Common Tax Q & A
- Q - When are Tax Bills usually mailed?
A - Tax bills are mailed November 1 every year.
- Q - When is the first half tax due?
A - The First Half Tax payment is due November 10 and becomes delinquent if not paid by December 10 (each year.) The second Half is due April 10 and becomes delinquent after May 10 (each year.)
- Q - Are there any late fees imposed if the taxes are not paid on time?
A - Delinquency charges for property taxes are 1% of the base tax due per month for interest and 1% of the base tax due per month for penalty. The maximum penalty is 5%. The minimum Penalty is $5.00
- Q - Do people have to go to the Treasurer's Office to pay their taxes?
A - You may pay your taxes by mail using the envelope enclosed with your tax bill by enclosing the coupon from the tax bill; mail to Bernalillo County Treasurer, P.O. Box 269, Albuq, NM 87103. You may also pay at any branch of First Community Bank, Peoples Bank, Bank of America, NA, First Financial Credit Union, US New Mexico Federal Credit Union, Compass Bank, Rio Grande Credit Union, Bank of Albuquerque, Bank 1st, Wells Fargo, NA and New Mexico Bank and Trust. If you want to pay with cash, the financial institution will require that you convert the cash to a money order at your own expense.
- Q - Can I use a credit card to pay my property taxes?
A - Credit cards are accepted online only and there is a convenience fee charged by the third party payment processing company when taxes are paid online. For more information view the help notes on the online payment page.
- Q - If I signed up for the Automated Payment Option (Direct Debit), will I receive a tax bill or a confirmation notice?
A - Within a week of receiving your tax bill you will also receive a confirmation notice. If you need clarification on the Automated Payment Option process, there will be contact information on the confirmation notice. You may also call 768-4031, as noted on the confirmation notice, for more information. The debit from your bank account will occurr the first week of December. You will have until November 30th to withdraw from this program. Your request must be in writing.
- Q - How may an individual find out what their taxes are if a bill is not received?
A - If you have not received a property tax bill by 7th of November, call the Treasurer's Office at 768-4031. A Public Service Rep will print and mail a replacement tax bill notice. The representative will confirm where your tax bill was mailed and how to correct the problem. You may also search tax records on this web site and search by parcel ID number (the most reliable way) or by property address. Please include the parcel ID number on your check or money order to ensure payment is credited correctly.
- Q - Do I receive a property tax bill if my mortgage company pays my taxes?
A - Yes, everyone who owns property in Bernalillo County is mailed a property tax bill. If your mortgage company is responsible to pay your taxes, you will still receive a tax bill for your records. Your copy of the tax bill will indicate that your mortgage company has been billed. Do not pay this bill unless the mortgage company indication is in error. It is for your records only.
- Q - What do I need to do if the mortgage company name on the tax bill is not my mortgage company?
A - If the mortgage company name on your bill is wrong, call your correct mortgage company to find out what they want you to do. The Treasurer's Office cannot fix this problem. You need to resolve this issue with your mortgage company. The information on your tax bill comes directly from the mortgage companies. In light of all the refinancing in the last couple of years, this has created a substantial amount of work for our Office.
- Q - What do I do if I paid off my mortgage and a mortgage company name appears on my tax bill?
A - You need to detach the coupon(s) at the bottom of your tax bill, write a note on the coupon that you are responsible for paying your property taxes, sign it, and send the coupon(s) with your payment no later than the due date(s).
- Q - I filed a Valuation protest at the County Assessor's Office and I haven't heard anything. Do I still have to pay my property taxes by December 10th?
A - Check your tax bill to determine if the value of your property is correct. If not, according to State law, you must pay at least the amount of Tax due on the unprotested value of your property by December 10. The unprotested value is the amount that you thought your property should be valued when you completed your protest form. To determine how much tax you should pay on the unprotested value, contact the Treasurer's Office at 768-4031 to have your property taxes computed. The County recommends that you pay the 1st Half amount due on the original bill. If your protest is approved, a new tax bill will be prepared with a new delinquency date and any overpayment will be refunded to you or applied to the 2nd half of your tax bill, whichever you choose. If the protest is not approved, you will already have paid the first half and will not owe delinquency charges. If you have only paid on the unprotested amount and your protest is disapproved, you may be liable for delinquency charges on the unpaid amount of taxes.
- Q - I did not file a protest at the Assessor's Office but I want to protest my taxes. What do I do?
A - According to State Law, 7-38-39 &-40 NMSA 1978, you must file a Claim for Refund in District Court no later than January 10. Prior to filing you must pay the amount due on your property tax bill.
- Q - I didn't receive my property tax bill and it is now past the delinquency date; do I have to pay delinquency charges?
A - According to 7-38-36 NMSA 1978, a taxpayer is still liable for taxes and any other associated charges even though a tax bill was not received.
- Q - How many bills are returned to the Treasurers Office?
A - We typically have approximately 10,000 tax bills returned to us for various reasons, i.e. moved no forwarding address, forwarding notice expired, wrong address, no mail receptacle, no such address, etc.
- Q - How much money is the Treasurers Office responsible for collecting in property taxes?
A - The Treasurer was charged with collecting for 2005, the total amount charged to be collect is $431,540,068.58; Bernalillo County's share is estimated at $94,868,592.97, 21.99% of the total amount collected.
- Q - How is that money distributed?
A - Where you live in Bernalillo County determines which agencies are included on your property tax bill. The agencies and amounts we are charged to collect for them is located on 2005 vs 2004 property tax distribution comparison.
- Q - I'm going to be out of town when my Property Tax Bill arrives. How can I make arrangements to pay my bill to avoid Delinquency Charges ?
A - You may participate in our Automated Payment Option Program. See question #6. Contact our office at 768-4031 to have the necessary forms mailed or faxed to you.
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