Yakima County, Washington — Tax Sale & Surplus Procedure

Local operations layer. The legal framework (redemption periods, surplus rights, statutes, case law) lives on the parent page → washington. This page covers how Yakima County actually runs it. Legal information, not legal advice. Last verified: 2026-06-02.

C0. Identity

• County seat: Yakima
• Population: ~256,728 (2020 census)
• FIPS: 53077
• Recording unit: county (recorder function held by the Yakima County Auditor, Room 117 of the courthouse)
• Parent legal framework: washington — Washington is a tax-deed, judicial-foreclosure state; the county treasurer is the selling authority (RCW 84.64.080). No private lien certificates. Yakima County inherits the full state legal framework; the sections below are the operational layer only.

C1. Local Tax Sale

• Conducts own sale? Yes. The Yakima County Treasurer forecloses delinquent parcels judicially (Yakima County Superior Court) and conducts the auction.
• Platform: Bid4Assets (online). Yakima County has consistently used Bid4Assets for its annual real-property tax-foreclosure auction since at least 2016. The county’s official Foreclosure Auction Information page (yakimacounty.us/2646) and Bid4Assets store pages confirm this for 2022, 2024, and 2025 sales. https://www.yakimacounty.us/2646/Foreclosure-Auction-Information https://www.bid4assets.com/storefront/YakimaDec25
• Calendar: Annual, typically held in December. Confirmed December auctions: Dec 2022, Dec 2024 (re-offer), Dec 3, 2025 (9:00 AM PST). The next regular cycle (2026) auction date had not been published as of 2026-06-02 → needs_verification. https://www.bid4assets.com/storefront/YakimaDec25
• Rate within statutory range: N/A locally — delinquent-tax interest is set by RCW 84.56.020 at the state level (9% per annum for residential ≤4-unit / manufactured home; 12% for all other property). See washington.
• Registration & deposit: Registration is on Bid4Assets (www.bid4assets.com). As confirmed for the December 2025 auction:
  • Deposit: $1,000 (single deposit, regardless of number of parcels bid on).
  • Processing fee: $35 non-refundable (payable to Bid4Assets).
  • Deposit deadline (2025): by 4:00 PM ET (1:00 PM PT) Wednesday before the auction (November 26, 2025 for the Dec 3, 2025 sale).
  • Settlement deadline (2025): December 8, 2025 at 4:00 PM ET.
  • Prospective bidders must complete vesting information before they can access deposit instructions.
  • Non-winning bidder deposits refunded via eCheck within 10 business days. https://www.bid4assets.com/storefront/YakimaDec25 (via search results retrieved 2026-06-02; direct page returned HTTP 403 for automated access)
• Buyer’s premium: 5% of the winning bid (confirmed per multiple Bid4Assets/Yakima County auction storefronts).
• Bidder requirements: Must be at least 18 years old. All sales are final. Properties sold “as is,” no reserve (standard Yakima County auction designation). Vesting information completed before bidding.
• Delinquent / foreclosure list location: Properties in the current foreclosure cycle are listed on the Foreclosure/Distraint section of the Yakima County Treasurer’s website (yakimacounty.us/345). Auction listings with opening bids are posted on the Bid4Assets Yakima storefront in advance of each December auction. https://www.yakimacounty.us/345/ForeclosureDistraint https://www.yakimacounty.us/2646/Foreclosure-Auction-Information

C2. Local Redemption → framework: right-of-redemption

• Where/how to redeem locally: Pay all delinquent taxes, interest, penalties, and costs to the Yakima County Treasurer’s Office, Tax Division, Room 115, 128 N 2nd St, Yakima, WA 98901. Payment must clear before the close of business the day before the sale (per RCW 84.64.070 — see washington for the state redemption framework).
• Local fees: No additional county-specific redemption fee identified beyond the statutory interest, penalties, and foreclosure costs recoverable under RCW 84.64.070 → needs_verification whether Yakima adds any local administrative surcharge.
• Deadline reminder (county operational language): Yakima County’s FAQ states “Real property foreclosure begins May 1st for real property taxes/assessments delinquent 3 or more years.” Foreclosure is filed by the Treasurer with the prosecuting attorney; the owner can redeem at any time before the day of the sale. http://wa-yakimacounty.civicplus.com/Faq.aspx?TID=15,19,17,16,18,20,
• Redemption contact:
  • Office: Yakima County Treasurer — Tax Division
  • Phone: 509-574-2800
  • Address: 128 N 2nd St, Room 115, Yakima, WA 98901
  • Email: cntytreasurer@co.yakima.wa.us
  • URL: https://www.yakimacounty.us/181/Treasurer
• Deviations from state default: None identified — Yakima County follows the standard RCW 84.64.060–.070 framework (see washington).

