A Warm-Up Exercise for April 15

Property tax deadline fell Friday, hitting homeowners with the first blow of a one-two punch just five days before income taxes are due.

“I just don’t want to turn the money loose,” said Jim Chase, a Ventura technician, as he handed county Treasurer-Tax Collector Harold S. Pittman his property tax payment 20 minutes before the 5 p.m. filing deadline Friday. “I still haven’t done my income taxes, because I know I have to pay them too.”

A steady stream of homeowners paraded into the County Government Center late Friday to hand-deliver their second and final installments for 1992. The initial payment was due Dec. 10.

Laura Brooks, a nurse from Ventura, narrowly avoided delinquency and its accompanying 10% penalty and $10 service fee when she strolled up to the payment counter without knowing that the filing deadline loomed minutes away.

“I didn’t know they were due today,” Brooks said. “I go by my instincts.”

Many taxpayers said they deliberately paid at the last minute so that they could bank their money as long as possible.

“I try not to give them the money until it’s really, absolutely due,” said Dan Carobine, a Ventura lawyer. But he filed his income taxes in February because he was due a refund. “That helped pay my property taxes,” he said.

For others, like Pamela Amrine, it was simply a matter of not having funds to settle the tax debt any sooner. “I didn’t have the money, but at least we don’t owe any federal taxes,” the bookkeeper from Ojai said. “I paid $152 to have my income taxes prepared and I got back $140. That wasn’t too bad.”

About 150,000 of the county’s 220,000 property owners pay their taxes directly to Pittman’s office rather than to a lender with their monthly mortgage payments.

“You have to discipline yourself to set aside a chunk of money twice a year,” said Denise Franklin, a Ventura word processor. “But it’s worse when they fall due in December, right before Christmas.”

Assistant Treasurer-Tax Collector John R. McKinney said nearly $50 million of the $202 million in taxes due came in Friday, about 50% on computer tape payments from banks and mortgage companies. Mailed payments are accepted as timely as long as they are postmarked by Friday.

About 4% of Ventura County property taxpayers fall into delinquency. But the piper ultimately gets paid--with a tax foreclosure sale if necessary.

“We eventually get it all,” McKinley said.