As I shared in my last newsletter, the Beaufort County Auditor is still in the process of recalculating and finalizing the 2020 real and personal property tax accounts and bills. While this has delayed the distribution of the tax bills, we know many of our customers want and need to pay their property taxes before December 31st so they can claim the deduction on their income tax return.
On December 7th, Beaufort County Council approved the Beaufort County Treasurer's Office to accept prepayments for the 2020 real and personal property taxes in the calendar year 2020. Customers can now prepay on myBeaufortCounty.
Should you prepay your taxes?
First and foremost, please know that prepaying is optional. You can pay now or wait until after the Auditor’s Office has finished recalculating the bills. The following is provided to assist you in determining whether you should prepay this year’s taxes.
- If one of the below items applies to you, or something similar, you do not need to pay before the calendar year end and will have an extended time to pay without penalty.
- You plan to take a Standard Tax Deduction on your Federal Income Tax Return,
- Your taxes are paid through your mortgage escrow account, or
- You plan to pay taxes in 2021.
- If none of the above apply to you, you may want to consider prepaying your 2020 annual tax bill.
You want to prepay your taxes, now what?
My team and I are doing everything we can to innovatively serve you and would love your partnership in making this program successful. If you choose to prepay your 2020 annual taxes, please use myBeaufortCounty.com, the County’s online tax payment system. It will reduce the amount of manual work for our team and gets you a paid tax receipt right away. An added bonus: there are no additional fees when paying by check.
If you prefer to mail a payment, the Treasurer’s Office must wait to process it and send a receipt until after the Auditor’s Office has finished recalculating the bills. Despite the delay, the customer’s intended payment date, such their postmark date, will be honored as the effective date of their payment.
For more payment information or to contact our office, please visit BeaufortCountyTreasurer.com or call us at 843-255-2600.
