When refinancing or purchasing a new home, one of the items that a title company researches are the property taxes. Although every homeowner pays property taxes across the county, determining your specific property taxes has many variables. These variables coincide with different aspects of your home’s location and your home’s assessed value.  Depending on the taxing authority, your taxes could be determined by the city, county, school district or by all three. When you pay property tax each year, you’re paying for necessities that are provided by the city, such as police and fire department services, garbage pickup and snow removal.

How are my property taxes determined?

The amount of your property taxes is determined by the assessed value of your home.  When the market is healthy, home value increases and taxes do as well.

When are my property taxes due?

Depending on your taxing authority, your property taxes might be due annually, semi-annually or tri-annually. To find out, contact your taxing authority.

What happens if I forget to make a payment?

Just like many other collectors, there will be a monetary tax penalty for missed payments. Depending on how many payments are missed or how long the taxes are delinquent, you could end up with a tax lien on your property. Tax liens are imposed on property by law to secure payment of taxes. A tax lien may be imposed for delinquent taxes owed on a property, or as a result of failure to pay other taxes as well. While personal debt follows you wherever you go, tax liens on real estate stay with the real estate. The property owner becomes responsible for payment even if the tax delinquency was incurred by a prior owner. Tax liens can by paid in a variety of methods, even through an escrow account. Though procedures vary from state to state, there are usually several notices in addition to a fairly lengthy period of time before the property is seized and sold at a tax lien sale.

Does my lender pay my taxes?

Typically, you will pay property taxes into an escrow account (unless you request an escrow waiver) and your lender will forward the payment to your local taxing authority when it comes due. Property taxes and the interest you pay on your mortgage are usually tax-deductible.

During a refinance, will the prior lender or the new lender pay my taxes?

This question is commonly asked by clients when they are in process of refinancing. The answer is that it depends, but we’ll break it down and explain it as simple as possible: If the prior lender already sent out the escrow payment for taxes due but the payment is outstanding with the taxing authority, the new lender might still collect for taxes at closing. Consequently, when the prior lender’s payment is applied, the new lender will refund the client or reserve it in the escrow.

During a refinance, how do title companies determine each homeowner’s taxes?

Title companies have the necessary resources and an in-house databases that provide them with the taxing authorities’ information for different states, cities, and counties. Once they receive the property’s Parcel ID in a title order, they call an appropriate taxing authority to verify the property taxes.

What is a Parcel ID number?

Each property has a unique identification number called a Parcel ID and it is a numbering system that the taxing authority uses to keep track of properties and the corresponding taxes. The Parcel ID number identifies the property’s municipality, section or township range, the subdivision code, the block and lot numbers.  A parcel ID number can also be known as the property identification number (PIN), Assessor’s parcel number (APN), or Assessor’s identification number (AIN). The Parcel ID number can be found on the property tax bill and usually in the legal description of the subject property.

Any questions or comments? Please let us know!

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Posted by:  Carlson Mortgage – a Saint Louis mortgage broker.  Our Home Loan Experts can be reached at (314) 329-7314 seven days a week. Let us be your source for some of the lowest interest rates in St. Louis on conventional, FHA, Veterans (VA), USDA, Jumbo and HARP 1.0 and 2.0 loans. We have 10 years of experience providing mortgage services that are tailored individually to your unique needs and to your financial situation. We speak English, Spanish and Russian. Call us today!

Original Article can be found here: Property Taxes: Questions Answered