"We are not mind readers," Mr. Gove said. "If the assessors can find the property to assess it, they ought to be able to get the bill there," Little Lamb said.
AIKEN --- About 9,000 Aiken County property owners owe taxes -- and they might not even know it.
And if they don't pay by March 16, their names will be turned over to the tax collector as delinquent property owners.
County officials estimate that at least 9,000 tax bills, an unusually high number, they say, have been returned because of bad addresses. The bills were mailed out in November and were due Jan. 15.
It is the responsibility of property owners, officials say, to find out how much they owe, even if they don't receive the bill.
"If you haven't gotten anything by Christmas, you should know something's wrong," said David Gove, Aiken County's interim assessor.
Mr. Gove said that most of the undeliverable mail is returned because the address on the deed is wrong, or because the property owner didn't include the direction on the street.
"We are not mind readers," he said.
Treasurer Linda Sharpe said people who do not live on property they own often list the property address, but not their mailing address.
And the county sends out the bills based on those addresses, she said.
She has another theory too.
"The more automated the post office gets, the more we get back," she said.
Postal machines kick out bills for bad addresses at the distribution centers, she said, whereas in the past a postman would attempt to deliver the mail.
The deadline to pay property taxes without incurring a penalty passed Jan. 15. Now property owners have until Feb. 1 to pay their taxes with a 3 percent penalty, Ms. Sharpe said.
The fee goes up to 10 percent through March 16. After that, it's 5 more percentage points and it goes to the tax collector, who'll try to get the delinquent owners to pay up.
If their efforts fail, said Tax Collector Martin Posey, then the property will ultimately go up for a tax sale in November.
Ms. Sharpe said she didn't know exactly how many tax bills were mailed out in November, but 112,000 were sent out in 2006.
She turned 17,000 of those over to Mr. Posey, she said, although that includes bills that were ignored by the owners, not just those returned for bad addresses.
Mr. Posey said his office sends out two letters, one certified, attempting to contact property owners before property is put on the sales block.
Jack McAdams, chief financial officer of the Richmond County Tax Commission, said 3,000 of the county's 85,000 tax bills for 2007 were returned.
"Yes, we had a large number this year, and we had a large number last year," he said. "I think it's been consistent."
Richmond County real, business and personal property taxes were due Nov. 15.
Columbia County financial manager Diana Hamilton said that county has not had an unusual increase in returned tax bills, which are usually less than 1 percent of those sent out.
Staff Writer Sylvia Cooper contributed to this story.
Reach Sandi Martin at (803) 648-1395 or sandi.martin@augustachronicle.com.
PAYING UP
HOW TO CHANGE ADDRESS
The Aiken County assessor needs address changes in writing. The changes can be faxed to (803) 642-1577, and must have the property owner's name, address and tax map parcel number.
DEADLINES
- Through Friday with 3 percent penalty
- Saturday to March 16 with 10 percent penalty
- March 17, the bill becomes delinquent and is turned over to the tax collector's office. There's a 15 percent penalty for paying late
DELINQUENT PAYERS
Once a bill is turned over to the tax collector's office, staff will send out a bill on or after April 1.
If they get no response, they send out a second delinquent notice on or after May 1.
If still no response or those letters are returned, then after July 1, the county essentially seizes the property for the tax sale.
The tax sale is held the first Monday in November.
Sources: Aiken County assessor's office, Aiken County tax collector's office, Aiken County treasurer's office
Comments
"We are not mind readers," Mr. Gove said. "If the assessors can find the property to assess it, they ought to be able to get the bill there," Little Lamb said.
Companies that track address changes are the norm for businesses who keep in touch with their customers - wouldn't it make a lot more sense to stop making jokes about the "mind reading business" and start collecting these taxes?
most investors live out of state where the property is located, so it is hard to find the owners of the place, which is good news for people like us so we can buy at a tax auction and own the house without any liens against the property.
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