Property Tax Revenues Expected to Stay Level : Government: As payment deadline looms, officials predict collections to be about same as last year’s, despite real estate rebound.

With Monday’s property tax deadline approaching, Ventura County officials project that revenues will be about the same as last year’s, despite a resurgence in the real estate market.

Property tax collections are expected to be flat this year partly because housing prices have not increased during the 14-month surge in home sales, officials said.

“Of course, the big concern is that it will actually go negative, which would mean less revenue to the county and to the school districts and the state,” Treasurer-Tax Collector Harold S. Pittman said.

Though far below the 10% yearly increase of the 1980s, the collections now flooding county coffers are expected to reach a record $490.6 million for the fiscal year that began July 1.

But that represents a paltry 0.46% gain over the last tax year, compared to a jump of nearly 13% in 1990-91 before the effects of the real estate bust were seen on tax bills.

So stubborn is the fall of housing prices that an unprecedented number of taxpayers--an estimated 7,000--have filed appeals to have their properties reassessed and their tax burden lightened. Pittman said this could drop projected revenues even further.

“I’ve been (here) for 32 years, and that’s the largest number of appeals I’ve seen,” county Assessor Glenn Gray said. Appeals are up 51% from last year, he said.

Yet even with the fall in home values, tax delinquencies have dropped. Of the $488.3 million billed during 1993-94, only about $22.7 million--or 4.64%--was not paid on time, Pittman said. By contrast, delinquency was 5.19% the year before.

Since the recession began in 1990, the rate of property tax growth has dropped each year, from 12.9% in 1990 to 5.3% in 1992 to 2.2% last fiscal year. Not even a surge in home sales that began in September, 1993, has helped.

Taxes have flattened because many houses bought during boom years for top prices have lost a portion of their value, he said. A house that sold for $400,000 in 1990, for example, might be resold now for $300,000. Property taxes are lowered accordingly, Pittman said.

Since 1989, Gray has lowered the assessed value of more than 54,000 parcels, thereby cutting taxes.

Despite the reduced tax bills, many property owners do not approach their twice-a-year tax obligation with great cheer, Assistant Tax Collector John McKinney said.

“We’re bearers of the message, and it’s not always good news we’re bringing,” McKinney said as taxpayers queued at the treasurer’s counter in the county Administration Building in Ventura.

Holding a fistful of cash, stucco worker Augustine Valencia, 43, stepped up to pay taxes on two houses he owns in Oxnard.

Camarillo resident Bob Bailey, 46, who was serving jury duty in the adjacent courthouse, also paid in person and later said, “I like hanging on to my money as long as I can. Sometimes a couple more days of interest can be beneficial.”

Eighty-year-old Ruth Wallace said she has paid her taxes in person each of her 40 years in Ventura. Casting a glance at the people waiting to be served, she added: “Probably some of them gripe. . . . But they get a lot for their taxes.”

Walt Bartholomew, 42, a Port Hueneme resident who was paying his mother’s tax bill, was not so sure.

“My complaint is about the unnecessary fat in government that can take away from vital services,” he said.

McKinney, while acknowledging taxpayer resentment, added, “Actually, to some people who are new to this country, especially those from the former Eastern bloc, this is a privilege. . . .

“It’s like it’s the first time they had a voice in what happens in their lives, and some feel like they own something now. After all, it’s a tax on property.”

Each October, the county mails annual tax bills to the owners of more than 217,000 parcels--farmland, residences, businesses and industries.

Half of the yearly bill, which averages $2,200 countywide, becomes delinquent after Dec. 12 and the balance after April 10. The penalty for paying late is 10% of the taxes due, plus a $10 service fee.

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County Property Tax Billings

Year Amount Increase Pct. 1989-90* $378,510,000 NA NA 1990-91 $427,459,000 $48,949,000 12.93% 1991-92 $453,492,000 $26,033,000 6.09% 1992-93 $477,604,000 $24,112,000 5.32% 1993-94 $488,300,000 $10,696,000 2.24% 1994-95 $490,565,000 $2,265,000 0.46%

* Fiscal year runs from July 1 through June 30

Source: Ventura County Treasurer-Tax Collector

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

FYI

Monday is the deadline for the first installment of 1994-95 property tax payments. They must be postmarked by Dec. 12 or delivered by 6 p.m. to the county treasurer-tax collector’s office at 800 S. Victoria Ave. in Ventura. Taxpayers also can use a drop box near the main entrance of the county Administration Building. The drop box hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and Sunday, and from 6 p.m. through midnight on Monday.