Property Tax FAQs
You may contact our office by phone, mail, email, or in person.
Email - taxpc@co.orange.tx.us
Phone - (409) 882-7971
(409) 769-0064
Mail - P. O. Box 1568
Orange, TX 77631-1568
In Person
Orange:
123 S. 6th Street
Orange, TX 77630
Vidor:
155 Wilson
Vidor, TX 77662
Tax bills for each year are usually mailed in October. Taxes are due upon receipt of the bill. In order to be timely, payments must be paid or postmarked on or before January 31 st . If January 31 falls on the weekend the next business day is considered on time.
You can pay by cash, check, money order, or debit card/credit card at either of our office locations. For your convenience both locations have an outside drop box for payments which is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Drop box pick up is 8:00 am on the following business day.
Payments made by mail should be mailed to:
Karen Fisher - Tax Assessor-Collector
Orange County
P. O. Box 1568
Orange, TX 77631-1568
Please make your check payable to Karen Fisher or to the Orange County Tax Office. In order to insure proper credit it is important to include the stub from your tax bill, a copy of your tax bill, or account numbers.
A non-refundable surcharge added to each credit card transaction.
The County Tax Assessor - Collector is an office created by the Texas Constitution. Under the Constitution’s provisions, the Assess - Collector is personally liable for the funds collected and deposited in separate bank accounts under his/her control. The Assessor - Collector is relieved of this responsibility and liability when he/she deposits the funds with the County Treasurer.
Yes. The Tax Office accepts full or partial payment of property taxes online. Property taxpayers may also use any combination of credit cards payments. A non-refundable surcharge of 2.5% will be added to each credit card transaction.
Yes. The Tax Office accepts full or partial payment of property taxes by an automated phone system by calling 1 (800) 300-8007. Open Monday - Friday 8am - 5pm.
Yes. Partial payments are accepted. However, any remaining amount left unpaid will accrue penalty and interest. Current taxes will begin to accrue penalty and interest on February 1. Delinquent taxes accrue penalty and interest monthly. Attorney fees attach to amount remaining due on April 1 for personal property and July 1 for real property.
As a property owner, it is your responsibility to make sure that you receive a bill and that it is paid on time. The bills are mailed and the taxes are due at the same time each year. If you have not received a bill by the middle of December, you should call and request that a statement be sent to you. You are also able to call and get the amount due over the phone as early as October or look up your account on our website. It is not necessary to have a statement to make payment as long as you have your account number and know the correct amount to remit.
The Tax Office will accept any payment amount for the current year taxes; however, after February 1st , penalty and interest begin to accrue for any remaining delinquent taxes. To establish payment arrangements you can contact our office. Under the law, penalties and interest continue to accrue during payment arrangements.
State law automatically places a tax lien on property on January 1 of each year to ensure that taxes are paid. The person who owns or acquires a property on or after January 1 of the tax year is personally liable for the tax. A person is not relieved of the obligation because he no longer owns the property. (Sec. 32.07, Texas Property Tax Code).
The deadline for paying the current year tax is January 31 st . Penalty and interest begin to accrue on February 1 st , Sec. 33.01, Texas Property Tax Code. If taxes are not paid by January 31 st , penalties and interest will accrue as follows:
|
IF TAX PAID IN: |
ADD |
IF TAX PAID IN: |
ADD |
||||||||
|
PENALTY |
INTEREST |
TOTAL |
PENALTY |
INTEREST |
TOTAL |
||||||
|
FEBRUARY |
6% |
+ |
1% |
= |
7% |
MAY |
9% |
+ |
4% |
= |
13% |
|
MARCH |
7% |
+ |
2% |
= |
9% |
JUNE |
10% |
+ |
5% |
= |
15% |
|
APRIL * |
8% |
+ |
3% |
= |
11% |
JULY ** |
12% |
+ |
6% |
= |
18% |
Penalty reaches a 12% maximum and interest will increase 1% each month thereafter.
*Personal property and mobile home accounts not paid in full by March 31 st of the year in which they become delinquent will be referred to the delinquent tax attorney for enforced collection, and will become subject to an additional penalty of up to 20% of the taxes, penalties, and interest due, pursuant to Sec. 33.11 of the Property Tax Code of the State of Texas.
**All real property accounts not paid in full by June 30 th of the year in which they become delinquent will be referred to the delinquent tax attorney for enforced collection, and will become subject to additional penalty of up to 20% of the taxes, penalty and interest then due, pursuant to Sec. 33.07 of the Property Tax Code of the State of Texas.
Yes. ONLY taxpayers with an Age 65 or older, Disabled Person Exemption, or Disabled Veteran Exemption or their surviving spouse may pay current taxes on their residence homestead in four equal installments without penalty or interest. In order to be eligible, installments are required to be set up before March 1. Taxpayer MUST request the quarter payments in writing each year and MUST pay at least:
- 1/4 before March 1st
- 1/4 before April 1st
- 1/4 before June 1st
- 1/4 before August 1st
If an installment is missed, a 6% penalty is imposed and interest begins to accrue.
