City Owned Properties

To find property owner of record, you can visit MACOG, or contact County Assessor for assistance (574) 235-9523.

1. Scroll down and click Property Viewer
2. Click: St. Joseph County Parcels
3. Enter the Owner Name, Prop Address, County Parcel ID, or State Parcel ID
4. At the bottom left of the page, click on Search for Parcels
5. Click on Print Report then Click here. Download your information.

How can I buy a City-owned property?

State law outlines procedures for disposing of property owned by local government. These procedures vary considerably based on several factors. One factor is which entity of the City of South Bend owns the property—the Board of Public Works, the Redevelopment Commission, or the Redevelopment Authority. Once you’ve identified that the property is owned by the City, we suggest emailing emichaels@southbendin.gov or calling our Department of Community Investment at (574) 235-5931 for assistance. They will then let you know how to proceed.  The process can take at least three months to complete.

One of the most frequent requests is to purchase a vacant lot abutting one’s own property. If the property in question is owned by the Board of Public Works, has an assessed value of less than $6,000 and the abutting property owner is current on all property taxes s/he owns, this can be a relatively easy process—though we legally need to follow certain procedures.

Complete the Application and submit to the City

Email to: emichaels@southbendin.gov

Mail to: Erin Michaels, Department of Community Investment, 1400S County-City Building, 227 W. Jefferson Blvd., South Bend, IN 46601

Process

1. The application is received by the Department of Community Investment (DCI).
2. DCI will conduct an initial review of the application:
3. Determine which process must be followed to sell the property of interest;
4. Determine if the applicant is current on property taxes;
5. Circulate the application to other City Departments for review and recommendation.
6. Determine if the City wishes to sell the property of interest.
   • The applicant is notified if it is determined that the City does not wish to sell the property.
7. If the City is willing to sell the property, will determine the minimum bid price and notify the applicant.

How am I able to buy an abandoned property or vacant lot?

Currently there are two ways to acquire a property:

1. Contact the owner and reach an agreement (*See St. Joseph County Parcel Search) OR
2. Through the St. Joseph County Tax Sale or Commissioner’s Certificate Sales
   1. Prior to purchasing/bidding on any property, you should contact the Department of Neighborhood Services & Enforcement at neighborhoods@southbendin.gov to find out if there are any housing violations with the property BEFORE you bid on it.  You may be bidding on a property that has an affirmed demolition order.

Contact Neighborhood Services & Enforcement at: (574) 235-5542 or visit us at: 13th floor of the County-City Building (227 W. Jefferson Blvd. Suite 1300 South Bend, IN 46601).

Additional details about the tax sale and county commissioners’ certificate sale process are available by contacting the St. Joseph County Treasurer at (574) 235-9531.  Anyone can purchase property as long as all aspects are met per the agreement with the St. Joseph County Treasurer.