Do you have questions about how to use the online system? Please refer to Tennessee Tax Auction Training – GovEase Help (helpscoutdocs.com)

Frequently Asked Questions

1. I’ve set up my GovEase profile – does that mean I’m registered for the auction?

No, setting up a GovEase account/profile is NOT the same as registering for a specific auction. These are two separate steps. After creating a GovEase account, you must register for the specific auction you want to participate in. You can do this by going to My Account, clicking on Register/Add auctions, finding the county you want and then completing the county-specific registration documents that they require. You can register for multiple counties’ auctions, but you will have to complete the separate registrations for each.

Creating an Account and Registration FAQs

2. How do I get approved to bid?

The approval process and required documents will depend on the county and state. After creating a GovEase account, you must register for the specific county in which you wish to bid. You can typically begin registration three to four weeks before the tax sale date. However, this may vary. To register, you must use your GovEase account to electronically sign and/or upload any required documents.

3. How can I see If I am approved?

When logging in to your account, you can go to “MY ACCOUNT” and click on “MY REGISTRATIONS”. You will see the approval status for each county that you signed up for and the approved dollar amount.

4. Do you have to re-register each year?

Yes, you will have to complete new registrations for each county each year. However, you will NOT have to create a new GovEase account. You can still log in with your email and password from previous years. Your profile information will be the same, but you will still need to electronically sign or upload any registration documents for each county. You can do this by going to “MY ACCOUNT” on the left-hand toolbar and selecting “REGISTER/ADD AUCTIONS”. If you need to make changes to your profile click “MY ACCOUNT” then click “PROFILE.” On your profile, you can make any necessary changes and then hit “SAVE” at the bottom of the page.

5. Can I register multiple companies with the same email?

No. You need to register each company with a unique email.

6. How can I add counties after I have created my account?

Under “MY ACCOUNT”, select “REGISTER/ADD AUCTIONS”. Click Register for each county you want to bid in and electronically sign and/or upload all documents.

7. How can I delete counties after I have registered?

We can’t remove or delete counties that you have registered for from your account. However, if you are not approved for that county, then your account is inactive and cannot do any bidding. If you are approved by the county and you no longer want to participate, you can choose not to place any bids. There will not be a penalty for registering for an auction and then choosing not to participate. However, some auctions require a registration fee which is generally non-refundable. We recommend reviewing the property list and making sure that you are planning to participate BEFORE you pay any registration fees.

8. Are there any fees associated with registering or bidding?

There is no fee to create a GovEase account. However, some counties may require a non-refundable registration fee, which will be payable from that county’s registration page. Other than that, there are no additional fees for registering or bidding on our platform.

9. What do I put in the Requested Approval Amount box?

You will only be able to win and bid up to your Requested Approval Amount. In this scenario, if you put in $10,000 in the requested approval amount box you will be able to bid and win up to $10,000. You will not be able to bid and win more than this amount. Please make sure to check your approval amount and approval status by going to My Registrations under My Account before an auction begins.

Pre-Bidding and Live Bidding FAQs

9. Can more than one person be logged into the same account bidding at once?

Yes. More than one person can be logged in to the same profile and can bid at the same time.

10. When will the property list be available for viewing?

Property lists are generally posted on our website 2 to 4 weeks prior to the auction date. Once available, they can be viewed by going to the Auctions tab at the top of the left-hand navigation menu.

11. Can I place a bid on all properties prior to the start of the live sale?

Yes. Once the property list is loaded and pre-bidding has been enabled, you can bid on all properties you wish to bid on. You can place either a maximum overbid or minimum interest rate bid, depending on the state and county. Pre-bidding is typically only available to approved bidders 1-2 days before the tax sale date, but that may vary. You can pre-bid by entering individual bids on each parcel or by using the Upload Bids tab to do mass bidding. The mass bidding/upload bids feature will not be available during the live auction hours.

12. When can I begin to enter my pre-bids? What time will pre-bidding open?

Pre-bidding / max overbid entry will not be available until the county sends us their final sale file and it is loaded into our system, which is typically 1 – 2 days before the live auction is scheduled to start. An email will be sent when pre-bidding opens. A notification will also be posted on the updates tab, found at the top right of the page when you log in to your account. The updates tab is viewable by clicking the bell icon.

13. Will I be able to see the max overbids or pre-bids placed by other bidders?

No. You will only be able to see your own pre-bids.

14. When does the auction start?

Please visit https://www.govease.com/auctions for upcoming auctions and dates

15. Can I access the auction from my mobile device?

Yes. You can access the auction website on a mobile device, tablet, or any computer that has access to the internet.

16. Is the “face value” the amount of taxes owed on the property?

Yes. Face value is the actual taxes owed on the parcel plus any fees, penalties, etc.

17. Can I increase / decrease my max overbid for a parcel during the live auction?

Yes. You can increase, decrease or clear your max overbid for a parcel during the live auction. However, if you are the current winning bidder, you cannot clear/remove your bid and are responsible for the total purchase shown until you are outbid.

18. Can I bid less than face value?

No. The minimum bid is the face value amount.

19. Does the live bidding screen display the current winning bid?

Yes. The live auction screen displays the current winning overbid or current winning interest rate (depending on the auction) for the parcel that is being auctioned.

