# Bid4Assets Scraper (`crawlerbros/bid4assets-scraper`) Actor Scrape Bid4Assets.com - county tax-lien, tax-deed, and sheriff-sale property auctions across the US. Search by keyword or parcel, browse by auction type or state, filter by auction status. No login, no proxy required. - **URL**: https://apify.com/crawlerbros/bid4assets-scraper.md - **Developed by:** [Crawler Bros](https://apify.com/crawlerbros) (community) - **Categories:** Automation, Lead generation, Real estate - **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing from $3.00 / 1,000 results This Actor is paid per event and usage. You are charged both the fixed price for specific events and for Apify platform usage. Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have. Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event ## What's an Apify Actor? Actors are a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases. In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours, and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store. In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server. Actors are written with capital "A". ## How to integrate an Actor? If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects. You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready. The best way to integrate Actors is as follows. In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.md): ```bash pip install apify-client ``` In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): ````bash # MacOS / Linux curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash # Windows irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex ```bash In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp.md). If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md). For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below. For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt). # README ## Bid4Assets Scraper Scrape **Bid4Assets.com** — one of the largest online marketplaces for county government real estate auctions: tax-lien certificates, tax-deed sales, sheriff sales, and surplus-funds claims from counties across the US. Search by keyword or parcel number, browse by auction type or state, and filter by auction status. No login, no cookies, no paid proxy required. ### What this actor does - **Three modes:** `search` (keyword/parcel), `byAuctionType` (Tax Lien / Tax Deed / Sheriff Sale / Surplus Funds), `byState` (browse by US state) - **Filters:** marketplace channel (defaults to Real Estate — this actor's focus), property type, auction status (open / closed / all) - **Sort:** close/open date, current bid, bid count, title, auction ID (mirrors the site's own sort dropdown) - **Historical range:** search up to 6 months back for closed auctions - **County extraction** — parsed directly from each listing's title - **Auction-type classification** — Tax Lien / Tax Deed / Sheriff Sale / Surplus Funds, detected from listing title phrasing - Empty fields are omitted from every record ### Output per listing - `auctionId` — Bid4Assets auction identifier - `title` — full listing title (usually includes state, county, and parcel description) - `currentBid` — current/winning bid amount (USD) - `bidCount` - `auctionOpenDate`, `auctionCloseDate`, `actualCloseDate` - `timeLeftSeconds` — present only while the auction is still open - `auctionStatus` — `open` or `closed` - `locationCity`, `locationState`, `locationStateName` - `county` — extracted from the listing title - `auctionType`, `auctionTypeName` — Tax Lien / Tax Deed / Sheriff Sale / Surplus Funds (only when confidently detected) - `imageUrl` — listing photo - `sourceUrl` — canonical Bid4Assets auction URL - `recordType: "listing"`, `scrapedAt` ### Input | Field | Type | Default | Description | |---|---|---|---| | `mode` | string | `search` | `search` / `byAuctionType` / `byState` | | `criteria` | string | `tax lien` | Keyword or parcel/APN number (required for mode=search) | | `auctionType` | string | – | Tax Lien / Tax Deed / Sheriff Sale / Surplus Funds (required for mode=byAuctionType) | | `state` | string | – | US state (required for mode=byState) | | `channel` | string | `22` (Real Estate) | Marketplace channel — Bid4Assets also sells vehicles, coins, art, etc. | | `category` | string | – | Real-estate property type (Agricultural / Commercial / Residential / Timeshares / Other) | | `auctionStatus` | string | `open` | `open`, `closed`, or `all` | | `sortBy` | string | – | Sort order (close/open date, current bid, bid count, title, auction ID) | | `dateRangeMonths` | int | `6` | How far back to search closed auctions (1–6 months) | | `maxItems` | int | `50` | Hard cap on emitted records (1–2000) | | `proxyConfiguration` | object | off | Optional Apify proxy (AUTO group); adds resilience under sustained volume | ### Example: keyword search ```json { "mode": "search", "criteria": "surplus funds", "auctionStatus": "open", "maxItems": 30 } ```` ### Example: browse by auction type ```json { "mode": "byAuctionType", "auctionType": "taxDeed", "maxItems": 40 } ``` ### Example: browse by state, residential only ```json { "mode": "byState", "state": "FL", "category": "05", "maxItems": 25 } ``` ### Example: closed auctions, sheriff sales ```json { "mode": "byAuctionType", "auctionType": "sheriffSale", "auctionStatus": "closed", "maxItems": 20 } ``` ### Data source / limitations Bid4Assets' search API does not expose a structured "auction type" facet for real estate — `auctionType` is classified from each listing's title text (e.g. a title containing "Tax Lien Sale" or "Sheriff's Sale"). Listings whose title doesn't clearly indicate a sale type are still returned in `search`/`byState` modes but omit `auctionType`; `byAuctionType` mode only returns listings that match a known phrasing for the requested