10,000 (b) $5,000 if the property appraised value is $10,001 to $200,000 (c) $10,000 if property appraised value exceeds $200,000.  The only acceptable deposit types are bank wire transfer or ACH, no cash deposits will be accepted. All Wire Deposits must be received by 5 p.m. EST two (2) business days before the auction sale date. All ACH Deposits must be initiated by 4 p.m. EST five (5) business days before the auction sale date. It is the responsibility of the bidder to plan ahead and allow enough time for their bidding deposits to be received and processed within the timeframes described above.
  5. Plaintiff/Judgment Creditors – A Judgment Creditor is defined as the creditors (plaintiff or defendants) who are awarded judgment in the foreclosure case. Judgment Creditors are required to register for a Username and Password and fill in all appropriate fields. Per Ohio Revised Code 2329.211, in every action of Judicial Sale or Execution of residential property, if the Judgment Creditor is the purchaser, they shall not be required to make a deposit on the sale. However, Judgment Creditors are required to submit the bidding style choice (pre-sale manage bid or live bid) AND a copy of the court order stating they are the Judgment Creditor on the case they are bidding to Realauction Customer Service (customerservice@realauction.com) at least one (1) business day prior to the sale date.  Submission can be done via email or fax. Submission must include the bidder number and user account contact first and last name in the submission. For more information and training on requirements to participate in the online auctions as a Plaintiff/Judgment Creditor, please call (877) 361-7325 ext 245 or 246.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Realauction will conduct webinar training classes. Training classes will be held via the Internet on a regular schedule. These webinar classes generally last 90 minutes and specifically cover the use of the software. Attendance is by registration only.

For additional information or to register for a webinar, please contact the Realauction Customer Service at (954) 734-7401 or toll-free at (877) 361-7325. Customer Service can also be reached via email at customerservice@realauction.com.

F.A.Q.s

Warning: Sales are “buyer beware.”

No. Properties purchased at Sheriff Sale are not available for inspection. The defendant in a foreclosure action is still the legal owner of the property. The Allen County Sheriff’s Office does not have keys for the properties that are being sold and has no access to the interiors. No arrangements may be made for an internal inspection of the properties. Any attempt to view the property without the owner’s permission can be a violation of the Criminal Trespassing law of the Ohio Revised Code. The bank or lending company should be contacted with any questions about an inspection of the property. The Allen County Auditor can provide a printout on the property showing the numbers, and types of rooms, etc. Sales are “buyer beware.” You are urged to consult an attorney.

The Allen County Sheriff’s Office does not guarantee a clear title. A title search is recommended.

Liens are marshaled (placed in order and paid in order) and paid from the sale proceeds. A Deficiency Judgment is granted to the Plaintiff (lien holder) against the Defendant (homeowner) if enough money is not generated at the sale. The liens are then canceled against the property. The exception is a Federal Lien, which would be on file at the Allen County Recorder’s Office. You are urged to check out any liens, and consult an attorney if you have questions. We do not have lien information at the Allen County Sheriff’s Office.

As the defendant, you have redemption rights up until the confirmation is filed. The time for a confirmation to be filed is within 30 days from the sale date. This means that if you pay off your mortgage, and the court costs associated with the foreclosure action, or acquire new financing you can keep your home. Once the confirmation is filed, you no longer have a right to redeem and the purchaser is awarded a writ of possession. However, some confirmations contain language to award the writ immediately upon the filing of the confirmation, others may require that the property is paid for and the deed recorded before the writ can be filed. This gives the purchaser the right to file paperwork to have the Sheriff notify you to vacate. 

This does not apply to Treasurer tax foreclosures. Please see “Tax Sales” for more details.

The purchaser may allow you to continue to live in the property or may file for the Sheriff to give you notice to vacate. Consult with an attorney to address legal questions arising from your relationship as a renter/lessee with the defendant in the case.

You are free to deposit funds in excess of the minimum amount provided the amount does not exceed the purchase price and recording costs. Any overage will be refunded.

A Foreclosure action that results in the actual sale of the property by the Sheriff is a lengthy process. Key steps in the process are as follows:

Complaint Filed: The matter is brought before the court. A Property Description Approval Form (PDAF) is filed to be sure that the correct legal description is attached to the complaint. This assures that the correct property is being foreclosed upon.
Judgment Entry Filed: Judgment(s) are granted and the property may be sold to recover judgment amounts, typically filed 3-5 months after being filed.

Precipe Filed: This order directs the Sheriff to advertise and sell the property according to the court terms in accordance with the terms of the Ohio Revised Code. The Sheriff cannot authorize an extension of these terms.

Public Auction: The property is auctioned at Sheriff Sale. Purchasers must be prepared to deliver the deposit at the time that the bid is accepted. If the deposit is not available the bidding will be re-opened until a successful bidder is found that has the required deposit. The successful bidder will file the Purchaser Information Form (PIF) at the same time as the deposit.

