CLEVELAND — Property owners in Cuyahoga County, take note, the deadline to pay your real estate taxes for the second half of 2024 is Thursday, July 17.
As homeowners deal with increased property taxes as a result of the recent countywide reappraisal, the Cuyahoga County Treasurer's Office knows that the struggle for some to come up with the money to pay is that much harder. They've seen it in delinquencies, which have been on the rise. They want you to know you have options, not paying though, isn't one of them.
"If folks don't pay their property taxes on on time, unfortunately there is a 10% penalty that's assessed 10 days after the collection deadlines," said Cuyahoga County Treasurer Brad Cromes. "We really encourage people to get those payments in as soon as possible. Unpaid balances are also charged interest in September and again in December. So it behooves everybody to get with us as soon as possible to again get on a payment plan."
Their priority, he said, is to help prevent you from getting to that point.
"The treasurer's office is here to help," said Cromes. "It's always better to get ahead of these things rather than to let them fester. So we encourage all of our taxpayers to call us. We've got a number of programs that are available that can help in terms of our delinquent tax payment plans. We have the ability to take those out as far as five years to spread that burden out and help people deal with it."
"We've also got the Easy Pay program, which is for current taxes that allows people to divide their payments into easier monthly installments so that they're less likely to fall behind in the first place," Cromes said.
He said one of the more important programs is one for seniors who are tax delinquent and in danger of losing their homes.
"It's our taxpayer assistance program for folks who are 70 plus and already delinquent and make $70,000 or less each year. We can help with up to $10,000 in one time support and then we'll provide housing counseling to make sure people are stable moving forward," he said.
He adds there's a financial advantage to getting current.
"If you're on a payment plan, those penalties and interest charges are totaled and forgiven at the end of the payment plan if you successfully completed. So that's something we encourage everybody to do."
Those looking to make a payment can do so by mail, online, or in person at the Treasurer's Office, located on the first floor of the Cuyahoga County Administration Building, 1200 Ontario Street, Cleveland, OH 44113. Hours will be extended for the deadline on Thursday, when they'll be open from 8:30 a.m. until 6 p.m.
