First-half tax bills for Hamilton County property owners will be in the mail starting Wednesday, with payments due February 2.
At the same time, Hamilton County Treasurer Robert Goering is working to collect nearly $63 million in delinquent tax payments. That's about five-percent of the $1.15 billion due the county.
"We're going to collect all the money," Goering vowed Monday. "We don't like seeing a five-percent delinquency."
One way that figure was reduced in 2008 was the sale of $4 million in tax liens to a private company called Plymouth Park Tax Service.
The firm paid the county the $4 million and is trying to collect taxes on 530 parcels ranging from $1,14.68 past due to $108,155.01.
"They charge a lot more interest," Goering said of Plymouth Park. "It penalizes the property owner because if properties get sold as a tax lien, they end up paying about 16% interest rate on the delinquency."
David Pepper, incoming president of the Hamilton County Commissioners, said the tax lien sales will continue.
"One of the things that citizens demand is everyone pay their taxes," Pepper said. "We're going to do the same thing."
About half the property taxes collected in Hamilton County goes for school districts. The rest is for county, city and village budgets.
"Everyone benefits when we collect that money," Pepper added.
Goering said foreclosure is a big problem when it comes to property tax payments. That's the situation for eight of the 10 most delinquent property owners.
For example, Southside Industrial Partners II, LLC, owes $184,927.05 for vacant land along River Road in Riverside that was going to become a shopping center.
It's in foreclosure, according to documents from Goering's office.
A group called Two DCS INvestments LTD owns a strip shopping center on Loveland-Madeira Road North of Valley View Lane. The property is in foreclosure and the owners haven't paid $152,217.17 in taxes, according to county records.
The owners of Midtown Self Storage Inc. are facing foreclosure as well on a multi-building storage facility on Marburg Avenue in Oakley. The unpaid tax bill, according to Goering's office, is $145,227.64.
"We do collect every penny," Treasurer Goering said. "Sometimes it just takes a little bit longer."
Pepper chimed in, adding, "One of the key issues is to get the revenue without raising taxes and the way you do that is you collect all the taxes that are due."
"At the end of the day even when times are bad, people have to pay their taxes," Pepper stated. "Paying those taxes means we can fund more sheriff's patrols. We can solve some of our jail issues."