C3. Local Surplus / Excess Proceeds → framework: surplus-funds

• Claim filing venue:
  • Office: Yakima County Treasurer’s Office
  • Address: 128 N 2nd St, Room 115, Yakima, WA 98901
  • Phone: 509-574-2800
  • URL: https://www.yakimacounty.us/181/Treasurer
• Claim form: “Application for Tax Foreclosure Surplus Proceeds” — available as a PDF from the Treasurer’s website. https://www.yakimacounty.us/1203/Application-for-Tax-Foreclosure-Surplus- (The PDF at that URL is a binary-compressed file; it was confirmed to exist and is described on the treasurer page as a “Sample” application form.)
• Local deadline notes: Three years from date of sale; consistent with RCW 84.64.080(10). Yakima County’s FAQs explicitly state: “Unclaimed amounts after three years become county funds.” http://wa-yakimacounty.civicplus.com/Faq.aspx?TID=15,19,17,16,18,20,
• Unclaimed list published: Yes — a “Surplus Funds Listing” PDF is maintained by the Treasurer’s office. https://www.yakimacounty.us/DocumentCenter/View/8136 (The listing PDF was confirmed to exist as of 2026-06-02; its contents are a compressed PDF and were not individually read — individual property/amount data → needs_verification.)
• Third-party recovery fee cap: 5% of amount returned to owner, per ESHB 1637 (2023) re-enacting the former RCW 63.29.350 cap. Yakima County FAQ expressly cites the 5% cap. See washington for full fee-cap framework. http://wa-yakimacounty.civicplus.com/Faq.aspx?TID=15,19,17,16,18,20,
• Contact: Yakima County Treasurer — Tax Division, 509-574-2800, cntytreasurer@co.yakima.wa.us

▸ For Investors / Operators — Yakima County runs an annual online auction via Bid4Assets each December, with a flat $1,000 deposit plus a$35 non-refundable Bid4Assets fee, a 5% buyer’s premium on the winning bid, and a settlement deadline approximately five days post-auction. Properties sell as-is with no reserve and are tax deeds (no post-sale redemption right once the deed issues). Parcels that receive no bids revert to county ownership as “tax title” property and are available for direct acquisition through the Treasurer’s Tax Title program (yakimacounty.us/1193). The redemption deadline to stop a foreclosure is close of business the day before the auction.

▸ For Former Owners — Surplus from a Yakima County tax foreclosure sale is claimed by filing the “Application for Tax Foreclosure Surplus Proceeds” form (PDF available at yakimacounty.us/1203) with the Yakima County Treasurer’s Office, Tax Division (128 N 2nd St, Room 115, Yakima, WA 98901; phone 509-574-2800). The county’s FAQ states unclaimed amounts become county funds after 3 years from the date of sale (consistent with RCW 84.64.080(10)). A current Surplus Funds Listing is maintained by the Treasurer’s office (yakimacounty.us/DocumentCenter/View/8136).

C4. Offices & Contacts

C5. Local Procedure Notes

• Foreclosure initiation: Yakima County begins foreclosure on May 1 for real property taxes and assessments that have been delinquent three or more years (consistent with RCW 84.64.050; confirmed by Yakima FAQ).
• Personal property distraint: Delinquent personal property taxes become immediately due in full under RCW 84.56.070 (distraint); taxes under $50 must be paid by April 30; taxes over$50 by October 31 to avoid collection.
• Unsold properties: If a parcel receives no bids meeting the minimum opening price at the Bid4Assets auction, the property reverts to county ownership and is managed as “tax title” property by the Treasurer. The county maintains a current Tax Title Listing and a Tax Title Application for direct acquisition of county-owned parcels. https://www.yakimacounty.us/1193/Tax-Title
• Re-offer / re-auction: Yakima County also conducts re-offer auctions for parcels unsold at prior sales (e.g., a December 2024 re-offer was held). These also run on Bid4Assets. https://www.bid4assets.com/storefront/YakimaDec24Reoffer
• Drive-thru payment facility: 217 N. 1st St., Yakima — cash and checks only, 9:00 AM–4:00 PM.
• Mortgage/deed-of-trust foreclosures: The Sheriff’s Office handles court- ordered mortgage sales; private Deed of Trust sales are handled by private trustees and lenders, not the Treasurer. Surplus from a non-judicial trustee’s sale is deposited with the Superior Court clerk (RCW 61.24.080) — see washington.
• No local ordinance deviations from state tax-foreclosure framework identified.

C6. Records Access

• Parcel search portal (Assessor): https://property.spatialest.com/wa/yakima#/ (Property Record Card, SpatialEst) Also: https://yes.co.yakima.wa.us/AssessorAPI/Property_Search.html (Characteristic Parcel Search) Also: https://yes.co.yakima.wa.us/ascend (Assessor/Treasurer cross-search and tax payment)
• Recorder / deed search (Auditor): https://ava.fidlar.com/WAYakima/AvaWeb/#/search (free; indexes/images for deeds/easements back to 1985; images available from Feb 23, 1997 forward) Also (occasional users, fee-based): http://www.landrecords.net (Tapestry, $8.95/search) Also: https://www.officialrecordsonline.com/OfficialRecordsOnline/Select/?state=WA&county=YAKIMA
• GIS map: http://yakimap.com/servlet/com.esri.esrimap.Esrimap?name=YakGISH&Cmd=Map (Yakima County GIS mapping portal — note: HTTP URL, may need to verify HTTPS availability)
• Tax payment portal: https://yes.co.yakima.wa.us/ascend (e-check or card; also pay by phone 866-888-0989)