20. Where is the base tax shown during bidding?

It will be listed as the “Face Value”. The Face Value also includes any fees/penalties.

21. What order will the properties be in when they are auctioned?

This will vary from county to county. Typically, properties will be auctioned in the order that they are listed on the Auctions page.

22. On auction day, is only one parcel offered at a time?

Yes. One parcel is auctioned off at a time for each county. If for some reason there is a change, all bidders will be notified by email.

23. How are ties broken?

For most auctions, a tie bid will be broken by the first person to place their bid. This includes ties on max overbids entered prior to the beginning of the auction (pre-bids). For some auctions, such as 0% tied bids in Alabama or ties at any percentage in Iowa, the tie is broken by a random number generator.

24. Will I be able to download the post-auction final sale results?

If you were approved to participate in an auction, results will be available for viewing (but not for download) for a short time after the conclusion of the sale. You can view these results by using the menu to navigate to “reports” and opening the “completed auctions” report. Make sure to filter these results for the correct county. Even if you weren’t approved by the county, once the sale results are finalized, you can purchase them from: www.sellfy.com/govease.

25. Can you mass bid on many properties at once?

Yes. You can navigate to “Upload Bids” and follow the instructions. This is an entirely optional feature, but it comes in handy if you are pre-bidding on hundreds or even thousands of parcels at a time. The “upload bids” feature is not available if any auction is currently live.

26. How do I look up a parcel number or owner for a particular property in a specific county?

On the “AUCTIONS” page, use the search bar to search for a particular parcel number, unique # or owner name. Make sure the drop-down menu at the top of the screen is set to the county in which you want to search.

27. If I am approved for $20,000 and I pre-bid for a total of $20,000, can I continue to bid?

Yes. You can pre-bid above your approved amount. The approved dollar limit only applies towards won auctions/purchases. After you reach your limit on purchases, your pre-bids will not be entered during the live auction unless you contact the county or GovEase to have your limit raised. You will contact the county if they are handling the approvals and payments, and you will contact GovEase if we are handling those processes.

28. When I set a max overbid, and someone else places a bid, will the system automatically set my max amount as the current winning bid?

No. The amount you enter as your max overbid simply tells the system where to cut off and stop bidding for you. The system will bid what the county has set as their minimum bid increment (typically $1) over other bids until it reaches your set max overbid amount. As an example, if you set a max overbid of $50, and somebody else bids $37, the system will only bid you up to $38. Different counties may have different bid increments, and the bid increments will also vary depending on the type of bidding format an auction uses. For Alabama auctions, our system will bid 1% below the other bidder’s interest bid down to the minimum interest bid you set.

29. How do I bid just Face Value / Taxes Owed?

You can bid on a parcel at face value by entering $0 into the Place bid. For Alabama auctions, you are not overbidding at all. Instead, you are bidding the minimum interest rate you are willing to accept for that parcel.

30. What happens when there are no bids placed on a parcel?

That depends on the county/state. Contact GovEase customer support for more information.

31. Do I have to log in during the live auction if I have already set my bids during pre-bidding?

No. Once you have your pre-bids placed, our system will bid for you during the live auction up to the max overbid or minimum interest rate (Alabama) you have set.

32. If I bid on a property and someone outbids me during the live auction, do I still owe the county anything?

No. Only the winner of the auction owes the total purchase amount.

33. If I leave a check at the county courthouse, does that mean they will bid for me online?

No. You are responsible for using your account to place bids online.

34. If I pre-bid on a parcel or add it to my watch list, will I be notified when that parcel is coming up for auction in the live bidding?

No. But you can view upcoming parcels on the live bidding page. Also, depending on the order of the sale for that particular county, you may be able to follow along by alphabetical order or parcel number order. It will depend on the county for their order of sale.

Training and Auction Information FAQs

35. How can I view training videos?

You can register for an on-demand webinar by going to https://www.govease.com/help. Also, there is a knowledge base https://govease.helpscoutdocs.com/ that has training articles and videos you can watch at any time.

36. How can I see what counties are participating online with GovEase and when?

Visit our website and click on the Tax Sale Auctions tab at the top of the page. This page will provide a list of counties and the date they will be participating as of now. This will be updated periodically.

37. Will all the counties run their auctions at the same time?

This depends on the county/state. Please visit https://www.govease.com/auctions for an auction schedule.

Reports FAQs

38. Can I see a running total of my wins while the auction is in progress?

Yes. You can view the total parcels won and the amount spent at the top right on the Live Bidding page. You can also run reports anytime via the reports menu and click bidder purchase detail then filter by county and state and auction time period.

39. How can I see everything that I have won?

Under “REPORTS,” click on “Bidder Purchase Detail.” Filter by county and state and then make sure to select the correct auction reporting period. It will default to current auctions only, so you will need to click in the box and you will be able to see the state, year, and whether it was spring or fall. Select the reporting period that applies to you. You can also see reports that will give you a summary of your pre-bids (the bidder bid detail report) and the results of the entire auction (the completed auction report). You can also download these reports as a CSV Excel file or a PDF. Please note, that the results of the entire auction will only be available for a couple of days following the conclusion of the auction.