Property Tax Penalty Question

My guess is it's not going to happen. A private company would waive a late fee if you have a good history but the government, no way. They know they don't have to, ZERO competition.

One good thing, I bet you never make that mistake again!

Don't keep your fingers crossed.

In my state of TX, we get our tax bill in October and it's "due" by January 31. You get the tax benefit if you pay by 12/31.

A lot of people have escrow accounts which take care of insurance and taxes. This type if account is good for those who need to preplan and use the service to stay on top of things. I'm not dissing anyone who uses this plan. It is the best plan for a lot of people.

We opt not to let someone else use our money all year and we opt for no escrow and pay our own homeowners insurance and property taxes. When property taxes are paid in full by December 31 we get the tax benefit.

So, while I'm not familiar with your state, I assume as my state if taxes aren't paid by January 31 you incur late fees, some of which can be substantial.

I understand you had a slip up. Unfortunately... You pay for mistakes like that and hopefully the fines nor credit issue sets you back too far.

As always... It never hurts to call and ask. You never know what "mood" a rep will be in and it could possibly play to your benefit if you are super sweet and ask the question!

Good luck to you.

Thanks for the laugh. Granted I live in a different state, different city, but no, they will not refund it.

How bad can it be? Ours our due yearly and even then one day late gets you a 50 dollar fee. Not fun but not worth crying over.

Per your what happened, that is not possible, not legal! Even on my midwestern home that would be 25k! You sure it isn't more like 10% of the late tax? Do you even know what it is, I don't think so because you would have said MY GOD IT WAS 40K!!!!! or whatever
___________________
Cheese and crackers!!! It is ten bucks plus 10% of the tax due on that date. Add to that it was due on February 1st and not delinquent until April 10th! You are more than a little past due so no, they are not going to refund it.

Your due date was February 1st which leads me to believe two things, you have never paid it on the due date in your life, what you have been doing is paying during the grace period. The second thing is no municipality that gives you over a two month grace period with no penalty is going to let you out of the penalty!

Love how you changed it from 10% of your home's value to 10% of the bill.

Not quite the same but years ago I moved from a state which had no personal property tax (tax on your car) to one that did.
I let it go 6 months - my car was old.
When I got around to fixing the situation and paying up - the whole bill including the penalty was $8.
If they don't give you a 30 days grace period you might just have to kiss it goodbye.
Chalk it up as lesson learned and it's a slip up you won't make again any time soon.

Add the due date to your phone now!

No. Not a chance. Sorry.

If you pay directly to your county or city you're unlikely to get a penalty refund. If you pay through a contracted private company there may be leeway. You might as well ask either way. The worst that can happen is a No.

When you say 'with the exception of this month' do you mean you pay every month, or just that this is the month you were late? Our local options are to either pay in full by Jan 31, or in 3 equal payments on the last days of Jan, Apr & Aug. Our penalty would be 1% of the balance due for each month it is unpaid.

I'd probably end up slipping too if I had to remember to make multiple payments. For bills that only happen once or twice a year like taxes, home insurance, car insurance, etc. we save up all year (the total expected amount due divided by 12, basically) so we can just pay in full and be done with it.

i guess it's worth a shot, but i seriously doubt it.
you have to pay your property taxes every MONTH??
that's just asking for trouble!
khairete
S.

Send it in TOMORROW without the penalty payment and see what happens. If you get a bill for the penalty I would call and beg for forgiveness. Who knows - they may just process it and move on. But don't wait one more day and don't call and ask permission to pay without the penalty just pay it ASAP. Better to ask forgiveness than permission in this case!

Every state is different. You should look up the state of Californias statute on penalty adjustments, although it may be vague and up to the tax collector.

In our county, we have guidelines we follow for an adjustment and good history is not one of them.

Take a look at why you were late. Was someone ill in the family? Did you try to pay, but the payment was returned in the mail? Last, you can always try by putting your request in writing to the tax receiver of your county and see if they will adjust it. I would imagine, the state of California has some guidelines in place.

You might have luck with a private company but a town, state, or federal department isn't going to waive anything. If they do it for you they have to do it for everyone and that's just not going to happen.

That really stinks. Good luck but I would be surprised if they care about your paying history.

Nope. My bank was late twice paying the taxes and they attempted to have it reversed. They would not budge. I got a copy of the notice and it said that tax forms are sent out a full 30 days before they are due and announced well in advance. The bank had to pay the penalty.

I have escrow so they have the money and pay the taxes and insurance.

can you put the balance on a credit card or borrow?