January 31 is the annual date by which all property taxes in Texas must be paid to avoid penalties. With Jan. 31 falling on Sunday this year, the deadline for paying property taxes is being extended to the close of business on Feb. 1.
“We don’t want people to panic just because Jan. 31 falls on a weekend. You still have time to make your payments and avoid penalties for late payments,” said Liberty County Tax Assessor-Collector Richard “Ricky” Brown.
Property owners have four options available to them to make their payments – by phone, in person, online or by mail.
“We will honor a postmark of Feb. 1 even if we don’t receive that letter until days later. If you cannot make it into one of the offices to pay your taxes, put it in a stamped envelope and drop it in the mail,” Brown said.
The mailing address Liberty County Tax Assessor-Collector, 3210 US 90, Liberty, Texas 77575.
To pay online, simply log onto https://www.libertycountytax.com/taxweb/, search for the property by owner name, address, location or PIDN number. Once you find the correct property, click on the account number that appears in the left-hand column. This will load a new screen where the total amount due is listed. Then click on e-payment and a new screen will load where you can enter your credit or debit card information. A receipt will be emailed to the address you provide.
To pay by phone, call the Liberty office at 936-336-4633, the Dayton office at 936-258-4705 or the Cleveland office at 281-593-8415. However, the Cleveland office phones will not work after noon on Friday until 8 a.m. Monday, Feb. 1, due to planned upgrades in the phone systems at the county annex in Cleveland. During this time, two other phone numbers may be used: 936-346-8824 or 936-346-8667.
For Spanish-speaking property owners in need of a translator, call 1-866-549-1010. When prompted, use the Bureau Code of 3693013. You must have your property identification number/account number before calling this number.
“They will get a person who is fluent in Spanish who can converse with them and accept their payment,” Brown said. “They won’t be able to look up account information though. The account number should be listed on their tax statement.”
People who choose to pay in person should expect long waiting times at any of the three locations, Brown said. These offices are located at 3210 US 90, Liberty; 1300 W. Clayton St., Dayton; or 304 Campbell St., Cleveland.
If you miss the deadline, penalties begin immediately on Feb. 2.
“For the first month, it goes to 7 percent more for penalties. It gradually goes up every month after that. If they ignore it for a year, the penalties go up significantly, more than 30 percent. By July 1, if they haven’t made their tax payments and do not have a payment agreement in place and are making monthly payments, then their property is subject to a tax lien and judgment,” Brown said. “If you can’t make your payments yet, talk to us about a payment agreement. That won’t stop the penalties from accruing but it does protect a property owner for a while from losing their property in a tax lien or sale.”
For more information on property taxes and the other functions of the tax assessor-collector’s office, go online to https://www.co.liberty.tx.us/page/liberty.County.Assessor.Collector.