Paying Taxes/Obtaining Refunds

Ad valorem taxes in Florida are paid in arrears. You will receive the current year’s ad valorem tax bill from the County Tax Collector on or about November 1. If payment is made by November 30, there is a 4% discount….by December 31 a 3% discount….by January 31 a 2% discount….by February 28 a 1% discount…..by March 31….a 0% discount. If not paid by April 1, then taxes are delinquent subject to interest and penalties (approximately 1%-1.5% per month). Tax Certificates are subject to sale and the holder of a tax certificate for two (2) years can seek the sale of the property. You may be in default of your mortgage. Please consult your accountant or tax attorney for specific legal and accounting advice as this is a general review and notification of the issue.

The filing of an appeal with the Value Adjustment Board does not toll the time periods in which to make payment. That is, if a reduction is not obtained and taxes have not been paid, you will be subject to loss of early payment discounts, interest and penalties as noted above.

Only a successful appeal tolls the payment schedule. If a reduction in assessed value is obtained and you have not paid the taxes yet, a new bill will be sent to you. You will have approximately 30 days in which to pay the reduced amount and receive a 4% discount. The date is indicated on the new bill. Failure to pay by the date specified subjects you to loss of early payment discounts, interest and penalties as noted above.

THEREFORE, WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT THE TAX BILLS BE PAID IN NOVEMBER AS THE ONLY WAY TO GUARANTEE THE 4% EARLY PAYMENT DISCOUNT.

Either a tax refund or a reduced tax bill will be processed by the County Tax Collector if PTA is successful in obtaining a reduction in the assessed value of your property.

The County Tax Collector will only issue the refund to the entity that paid the taxes. That is, if a mortgagee or other entity paid the taxes on your behalf, it will receive the refund at the address from which payment was sent. The mortgagee will usually deposit the refund in your escrow account used to pay the taxes.

No matter who paid the taxes, as the owner, you are responsible for the payment of our fee. If the property was recently sold or purchased, please contact us so that we can insure proper receipt of the refund.

The Tax Collector will process and send the refund without any further action on your part. However, it could take a few weeks to up to three (3) months. Unfortunately, we cannot control when you will receive your refund. The indicated time period is an estimate.

Our fee is computed as if the taxes were paid without any early payment discount or any late payment penalty (i.e., the March payment amount as noted above). This is standard in our profession as many owners do not pay in November. For example, if you paid your taxes in November and received a 4% discount, your refund will be 4% less than what is indicated on the invoice.

On the other hand, the Tax Savings would be greater than indicated on our invoice if property taxes were paid later than November because the refund (or the revised tax bill) from the Tax Collector is calculated based on a 4% early payment discount. For example, if you paid your taxes in January and received a 2% discount, your refund will be greater than what is indicated on the invoice.

Should you have any questions regarding the status of your refund from the County, please contact the County Tax Collector or Property Appraiser. Each has easy to use websites with links to each other. For example, Miami-Dade Property Appraiser is www.miamidade.gov/pa/. Broward County Property Appraiser is www.bcpa.net. Palm Beach County Property Appraiser is www.pbcgov/papa. The Miami-Dade County Tax Collector’s office telephone number is (305) 270-4916.

As always, if you have any questions regarding this invoice, please call us at any time.

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