deedplatState guides / West Virginia / Kanawha County
Kanawha County property data
Where Kanawha County's property records live, how its tax and foreclosure sales work, and what Deedplat puts on one map, including Charleston.
- 15Cities and towns
Where the records are
The county offices an investor deals with in Kanawha County, and what each one puts online.
Deeds and mortgages
Kanawha County Clerk. The County Clerk records deeds, liens, wills and judgments at 409 Virginia Street East in Charleston; call (304) 357-0130 to ask about searching or copying recorded documents.
Owners and values
Kanawha County Assessor. Owner, address and parcel searches are free through the state IAS property portal linked from the Assessor's site, along with property map cards and old land books from 1791 to 1962.
Tax sales
Kanawha County Sheriff's Tax Office. Current and past-due tax bills can be looked up and paid online for free by e-check, while card payments carry a 2.4% fee.
Foreclosure sales
Kanawha County Clerk (trustee's deeds and deeds of trust). Foreclosure notices are not posted on a county website; they run as legal ads, and the deed of trust and the trustee's deed after a sale are recorded with the County Clerk.
Parcel maps
Kanawha County Assessor GIS Mapping. The Assessor's GIS department runs a free online parcel viewer with tax map lines for every taxed parcel in the county.
How property is sold here
Kanawha County follows West Virginia's rules, with its own calendar and offices. Read the West Virginia guide for how the state works.
Tax sales
West Virginia sells tax liens on delinquent real estate, not the property outright, and the buyer can later seek a deed if the owner does not redeem. The Kanawha County Sheriff's Tax Office says it auctions delinquent real estate tax liens every November, offering about 2,100 liens a year. Liens that remain unpaid are certified to the West Virginia State Auditor, which posts its county land sale listings and bidder registration on its County Collections page.
Foreclosure sales
Most home foreclosures in West Virginia are trustee sales under a deed of trust, held at the Kanawha County Courthouse door in Charleston after notice is published as a legal ad in a local newspaper. The trustee's deed from the sale is then recorded with the County Clerk.
Assessed values
The Kanawha County Assessor lists and values all real and personal property every year for a tax year that starts July 1, and taxes are figured on an assessed value equal to 60% of market value.
Transfer tax
West Virginia charges a real estate excise tax of $1.10 per $500 of value, which since July 1, 2025 is kept by the county, plus an additional county excise tax of at least 55 cents per $500 and a $20 affordable housing fee, all paid to the County Clerk when the deed is recorded.
Land bank
The Charleston Land Reuse Agency, created by the City of Charleston in 2019, acquires abandoned and distressed properties and returns them to use, and keeps an online map of the properties it owns.
Worth knowing
Property taxes are collected by the Kanawha County Sheriff, not a separate treasurer; bills go out by July 15, with the first half due before October 1 and the second half by April 1.
Worth knowing
The Assessor values property every year at fair market value, and tax bills are based on 60% of that value.
Worth knowing
Charleston, the state capital, has its own Land Reuse Agency that buys and sells distressed city lots.
Every town in Kanawha County
The cities, towns and townships inside the county line.
- Belle town
- Cedar Grove town
- Charleston city
- Chesapeake town
- Clendenin town
- Dunbar city
- East Bank town
- Glasgow town
- Handley town
- Marmet city
- Montgomery city
- Nitro city
- Pratt town
- South Charleston city
- St. Albans city
Questions
Where are deeds recorded in Kanawha County?
Deeds, deeds of trust and liens are recorded by the Kanawha County Clerk at 409 Virginia Street East in Charleston. The office is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and can be reached at (304) 357-0130.
When is the Kanawha County tax sale?
The Kanawha County Sheriff auctions delinquent real estate tax liens each November. Liens that stay unpaid are later certified to the West Virginia State Auditor, which lists its county land sales on its County Collections page.
How do I find who owns a property in Kanawha County?
Use the free property search linked from the Kanawha County Assessor's website. You can search by owner name, address or parcel ID and view property map cards.
Are Kanawha County property records online?
Owner and value records, map cards and the parcel map are free online through the Assessor, and tax bills can be looked up on the Sheriff's Tax Office site. For recorded deeds, contact the County Clerk's office.
Sources for this guide
Office hours, fees and sale dates change. We checked these sources in October 2026; confirm with the county before you act.
- kanawha.us/county-clerks-office
- kanawha.us
- kanawhacountyassessor.com/
- kanawhacountyassessor.com/About-us
- kanawhacountyassessor.com/data-inquiry
- kanawhacountyassessor.com/mappings
- kanawhasheriff.us/tax-2/collection-enforcement/
- kanawhasheriff.us/tax-2/faq/
- kanawhasheriff.us/tax-2/informational/
- main.wvsao.gov/CountyCollections
- code.wvlegislature.gov/11-22-2/
- charlestonwv.gov/node/1630
Every parcel in Kanawha County, on one map
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