01How it is defined in LeadCounty
Latest transfer was a sheriff, marshal, receiver or foreclosure sale.
02How many are on the list today
Sheriff / foreclosure sale is on file in 63 of 99 counties this week. The most are in Prince George's County, MD (113,677), Baltimore County, MD (104,626), Montgomery County, MD (101,944); the typical county has 518. In the latest full week Baltimore County, MD recorded the most (87).
| County | On the list | Latest week | 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prince George's County, MD | 113,677 | 40 | 6,855 |
| Baltimore County, MD | 104,626 | 87 | 6,284 |
| Montgomery County, MD | 101,944 | – | 7,724 |
| Clark County (Las Vegas), NV | 50,807 | 13 | 639 |
| Philadelphia County, PA | 12,538 | – | 989 |
| Fairfax County, VA | 4,335 | 0 | 113 |
| Bergen County, NJ | 3,615 | – | 29 |
| El Paso County (Colorado Springs), CO | 3,222 | 0 | 51 |
| Franklin County, OH | 2,713 | 0 | 185 |
| Hudson County (Jersey City), NJ | 1,754 | 1 | 44 |
| Wayne County (Detroit), MI | 1,680 | 1 | 334 |
| Montgomery County (Dayton), OH | 1,618 | 16 | 155 |
03Why it matters
Properties bought at foreclosure auctions are often resold quickly, and buyers at auction are a good list of active investors.
04Where it shows up in public records
Sheriff and trustee sale results, and the deed type recorded after the sale.
05How to find sheriff / foreclosure sale in 3 steps
- Step 1, find the record: sheriff and trustee sale results, and the deed type recorded after the sale.
- Step 2, match it to the property: join the record to the parcel by its parcel number and the owner's name and address, so you know which house it belongs to.
- Step 3, add a second reason: stack sheriff / foreclosure sale with another list to see which owners have more than one reason to sell. LeadCounty does steps 1 and 2 for every property each week.
06How we count it
LeadCounty counts sheriff / foreclosure sale from each county's own records and shows the number for every county in the table above, refreshed weekly. A county that does not publish the record shows no count rather than a guess.
07How to use it
- Use it to find active cash buyers as well as resale opportunities.
08Best stacks with sheriff / foreclosure sale
One list gives you a reason; two or three lists together give you owners with several reasons at once. The stacks that work best with sheriff / foreclosure sale:
- Sheriff / foreclosure sale + high equity: the owner still has equity to protect, so a fair sale works for both sides.
- Sheriff / foreclosure sale + absentee owner: the owner gets the tax bill somewhere else, so the house is less personal to them.
