§ 36-1-11-4 — Sale or transfer of real property; procedure

(a) A disposing agent who wants to sell or
transfer real property must comply with this section, except as
permitted by section 4.1, 4.2, 5, 5.5, 5.7, 5.9, 8, 14, 15, or 18 of this
chapter.
(b) The disposing agent shall first have the property appraised by
two (2) appraisers. The appraisers must be:
(1) professionally engaged in making appraisals;
(2) licensed under IC 25-34.1; or
(3) employees of the political subdivision familiar with the value
of the property.
(c) After the property is appraised, the disposing agent shall
determine a minimum bid for the property based on the appraisals and
the disposing agent's knowledge of the property, publish a notice in
accordance with IC 5-3-1 setting forth the terms and conditions of the
sale, including the minimum bid, and, when subsection (e) is
employed, may engage an auctioneer licensed under IC 25-6.1 to
advertise the sale and to conduct a public auction. The advertising
conducted by the auctioneer is in addition to any other notice required
by law and shall include a detailed description of the property to be
sold stating the key numbers, if any, of the tracts within that property.
If the disposing agent determines that the best sale of the property can
be made by letting the bidders determine certain conditions of the sale
(such as required zoning or soil or drainage conditions) as a
prerequisite to purchasing the property, the disposing agent may permit
the bidders to specify those conditions. The notice must state the
following:
(1) Bids will be received beginning on a specific date.
(2) The sale will continue from day to day for a period determined
by the disposing agent of not more than sixty (60) days.
(3) The property may not be sold to a person who is ineligible
under section 16 of this chapter.
(4) A bid submitted by a trust (as defined in IC 30-4-1-1(a)) must
identify each:
(A) beneficiary of the trust; and
(B) settlor empowered to revoke or modify the trust.
(d) A bid must be open to public inspection. A bidder may raise the
bidder's bid, and subject to subsection (e), that raise takes effect after
the board has given written notice of that raise to the other bidders.
(e) The disposing agent may also engage an auctioneer licensed
under IC 25-6.1 to conduct a sale by public auction. The auction may
be conducted either at the time for beginning the sale in accordance
with the public notice or after the beginning of the sale. The disposing
agent shall give each bidder who has submitted a bid written notice of
the time and place of the auction.
(f) The disposing agent may, before expiration of the time set out in
the notice, sell the property to the highest and best bidder. The highest
and best bidder must have complied with any requirement under
subsection (c)(4). The disposing agent may reject all bids. If the
disposing agent rejects all bids, the disposing agent must make a
written determination to reject all bids explaining why all bids were
rejected.
(g) If the disposing agent determines that, in the exercise of good
business judgment, the disposing agent should hire a broker or
auctioneer to sell the property, the disposing agent may do so and pay
the broker or auctioneer a reasonable compensation out of the gross
proceeds of the sale. A disposing agent may hire a broker to sell real
property directly rather than using the bid process under subsections (c)
through (f) if:
(1) in the case of a political subdivision other than a school
corporation:
(A) the disposing agent publishes a notice of the determination
to hire the broker in accordance with IC 5-3-1; and
(B) the property has been up for bid for at least sixty (60) days
before the broker is hired, and either no bids were received or
the disposing agent has rejected all bids that were received; or
(2) in the case of a school corporation, the disposing agent
publishes a notice of the determination to hire the broker in
accordance with IC 5-3-1.
The disposing agent may hire one (1) of the appraisers as the broker or
auctioneer.
(h) The following apply if a broker is hired under subsection (g):
(1) The property may not be sold to a person who is ineligible
under section 16 of this chapter.
(2) If the property is sold to a trust (as defined in IC 30-4-1-1(a)),
the following information must be placed in the public record
relating to the sale:
(A) Each beneficiary of the trust.
(B) Each settlor empowered to revoke or modify the trust.
(i) A disposing agent may conduct a public auction under this
section solely by electronic means, referred to in this subsection as an
electronic sale. A disposing agent that elects to conduct an electronic
sale may receive electronic payments and establish policies necessary
to secure the payments in a timely fashion. The disposing agent may
not charge an additional fee for conducting an electronic sale. If a
disposing agent chooses to conduct a public auction as an electronic
sale, the notice required by subsection (c) must include a statement
declaring this fact.
[Pre-Local Government Recodification Citations: 17-2-47-8
part; 17-4-15-1 part; 18-4-5-6 part; 19-6-2-38 part.]
As added by Acts 1981, P.L.57, SEC.37. Amended by Acts
1982, P.L.208, SEC.3; P.L.32-1983, SEC.10; P.L.331-1985, SEC.2;
P.L.330-1985, SEC.4; P.L.60-1988, SEC.25; P.L.336-1989(ss),
SEC.45; P.L.165-1994, SEC.2; P.L.188-2007, SEC.2; P.L.27-2008,
SEC.2; P.L.188-2011, SEC.1; P.L.257-2013, SEC.41; P.L.233-2015,
SEC.330; P.L.251-2015, SEC.33.