type. Likewise, `county` is parsed from the title rather than a dedicated field, and is omitted when the title doesn't name a county. `byState` mode (when no `criteria` is given) searches internally for the near-universal keyword "county" to keep the state filter active — this reliably covers the vast majority of listings but can miss the rare non-"county" jurisdiction (e.g. a Louisiana parish or an incorporated borough referenced only by name). ### Use cases - **Tax-lien investors** — monitor new tax-lien certificate auctions by state or county - **Real estate wholesalers** — track tax-deed and sheriff sales for below-market acquisitions - **Title & surplus-funds researchers** — find surplus-funds claims tied to foreclosure sales - **Market analysts** — benchmark current bids across counties and property types - **Auction aggregators** — feed live Bid4Assets real-estate listings into a broader search tool ### FAQ **What is Bid4Assets?** Bid4Assets is an online auction marketplace where county governments, sheriffs, and municipalities sell tax-lien certificates, tax-deeded properties, and sheriff-sale real estate, alongside other government surplus categories. **Is this affiliated with Bid4Assets?** No. This is an independent, third-party actor that reads Bid4Assets' own public listing data, the same way a visitor's browser does. **What's the difference between a tax lien and a tax deed?** A tax lien certificate gives the buyer a claim against unpaid property taxes (with interest), not ownership of the property. A tax deed sale transfers actual ownership of the property itself after a tax foreclosure. **What is a "surplus funds" listing?** Some counties sell or claim excess proceeds left over after a tax-foreclosure sale exceeds the amount owed — these are listed as their own auction/claim type. **Why is `auctionType` missing on some listings?** Bid4Assets doesn't provide a structured auction-type field for real estate; it's inferred from the listing title. Titles without clear tax-lien/tax-deed/sheriff-sale/surplus phrasing omit this field rather than guessing. **Does this cover every county?** Coverage depends entirely on which counties are actively running auctions on Bid4Assets at any given time — this actor reflects the live marketplace, not a fixed county list. **How current is the data?** Every run queries Bid4Assets' live listings API directly, so results reflect the current bid and status at run time. # Actor input Schema ## `mode` (type: `string`): What to fetch. ## `criteria` (type: `string`): Free-text keyword or a specific parcel/APN number (required for mode=search; optional extra filter for other modes). ## `auctionType` (type: `string`): Browse by real-estate auction/sale type. ## `state` (type: `string`): Browse listings located in a specific US state. ## `channel` (type: `string`): Bid4Assets sells more than real estate; defaults to Real Estate (this actor's focus). Change to explore other channels. ## `category` (type: `string`): Restrict to a real-estate property type. ## `auctionStatus` (type: `string`): Only currently open (live) listings, only closed/sold listings, or all. ## `sortBy` (type: `string`): How to order results (mirrors the site's own sort dropdown). ## `dateRangeMonths` (type: `integer`): How far back to search for closed/all auctions (1-6 months). Only affects mode/auctionStatus combinations that include closed listings. ## `maxItems` (type: `integer`): Hard cap on emitted records. ## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`): Optional. Bid4Assets' edge (Akamai) may rate-limit sustained high-volume traffic; enabling the free AUTO proxy group adds resilience. Not required for normal use. ## Actor input object example ```json { "mode": "search", "criteria": "tax lien", "channel": "22", "category": "", "auctionStatus": "open", "sortBy": "", "dateRangeMonths": 6, "maxItems": 50, "proxyConfiguration": { "useApifyProxy": false } } ``` # Actor output Schema ## `listings` (type: `string`): Dataset containing all scraped Bid4Assets listings. # API You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup. ## JavaScript example ```javascript import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client'; // Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token // Replace the '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = { "mode": "search", "criteria": "tax lien", "channel": "22", "category": "", "auctionStatus": "open", "sortBy": "", "dateRangeMonths": 6, "maxItems": 50 }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("crawlerbros/bid4assets-scraper").call(input); // Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any) console.log('Results from dataset'); console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`); const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems(); items.forEach((item) => { console.dir(item); }); // 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs ``` ## Python example ```python from apify_client import ApifyClient # Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token # Replace '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = { "mode": "search", "criteria": "tax lien", "channel": "22", "category": "", "auctionStatus": "open", "sortBy": "", "dateRangeMonths": 6, "maxItems": 50, } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("crawlerbros/bid4assets-scraper").call(run_input=run_input) # Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any) print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"]) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item) # 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start ``` ## CLI example ```bash echo '{ "mode": "search", "criteria": "tax lien", "channel": "22", "category": "", "auctionStatus": "open", "sortBy": "", "dateRangeMonths": 6, "maxItems": 