Bay County, Michigan

Tax Deed102,651 residentsLive auctions →

County research last verified 2026-07. Office holders, platforms, and deposit rules change — re-confirm anything time-sensitive.

Sale typestate default

Tax Deed

Redemption periodstate default

Forfeiture/foreclosure process ends redemption rights before auction (roughly 2 years of delinquency)

Investor returnstate default

N/A — outright deed transfer

Governing statutestate default

Michigan Compiled Laws §211.78 et seq.

Notes

Michigan tax-foreclosure (MCL 211.78 / PA 123) county — not a lien-certificate sale. After multi-year forfeiture, Circuit Court foreclosure (typically March 31 cycle) vests title in the County Treasurer as Foreclosing Governmental Unit; remainder parcels sell at public auction AS IS by quitclaim-style deed. Bay County 2026 auction for tax-foreclosed parcels: virtual on August 3, 2026 via tax-sale.info (Title Check, LLC); bidding opens 30 days prior. Excess proceeds claims under MCL 211.78t / Rafaeli framework (Form 5473 etc.). Historic 2015–2020 surplus claims also referenced on county page. Saginaw Bay / industrial mid-Michigan.

Auction logistics

Format

Online

Frequency

Annual summer public auction after March foreclosure (2026: Aug 3 virtual; bidding opens ~30 days prior); second-round sales possible statewide

Platform

Tax-Sale.info (Title Check, LLC) — Bay County public land auction ↗

Deposit rules

Register on tax-sale.info; deposit and terms per auction catalog. Minimum bid generally equals taxes, interest, penalties, and fees. Sold AS IS/WHERE IS; purchasers release Treasurer from liability per county notice. Confirm current cycle deposit with Title Check / Bay County Treasurer.

Title risk

Liens that survive the sale

Circuit court foreclosure is intended to convey free of most prior private liens, but federal tax liens and some interests may survive. Special assessments, demo orders, environmental issues, and occupancy create practical risk. Excess proceeds go to prior owners via statutory claim process — not a windfall auction model.

Quiet title

Judgment of foreclosure is the primary clearing step; some insurers still require quiet title or extended curative work on tax-foreclosed deeds.

Deal maths for Michigan

Assessment ratio: 0.5× of market value
Typical quiet title: $2,000–$4,000 · 9 mo
Recording and transfer: $300

Michigan state equalized value is 50% of true cash value by constitution (Mich. Const. art. IX, § 3); taxable value may be lower still. The SEV published with these auction listings is taken from the delinquent tax year that was foreclosed upon, so it is typically several years stale — in a rising market it understates current value, and in a falling one it overstates it.

Offices and records

Tax collector

Bay County Treasurer — Property Auctions ↗

Clerk of court

Bay County Register of Deeds / Circuit Court (foreclosure judgment) ↗

Property appraiser

Bay County Equalization / local assessors ↗

GIS / parcel map

Bay County GIS / parcel resources ↗

Areas trending up

Directional read from dated market analysis — not a guarantee, and not a substitute for your own comps.

Bay City / downtown–waterfront edge

County-seat revitalization and riverfront adaptive reuse with denser inventory

Essexville / east bay residential

Stable suburban SF demand with school-driven buyer pool

Bangor Township / west commercial fringe

Retail and industrial employment supporting workforce housing