Confirmation Filed: This order names the purchaser, orders the deed preparation, the distribution of proceeds, orders lien cancellations, etc., and awards the purchaser the right to file for a writ of possession should anyone be occupying the property. This confirmation process typically takes up to 30 days and the balance of the purchase price is due at this time. Failure to complete the sale will result in forfeiting the deposit and being held in contempt of court.

Deed Recorded: The Ohio Revised Code makes the sheriff’s office the agent of the purchaser for the purpose of accepting recording the deed. The deed will be recorded within 14 business days of receiving all of the purchase funds due. The fees for this process will be deducted from the deposit placed by the purchaser at the auction.

*Records for all foreclosure cases can be found at Common Pleas Clerk of Courts Civil Division, located at 301 North Main Street, 2nd floor. Or you can access information through their website: http://clerkofcourts.allencountyohio.com/.

Search options with the Clerk of Courts are by defendant name, or case number. With this information visit the auditor’s website at http://www.allencountyohauditor.com to search.

Until a precipe is filed, the property will not proceed to sale. Properties are set for Sheriff Sale after the date of precipe.

The property was probably withdrawn or a bankruptcy was filed which puts a hold on sale proceedings. You can verify this by checking the Allen County Clerk’s website. It may also have been the final week of advertising.

No. The confirmation awards the purchaser possession of the property. You do not yet own the property and have not been awarded a right to possession and the defendant can still redeem the property.

The Allen County Sheriff’s Office has nothing to do with closing. The purchaser must arrange financing and closing.

The Sheriff’s Office appraisals do not qualify for bank loan appraisals. Therefore, it is recommended that lenders do their own appraisal once the property is vacated. Be reminded that the appraisers have no rights to an interior inspection of the property until after the confirmation.

If there is no distribution in your name in the confirmation filed, check the confirmation for funds to be held by the clerk. The Allen County Sheriff’s Office deposits all excess funds with the Allen County Clerk’s Office. In order to have the excess funds paid you must obtain an order from the court, signed by the judge assigned to your case, directing the clerk to disburse the excess funds to you.

The Auditor’s appraisal is done by law and is completed by a contract mass appraiser who appraises all property in Allen County for tax purposes. Appraisers appointed by the court only appraise the specific property being sold. An appraisal is an opinion of value and may vary widely.

A title company can present a certified or bank check payable to the Allen County Sheriff’s Office to pay off the balance of the purchase price. However, the Ohio Revised Code makes the Sheriff’s Office the agent for the purchaser for the purpose of recording the deed. This will be accomplished within 14 business days after the entire purchase price has been received by the Sheriff’s Office.

You can pay off the balance of the purchase at any time prior to the confirming entry being filed. A cashier’s check or money order payable to the Allen County Sheriff’s Office is required to pay the balance for a property purchased at Sheriff’s Sale. The Allen County Sheriff’s Office will not accept a company or personal check, or a credit or debit card for either the deposit or pay off balance.

Deposit refunds are set up for payment immediately upon receipt of the court order to set aside the sale and refund the purchaser’s deposit. Checks payable to more than one payee, must be signed for by all payees before the check will be released.

Failure to follow through with the purchase of a Sheriff Sale property may result in all or part of your deposit being forfeited. You may also face fines and jail time for being in contempt of court.

Since the only way deed information can be changed after the sale is by court order, making sure that the Purchaser Information Form (PDF) contains accurate information about how the property is to be deeded is very important. The recording of the deed may be delayed for failure to provide accurate information. You may change the information after the deed has been recorded by filing a new deed.

If someone is living in the house and will not vacate, the Sheriff’s Office will remove them on issue of a writ of possession. You will be responsible for obtaining the writ of possession from the Clerk of Common Pleas Court and for providing the manpower to set out their belongings or place them in storage.

Sometimes the property will be reappraised or a court order to reduce the amount of the starting bid will be obtained. The property may or may not be set for a subsequent sale.

Tax sales are foreclosures filed by the Treasurer’s Office for delinquent taxes. They are intermingled with the regular weekly foreclosure sales. Allen County does not have “over-the-counter” tax sales. Tax sales are advertised for three consecutive weeks prior to the date of sale. If a property is not sold the first time offered, it is set with a second sale date but is not re-advertised. Properties unsold after two attempts will be subject to forfeiture proceedings which may be eligible for Auditor’s Sale.

Property owners have the right to redeem until the date of the entry of confirmation. All deposits will be returned if the property is redeemed. 

The real estate taxes paid from the proceeds will be prorated to the date of sale. You may be responsible for some assessments that are not yet part of the tax bill and you will be responsible for any assessments and/or sewer bills attached to the property. 

Please check with City of Lima Property Maintenance at 419-221-5237 for any special assessments that may be outstanding or have not yet been accrued to the tax bill, e.g., junk removal, yard mowing, boarding up of house, etc. 

A title search by an attorney is recommended.