All sales of lands or tenements under execution shall be held at the courthouse, if there be one in the county in which such lands and tenements are situated, and if there be no courthouse, then at the door of the house in which the district court was last held. No sheriff or other officer making the sale of property, either personal or real, or any appraiser of such property, shall, either directly or indirectly, purchase the same; and every purchase so made shall be considered fraudulent and void.
§ 25-1536.Sales of lands or tenements; where held; officer disqualified to purchase.
Article 15: Execution, Exemptions, and Foreign Judgments · Not amended since original codification · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section requires execution sales of land to be held at the courthouse, or if none exists, at the door of the building where the district court last sat, and voids as fraudulent any purchase made directly or indirectly by the selling officer or by an appraiser of the property.
Full Text of § 25-1536
Source
R.S.1867, Code § 503, p. 479; R.S.1913, § 8082; C.S.1922, § 9018; C.S.1929, § 20-1536; R.S.1943, § 25-1536.
Plain-English Summary
Section 25-1536 fixes both the place of a land sale and a hard conflict-of-interest rule for the people running it. All sales of lands or tenements under execution must be held at the courthouse, if the county has one. If it does not, the sale happens at the door of the building where the district court most recently sat.
The conflict-of-interest rule is unqualified. No sheriff or other officer conducting the sale of property — personal or real — and no appraiser of that property, may purchase it, whether directly or indirectly. Any purchase made that way is treated as fraudulent and void. The rule exists because the people setting the terms of the sale, or valuing the property for sale purposes, cannot be trusted to bid against the interests they are supposed to be safeguarding.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where must an execution sale of land take place?
At the courthouse, if the county has one; if not, at the door of the building where the district court was last held.
Can the sheriff conducting the sale buy the property himself?
No. The section bars the selling officer from purchasing the property, either directly or indirectly, and any such purchase is fraudulent and void.
Does the same rule apply to whoever appraised the property?
Yes. Appraisers of the property are barred from purchasing it on the same terms as the selling officer.
What does “indirectly” purchasing the property mean under this section?
The statute bars both direct and indirect purchases by the officer or appraiser, closing off arrangements where someone else buys the property on the officer’s or appraiser’s behalf.
What is the consequence of an officer or appraiser buying the property anyway?
The purchase is considered fraudulent and void.
Source & verification. Section text and the amendment-history citation are
reproduced verbatim from the Nebraska Legislature, Revisor of Statutes, enacted by the
Nebraska Legislature. Last verified July 22, 2026. ·
Official source
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