If you do not receive a tax bill, you can contact our office, (409) 882-7971 or (409) 769-0064, or visit our website to find out how much your taxes are. Failure to receive a tax bill does not affect the validity of the tax, penalty, or interest, the due date, the existence of a tax lien, or any procedure instituted to collect a tax (sec. 31.01 (g), Texas Property Tax Code).
Either your mortgage company did not request the statement, or the request was received too late. Please contact your mortgage company for additional information.
It is the OWNER’S responsibility to ensure the information on their Tax Bill is correct. All requests for information changes should be made through the Orange County Appraisal District.
The tax records showed you as the owner when the bills were printed. Contact the Orange County Appraisal District to have this corrected.
As long as a bill is not requested by a mortgage company, it is automatically mailed to the owner on record. The bills are generally mailed out in October. If you do not receive your bill by mid-December, it is your responsibility to contact our office to request a statement or find out the amount due. Taxes are due upon receipt of the bill and are due by January 31 st of the year following the year the tax was incurred and become delinquent February 1.
The tax account number is assigned by the Orange County Appraisal District and is used to help identify each piece of property. Normally, only one account number is assigned to each parcel. The legal description describes the property as a parcel in a larger tract (i.e. Lot 1, Block 2 Bahama Heights), so it can be located on a map. If the legal description is wrong on your statement, this error should be directed to the Orange County Appraisal District for proper handling.
No. The Orange County Tax Office does not prorate taxes; the tax bill must reflect the full amount of taxes owed for that year.
Tax law requires this office to mail delinquent tax bills to the current owner of the property rather than to the previous owner. Because a tax lien exists against that property, it is in the current owner’s best interest to have knowledge of that lien. If a lawsuit were filed to foreclose the lien, the current owner, not the previous owner, risks losing the property to foreclosure.
Placing a taxable value on real property and personal property is a function of the Orange County Appraisal District, not the Orange County Tax Office. Please contact the Orange County Appraisal District in regards to the appraised value of property.
All protests must be directed to the Orange County Appraisal District. The usual deadline for filing written protests is on or before May 31 or 30 days after the date the appraisal district sends a notice of appraised value, whichever is later.
You will receive a corrected tax bill after our office receives the correction from the Orange County Appraisal District if taxes are still owed on the account.
Contact the Orange County Appraisal District.
Exemptions reduce the taxable value of property and lower the tax amount billed. Common exemptions are: General Residence Homestead, Disabled Person, Age 65 or Older, and Disabled Veteran. To file for an exemption, contact the Orange County Appraisal District.
Exemptions are listed on the tax bills. You may also contact our office or the Orange County Appraisal District to find out the exemptions on your property.
To apply for exemptions or have exemptions corrected you will need to contact the Orange County Appraisal District.
The Orange County Appraisal District is responsible for setting the taxable value of your property each year. Exemptions affect property value and must be approved by the appraisal district. The Orange County Tax Office calculates and collects property tax, we do not determine the value of the property.
Chapter 22, Texas Tax Code, requires owners of business personal property to file a rendition describing the property with the chief appraiser by April 15 of each year and also perscribes the penalty for failure to comply.
The rendition penalty is a penalty created by the Texas Legislature on those businesses failing to file their business personal property rendition, or filing their rendition late, with the Orange County Appraisal District.
The rendition penalty is generally equal to 10% of the amount of property taxes ultimately imposed on the property.
The Tax Office does not have the legal authority to waive or reduce the penalty. All protests and/or waivers should be directed to the Orange County Appraisal District.
Contact the Orange County Appraisal District.
The penalty is divided: 5% to the appraisal district and 95% to the applicable taxing jurisdictions.
Check your exemptions. If you were not granted an exemption allowed, contact the Orange County Appraisal District.
The appraised value of the property may be greater than in the previous year. If so, an explanation for the increase will be sent by the Orange County Appraisal District.
The tax rate may have increased and if so, the amount of taxes owed could be more than the previous year. The breakdown of the tax rates for the various taxing entities is shown on the tax bill.
A tax certificate is a certificate issued by the tax assessor-collector that shows the amount of taxes, penalties, interest, and any other known costs and expenses due on a property according to the current tax records, Sec. 31.08, Texas Property Tax Code.
A tax certificate may be issued by either location of the Orange County Tax Office. The fee for a tax certificate is $10.00 and must be paid for with cash.
The State Comptroller’s Office provides a comprehensive overview of this process, entitled Property Tax Basics.
This document details the four phases of the annual property tax levy:
- Appraisal or property valuation (including responsibilities of the Appraisal District and exemptions available to reduce property taxes);
- Equalization or value protests;
- Taxation or adopting budgets and setting tax rates (also known as the “assessment” phase); and
- Collection or payment from taxpayers (including payment deadlines, deferring payments, and consequences of failure to pay).
It also provides a calendar of due dates for all yearly taxing events and a Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights.