C7. Meta

• sources:

  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/181/Treasurer”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/345/ForeclosureDistraint”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/2646/Foreclosure-Auction-Information”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/1203/Application-for-Tax-Foreclosure-Surplus-”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/DocumentCenter/View/8136”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/1193/Tax-Title”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/218/Assessors-Office”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/249/Recording”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/154/Clerk-of-Superior-Court”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/197/Payment-Information”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/268/Researching-Documents”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “http://wa-yakimacounty.civicplus.com/Faq.aspx?TID=15,19,17,16,18,20,”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: official, url: “https://www.yakimacounty.us/faq.aspx?TID=16”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: platform, url: “https://www.bid4assets.com/storefront/YakimaDec25”, retrieved: 2026-06-02, note: “HTTP 403 for direct fetch; content confirmed via search engine snippet extraction”}
  • {type: platform, url: “https://www.bid4assets.com/storefront/YakimaDec24Reoffer”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: platform, url: “https://www.bid4assets.com/storefront/YakimaDec22”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: portal, url: “https://property.spatialest.com/wa/yakima#/”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: portal, url: “https://ava.fidlar.com/WAYakima/AvaWeb/#/search”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: portal, url: “https://yes.co.yakima.wa.us/ascend”, retrieved: 2026-06-02}
  • {type: statute, url: “https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=84.64.080”, retrieved: 2026-06-01, note: “State page; Yakima inherits”}
  • {type: statute, url: “https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=84.64.070”, retrieved: 2026-06-01, note: “State page; redemption framework”}
  • {type: statute, url: “https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=84.56.020”, retrieved: 2026-06-01, note: “State page; interest rates”}

• needs_verification:

  • Exact deposit and processing fee figures for the 2026 annual auction (confirmed for 2025: $1,000 +$35; 2026 auction date not yet published as of 2026-06-02).
  • Whether Yakima County imposes any local administrative surcharge on top of statutory interest, penalties, and costs for redemption (no such fee found; none identified, but no explicit confirmation from official page).
  • Current Clerk of Superior Court name — not retrieved from the county directory (contact confirmed at 509-574-1430 / Room 323).
  • Current Sheriff name — not retrieved from the county directory (contact confirmed at 509-574-2500).
  • Surplus Funds Listing contents (PDF at DocumentCenter/View/8136 is a live binary PDF; individual property names and amounts not extracted).
  • GIS map URL — yakimap.com URL fetched as HTTP; availability and canonical HTTPS URL not confirmed.
  • Exact 2026 auction date (December is the consistent month; date not published at research time).
  • Whether the Yakima County Auditor’s free AVA portal (ava.fidlar.com/WAYakima) includes currently recorded deeds through 2026-06-02 (index confirmed back to 1985; currency not independently verified).

• cross_links: washington, right-of-redemption, surplus-funds, third-party-recovery-rules, treasurer-sale, sheriff-sale, tyler-v-hennepin-county, bankruptcy-automatic-stay, federal-tax-lien-redemption, scra-protections

• changelog:

  • 2026-06-02 — Initial Yakima County page drafted from official county treasurer pages, county FAQ, Bid4Assets auction storefronts (2022–2025), Yakima County Auditor recording pages, and Assessor parcel/GIS portals. All platform and procedural claims retrieved from official or platform sources. Legal framework inherited from washington (verified 2026-06-01).

▸ For Investors / Operators — Yakima County runs an annual online auction via Bid4Assets each December, with a flat $1,000 deposit plus a$35 non-refundable Bid4Assets fee, a 5% buyer’s premium on the winning bid, and a settlement deadline approximately five days post-auction. Properties sell as-is with no reserve and are tax deeds (no post-sale redemption right once the deed issues). Parcels that receive no bids revert to county ownership as “tax title” property and are available for direct acquisition through the Treasurer’s Tax Title program (yakimacounty.us/1193). The redemption deadline to stop a foreclosure is close of business the day before the auction.

▸ For Former Owners — Surplus from a Yakima County tax foreclosure sale is claimed by filing the “Application for Tax Foreclosure Surplus Proceeds” form (PDF available at yakimacounty.us/1203) with the Yakima County Treasurer’s Office, Tax Division (128 N 2nd St, Room 115, Yakima, WA 98901; phone 509-574-2800). The county’s FAQ states unclaimed amounts become county funds after 3 years from the date of sale (consistent with RCW 84.64.080(10)). A current Surplus Funds Listing is maintained by the Treasurer’s office (yakimacounty.us/DocumentCenter/View/8136).

Legal information, not legal advice. Verify against the cited primary sources before acting. Last verified: 2026-06-02.