Collections

The Tax Collector's Office is solely responsible for the collection of taxes and fees. Any questions regarding listing, billing, and assessed values should be directed to the Tax Assessor's Office.

Tax bills for real estate and personal property are mailed to all Forsyth County property owners in July of each year. If you do not receive your tax statement by September 15, please contact the Tax Collector's Office during regular office hours. Taxes on real estate and personal property are due on September 1 and are payable through January 5. If January 5 falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the payment period is extended to the next business day.

Real estate taxes are generally the legal obligation of the owner of record as of January 1. However, in the case of a transfer of ownership North Carolina Session Law 2006-106 now transfers the liability for unpaid taxes to the owner as of the date the taxes become past due. This means if the taxes are unpaid as of January 6, the owner as of that date is now liable and responsible for the payment of the taxes. Ordinarily, taxes are prorated at the time of the transfer of ownership between the buyer and seller. To determine if your taxes were prorated at the time of closing, please contact your realtor or closing attorney. The best way to make sure there are no surprises regarding unpaid taxes is to request that the taxes are paid upon the closing of the transaction. If current year taxes are not yet due, we will accept prepayments based on the previous year's rate.

To avoid interest or penalties, payments for real property, business property and individual listings must be in the Tax Collector's Office or postmarked by January 5. If the payment is not postmarked timely by the USPS, it is deemed to be received when it is actually delivered to the Tax Collector's Office. To avoid penalties, we urge tax payers to mail payments at least 5 business days before the deadline. Real estate accounts that are past due are assessed a charge of 2% for the month of January and an additional 3/4% each month thereafter.

North Carolina General Statutes allow unpaid real estate accounts to be advertised in all local newspapers from March 1st until June 30th. There is an additional cost to the taxpayer for this advertising. Past due taxes are subject to enforcement measures including, but not limited to, garnishment of wages and bank accounts, levy on personal property, foreclosure of real estate and withholding N.C. state tax refunds. Enforcement measures will begin immediately after the due date.

The Tax Collector's Office also collects fees for the following: