Waiting Till Last Minute to Pay Property Tax? That Would Be Tonight

Orange County property owners are procrastinating taxpayers.

With less than 24 hours to go before tonight’s payment deadline, residents still owe a total of $450 million in the first installments of their property tax bills.

That’s nearly half the $940 million total due today, Gary Cowan, the county’s assistant tax collector, said Monday.

“It’s typical for Orange County,” Cowan said. “It’s always last minute, last minute.”

While officials expect a pile of payments to roll in today, Cowan said property owners have been a bit more prompt about paying this year than last. About $55 million more in payments had been received Monday than the day before last year’s deadline, he said.

To help residents avoid a 10% late charge, Cowan said payments can be brought to the tax office until 6 p.m. or dropped in the outdoor deposit box before midnight. Mailed payments must bear today’s postmark or the penalty charge will be added, he said.

For a fee, property owners also can use credit cards to pay bills over the county’s new telephone system. Only MasterCard and Discover are accepted, and the user fee varies according to the bill amount, Cowan said.

New property owners or residents who have completed improvement construction on existing homes also may owe a supplemental property tax today. Those residents should have received the blue bill in October and must pay the listed amount by midnight tonight. About 40,000 supplemental payments are due countywide, Cowan said.

Residents can bring payments to the county tax collector’s Santa Ana office at 12 Civic Center Plaza, Room G58 in the Hall of Finance and Records.

To make payments by credit card, or for information, call (714) 834-3411.