Bidding on Bid4Assets: a general guide
Philadelphia’s sheriff sales take place online at Bid4Assets. This page covers the general steps; each sale’s own listing on Bid4Assets has its exact times and terms.
UpsetSale is not affiliated with Bid4Assets or the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office. Bid4Assets and the Sheriff are the official sources.
The steps, in the Sheriff’s words
“To participate in a Philadelphia Sheriff’s Sale, you will need to take the following steps: 1. Visit Bid4Assets.com and register for a free account. There are no monthly fees for having an account. 2. Submit a single deposit via certified funds by wire transfer or certified check at least one week before the bidding opens for the auction. Note: If you do not win any auctions, your deposit will be refunded within 10 business days. 3. Log in to your Bid4Assets account at the hours specified for the sale you’re interested in to place your bids.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales, answering “How do I participate in an online sale?”. As read on October 12, 2026.
Start at Bid4Assets’ Philadelphia page, which links to the tax and the mortgage foreclosure sales. The deposit amounts are on What you’ll pay.
The deposit
“You only need to put up one deposit to bid in a particular sale, even if you want to bid on many properties.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales. As read on October 12, 2026.
“We will continue to process deposits via wire transfer after the deadline, but once the deadline has passed we cannot guarantee you will be cleared in time.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales. As read on October 12, 2026.
“If you did not win any sales, you will be given the option to roll your deposit into the next auction.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales. As read on October 12, 2026.
Reading a listing
“It means the law firm has not yet provided the minimum bid for a property.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales, answering what “pending” means in the current bid column. As read on October 12, 2026.
On mortgage foreclosure sales, the plaintiff sets a hidden reserve:
“Bidders will not know what the reserve price is, but they will see when the reserve price has been met.”
Source: the Sheriff’s Mortgage Foreclosure Conditions of Sale, paragraph 5. As read on October 12, 2026.
During the auction
“All Bid4Assets bids are treated as legally binding agreements.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales. As read on October 12, 2026.
“You cannot cancel bids or back out of a sale after the auction, so please complete your due diligence before you bid.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales. As read on October 12, 2026.
If you win
“If you win an auction, Bid4Assets will send you a notification via email and via alert in your account’s message center notifying you that you are the winning bidder. Once you receive this notification, you will be able to access the DeedWizard tool located on your account to access payment instructions and submit vesting information.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales. As read on October 12, 2026.
The payment deadlines are on What you’ll pay.
Before you bid
- Check the property’s status on the official listing on the day of the sale.
- Look up its taxes and water lien.
- Read what survives the sale for its kind of sale.
- Ask a title company and an attorney the questions to ask.
“It is considered to be trespassing to walk on a property that is not yours without the explicit invitation to do so. The Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office urges you to do your due diligence virtually or by examining the property from a public area.”
Source: the Sheriff’s FAQ about online sheriff sales. As read on October 12, 2026.