Payment Options:

1. In Person: Cash, Check, Money Order, Debit/Credit Card
2. ONLINE: E-Check, Debit/Credit Card
3. Via Mail: Check or Money Order

4. Over the Phone: 252-399-2900, Opt 1 
   
   

Tips for Paying Your Taxes with Xpress-Pay provided by Truist

Wilson County has partnered with Truist to make it more convenient to pay your taxes.  There are a few things you may want to know before using this service to pay your taxes:

• Xpress-Pay charges a convenience fee for each transaction.  The convenience fee is currently 3% of your credit/debit card transaction.  (Example: If you pay $100 you will be charged $3 for the service for a total of $103.)  The convenience fee for Electronic Check transactions is $2.75 for each payment less than or equal to $10,000 and $15 for each payment greater than $10,000.
• You can use this service to pay any of your Property Taxes that are invoiced by our office.
• You can also pay by phone by calling (252) 360-1033.  The convenience fee plus a $1.00 fee also applies for telephone transactions.
• When making your payment do not include the convenience fee in the payment amount.  It will be automatically added during the payment process.
• We encourage you to print the receipt at the end of the payment process for your records.  A receipt will also be emailed to you after all online payments.
• Payments may take up to two business days before they show in the Tax Department’s records.  However, payments will be posted as of the Transaction Date.

Property tax bills are not mailed to mortgage companies. Most lenders access and retrieve tax data online or request a file from our office electronically, which eliminates the need to send them a paper copy. 

Most mortgage companies contract with a tax service, such as Corelogic or Lereta, to handle the processing and payment of tax bills.  Although your mortgage company may forward your escrow funds to the tax service as early as October, the tax service does not normally remit payment to the County until November. Most escrow payments are made by December. The County applies payments as they are received.  

Please be advised that even if the taxes are to be paid from an escrow account, the property owner remains responsible for ensuring timely payment of the bill.

Prepayments and Installment Payments

There appears to be a misconception as to when a person’s tax bill may be paid. Tax bills (real and personal property excluding registered motor vehicles) are “Due and Payable on September 1st”. However, in many cases the amount due can be substantial. Many people are not aware that they have the ability to make payments rather than paying the entire bill all at one time.

We do have a number of persons who have chosen to pay in installments so by year’s end they owe very little or nothing at all. Some start making payments in January of each year (in the form of a Prepayment) prior to the bill being generated and others choose to begin making payments starting in September once the bill has been received. Whether you choose to begin Prepayments in January or break your payments down after receiving the bill in September, it can be a great decision that may remove the possibility of any stress by having to pay the entire bill at the end of the year.

Contact the Tax Office at (252) 399-2900, Option 2 and let our staff help you decide what works best for you.

Disclaimer

The convenience fee is charged solely by Payment Vendor and is subject to change at any time. Payments made on accounts that have delinquent taxes due will be applied to the delinquent amounts first. Interest begins on the first day of the month following the due date.

If a check is returned unpaid or an electronic payment invoice is not honored by the issuer, the taxes for which payment was given shall be deemed unpaid. Written notice of the returned item will be sent to whom the tax receipt was issued. 

The penalty for presenting a check or electronic funds transfer that is returned is twenty-five dollars ($25) or ten percent (10%) of the amount of the check or electronic invoice, whichever is greater, subject to a maximum of one thousand dollars ($1,000). This penalty will be added to and collected in the same manner as the taxes for which the check or electronic payment was given. 

For more information, view N.C.G.S 105-236.

Property tax bills were mailed in August of each year. Property taxes become due and payable as of September 1, with the last day to pay being January 5. After January 5, all outstanding taxes become delinquent.

In years past, taxpayers have typically received one bill for their real and personal property together. This year, our office has tried to separate all personal property from being attached to real property, so you will receive two separate bills.

What did my tax bill change so much from 2023 to 2024?

For the 2024 revaluation, this is the first time that we have reappraised properties in Wilson since 2016. NC laws require all counties to reappraise all real properties once every 8 years. Wilson is currently on an eight-year cycle. When a revaluation is conducted, we are looking at the current real estate market in Wilson, and adjust our rates based on sales, construction costs, and other factors related to the market. More information can be found on this process at the link below.

https://www.wilsoncountync.gov/departments/tax-department/2024-countywide-revaluation/revaluation-information

Market Value

When we are reviewing our different market areas, or neighborhoods, we start by analyzing the sales in the area to help determine an estimate market value for all properties.

 One resource our office provides is a unique tool that will allow you compare your property with other sales of homes in your neighborhood. The sales are a good indication of the market value in your area as of January 1, 2024. Please check out our Comper for Citizen site: https://nc-wilson-citizen.comper.info/template.aspx?propertyID=3657368882 to review your area.

Real Property Appeal Process

The deadline to appeal the new valuation ended on May 16, 2024, at the adjournment of our Board of Equalization and Review. The next opportunity to appeal you real property value will begin in January 2025 for the 2025 tax year. We will be providing more educational opportunities later this year and will mail our valuation notices in January 2025.

Personal Property Appeal Process

The deadline to appeal personal property assessments and valuation is September 10, 2024 at 11:59 PM. The appeal must be submitted in writing to our office, by email, or postmarked by this date to be accepted for 2024.   

I sold my real property after January 1, why am I receiving the bill?

The value, ownership, and place of taxation (situs) of real and personal property is determined annually as of January 1.  Therefore, regardless of if the property sells after January 1, the tax bills are sent out to the owner of record as of January 1. In most cases, a change in ownership after January 1 will be reflected in the next tax year.

How are our tax dollars being spent?

For a full line-item breakdown of our budget, please visit the following link:

https://www.wilsoncountync.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/7414/638537931669570000

These two charts are a simple way to see how tax dollars are being spend in the county. These also match the percentages that were provided on the bills for a breakdown.