Massac tax bills, the September installment and the tax sale
The typical Massac County homeowner pays about $1,704 a year in real estate taxes, according to Census survey data: $2,017 for homes with a mortgage and $1,416 for homes without one. On the county's median home value of $121,900, that works out to roughly 1.4 percent a year. The 2025 taxes, payable in 2026, were billed June 26. The first installment was due August 12, and the second is due September 22, 2026, the same day mobile-home taxes are due. The Treasurer at 1 Superman Square in Metropolis only collects current-year taxes. Back taxes go through the County Clerk's office in the same building.
Illinois law has the county collector apply for a judgment and sale order within 90 days after the second installment is due. No Massac sale date has been published, so call the County Clerk to confirm. What sells is the tax debt, not the house. The bidder who accepts the lowest penalty, capped at 9 percent, pays the taxes, and on a typical home you generally have up to 3 years from the sale to redeem. The Supervisor of Assessments posts its 2025 quadrennial change list on its page. Complaints to the Board of Review are due within 30 days after the change list runs in the local paper. The same office handles the owner-occupied exemption, worth up to $6,000 of equalized value in counties like this one, plus senior (65 and older), disability and disabled veteran exemptions.
Foreclosure in the First Judicial Circuit in Metropolis
Illinois mortgages can only be foreclosed through the courts. Massac County sits in the First Judicial Circuit along with Alexander, Pulaski, Pope, Johnson, Union, Jackson, Williamson and Saline counties. Foreclosures here are filed with the Massac County Circuit Clerk at the courthouse in Metropolis, and that office keeps the records of every case the county courts hear.
State law sets the clock. You can reinstate the loan by paying the missed amounts and costs within 90 days after you're served. Your right to redeem by paying the full amount runs until the later of 7 months from service or 3 months from the judgment, and it ends before the judicial sale. After the sale, the court holds a hearing to confirm it, and the buyer can take possession 30 days after that order. The Illinois foreclosure timeline and the deadline calculator walk through each step.
River towns and farmland from Metropolis to Joppa
Massac County had an estimated 13,502 residents in 2025, down from about 14,176 in 2020. Metropolis, the county seat, sits on the Ohio River, and Brookport and Joppa are the smaller river towns. Away from the river, the county is mostly farmland and scattered homes.
The river towns are cheaper than the countryside around them. Census median values are about $86,000 in Metropolis, $58,300 in Brookport and $45,000 in Joppa, compared with $132,500 across the whole 62960 Metropolis ZIP, which takes in the city plus the farmland around it. Small samples make every town figure rough, so treat them as a starting point. About 24 percent of occupied homes countywide are rented, and mobile homes make up about 14 percent of the housing.
Running the numbers on a $120,000 Massac home
Zillow's typical Massac home value was about $120,000 in August 2026, up roughly 4.5 percent from a year earlier but easing since an April peak. Sales are thin in a county this size, so a single month's sale prices can swing widely. Here's a rough look at what comes out of $120,000 on a traditional listing:
- Agent commission at about 4.9 percent (Clever's Illinois average, updated September 2026): roughly $5,900
- Closing costs at about 1.2 percent: roughly $1,400
- State transfer tax at $0.50 per $500: about $120
That's roughly $7,400 before your mortgage payoff, repairs or holding costs. Who pays the transfer tax is negotiable, so ask your closing attorney how your contract splits it. The Clerk and Recorder charges $93 to record a standard document. If you inherited the house, the inherited house guide covers the Illinois steps.
If the property is a fit, a cash buyer may make an offer and you pick the closing date. Listing with an agent is also a fine choice. If a foreclosure deadline is pushing you, the page on selling to stop a foreclosure lays out the options.
More Illinois pages for Metropolis, Brookport and Joppa sellers
Massac doesn't have town pages yet, so Metropolis, Brookport and Joppa sellers can start with these.
- Alexander County: shares the First Judicial Circuit with Massac County
- All Illinois pages: the statewide directory of county and city pages
Sources: Census Reporter, Massac County profile; Census Reporter, Massac County real estate taxes paid (B25103); Census Reporter, Massac places and 62960 ZIP home values (B25077); Census Bureau, county population estimates; Massac County Treasurer; Massac County Clerk; Massac County Supervisor of Assessments; Illinois Property Tax Code (35 ILCS 200); Illinois Code of Civil Procedure, mortgage foreclosure article (735 ILCS 5); Illinois Courts, circuit court chief judges; Zillow Research data; Clever commission survey
