The Shadow
Alleghany County Treasurer Teresa S. Brown has announced that real estate, personal property and refuse bills have been mailed.
The due date remains Dec. 5, 2020. However, due to the fifth falling on a weekend this year, the deadline for residents to pay without penalty is extended to Monday, Dec. 7, 2020.
Additionally, residents of the towns of Clifton Forge and Iron Gate will be receiving tax tickets from their respective towns.
All vehicles owned on Jan. 1, 2020 will be taxed for the full year. Each motor vehicle the taxpayer has licensed in the state of Virginia will be charged a motor vehicle fee. The fee amount is listed on the personal property bill and added to the amount due.
“If you do not receive a tax ticket for your real estate and you have a mortgage escrow account, then it could have been mailed to your mortgage company for payment, “ said Brown. “If you receive a real estate tax ticket, and your bank should be remitting the payment, please notify your bank/mortgage company and advise them of the situation and forward the ticket to them so they can send the payment.
“Under Section 58.1-3912 Code of Virginia, it is the responsibility of the mortgage company to ask for the tax ticket in writing from the treasurer’s office. If the property has been sold, the tax statement should be forwarded to the new owner or sent to the lawyer who handled the property closing settlement process so that they may forward the statement to the current owner,” she said.
According to Brown, “Section 58.1-3926 Code of Virginia, failure to receive a tax ticket does not relieve the taxpayer of the penalty or interest that could accumulate due to late payment.”
On June 12, 2018, the Alleghany County Board of Supervisors adopted a new refuse fee. The $60 fee shall be billed annually.
The cost for collecting, handling and disposing of household solid waste are a significant part of the county budget. The fees collected will be designated to offset the actual costs of refuse collection, disposal and management of the transfer station.
The refuse fee is billed to the owner(s) of the record as of July 1 of each year and a separate bill will be mailed with your real estate tax tickets and due on or before the Dec. 7, 2020 deadline. The landowner is responsible for payment, no bills will be sent to a mortgage company.
Any questions regarding the assessment of the refuse fee should be directed to the Alleghany County Administrator’s Office at 540-863-6600.
Although payments are processed through the Alleghany County Treasurer’s Office, any questions regarding the assessment on vehicles, motor vehicle license fee or real estate taxes should be directed to the Alleghany County Commissioner of the Revenue’s Office at 540-863-6640. Any adjustments to tax and refuse tickets are made by the Commissioner of the Revenue.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alleghany County is working diligently to maintain the health and safety of its citizens and employees.
“We highly advise taxpayers to use either our online payment option, drop box at the county building or mail your tax payments,” said Brown. “If visiting the treasurer’s office in person, please follow the current requirements of hygiene, masks and social distancing.”
Brown would like to remind area residents and taxpayers of the following: Credit and debit cards are accepted at the counter in the treasurer’s office.
Payments can be made online at www.officialpayments.com or by phone at 1-800-272-9829 using jurisdiction code 6205 for Alleghany County. (A transaction fee will be charged when using a credit or debit card.)
Taxpayers can write one check for all payments due to the county and are asked to include the bottom portion of the tax ticket for all bills. Payments postmarked by Dec. 7, 2020 will be considered timely payments. In the event that taxes are delinquent, the oldest tax must be paid first.
The Alleghany County Treasurer’s Office is located at the Alleghany County Governmental Complex, 9212 Winterberry Avenue, Suite F, Covington.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., excluding holidays.
The office can be reached at 540-863-6630.