50 }' | apify call crawlerbros/bid4assets-scraper --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=crawlerbros/bid4assets-scraper", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "Bid4Assets Scraper", "description": "Scrape Bid4Assets.com - county tax-lien, tax-deed, and sheriff-sale property auctions across the US. Search by keyword or parcel, browse by auction type or state, filter by auction status. No login, no proxy required.", "version": "1.0", "x-build-id": "eawui0JB8ugndXsF7" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/crawlerbros~bid4assets-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-crawlerbros-bid4assets-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/crawlerbros~bid4assets-scraper/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-crawlerbros-bid4assets-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK", "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/crawlerbros~bid4assets-scraper/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-crawlerbros-bid4assets-scraper", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } } }, "components": { "schemas": { "inputSchema": { "type": "object", "required": [ "mode" ], "properties": { "mode": { "title": "Mode", "enum": [ "search", "byAuctionType", "byState" ], "type": "string", "description": "What to fetch.", "default": "search" }, "criteria": { "title": "Search keyword or parcel number", "type": "string", "description": "Free-text keyword or a specific parcel/APN number (required for mode=search; optional extra filter for other modes).", "default": "tax lien" }, "auctionType": { "title": "Auction type (mode=byAuctionType)", "enum": [ "taxLien", "taxDeed", "sheriffSale", "surplus" ], "type": "string", "description": "Browse by real-estate auction/sale type." }, "state": { "title": "State (mode=byState)", "enum": [ "AL", "AK", "AZ", "AR", "CA", "CO", "CT", "DE", "DC", "FL", "GA", "HI", "ID", "IL", "IN", "IA", "KS", "KY", "LA", "ME", "MD", "MA", "MI", "MN", "MS", "MO", "MT", "NE", "NV", "NH", "NJ", "NM", "NY", "NC", "ND", "OH", "OK", "OR", "PA", "RI", "SC", "SD", "TN", "TX", "UT", "VT", "VA", "WA", "WV", "WI", "WY" ], "type": "string", "description": "Browse listings located in a specific US state." }, "channel": { "title": "Marketplace channel", "enum": [ "22", "10", "11", "12", "13", "14", "15", "16", "17", "18", "19", "21", "23", "24", "25", "26" ], "type": "string", "description": "Bid4Assets sells more than real estate; defaults to Real Estate (this actor's focus). Change to explore other channels.", "default": "22" }, "category": { "title": "Property type (channel=Real Estate only)", "enum": [ "", "01", "02", "03", "05", "06", "99" ], "type": "string", "description": "Restrict to a real-estate property type.", "default": "" }, "auctionStatus": { "title": "Auction status filter", "enum": [ "open", "closed", "all" ], "type": "string", "description": "Only currently open (live) listings, only closed/sold listings, or all.", "default": "open" }, "sortBy": { "title": "Sort order", "enum": [ "", "closeDateAsc", "closeDateDesc", "openDateAsc", "openDateDesc", "currentBidHighToLow", "currentBidLowToHigh", "bidCountHighToLow", "titleAZ", "auctionIdAsc" ], "type": "string", "description": "How to order results (mirrors the site's own sort dropdown).", "default": "" }, "dateRangeMonths": { "title": "Historical date range (months)", "minimum": 1, "maximum": 6, "type": "integer", "description": "How far back to search for closed/all auctions (1-6 months). Only affects mode/auctionStatus combinations that include closed listings.", "default": 6 }, "maxItems": { "title": "Max items", "minimum": 1, "maximum": 2000, "type": "integer", "description": "Hard cap on emitted records.", "default": 50 }, "proxyConfiguration": { "title": "Proxy configuration", "type": "object", "description": "Optional. Bid4Assets' edge (Akamai) may rate-limit sustained high-volume traffic; enabling the free AUTO proxy group adds resilience. Not required for normal use.", "default": { "useApifyProxy": false } } } }, "runsResponseSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "data": { "type": "object", "properties": { "id": { "type": "string" }, "actId": { "type": "string" }, "userId": { "type": "string" }, "startedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "finishedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "status": { "type": "string", "example": "READY" }, "meta": { "type": "object", "properties": { "origin": { "type": "string", "example": "API" }, "userAgent": { "type": "string" } } }, "stats": { "type": "object", "properties": { "inputBodyLen": { "type": "integer", "example": 2000 }, "rebootCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "restartCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "resurrectCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "computeUnits": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "options": { "type": "object", "properties": { "build": { "type": "string", "example": "latest" }, "timeoutSecs": { "type": "integer", "example": 300 }, "memoryMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 1024 }, "diskMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 2048 } } }, "buildId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultKeyValueStoreId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultDatasetId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultRequestQueueId": { "type": "string" }, "buildNumber": { "type": "string", "example": "1.0.0" }, "containerUrl": { "type": "string" }, "usage": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 1 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "usageTotalUsd": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "usageUsd": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } } } } } } } } } ```