mailed 170,471 property tax notifications to taxpayers who have their
local real estate taxes paid by a mortgage company. The notice informs
the taxpayer of how much their bill is, and which mortgage company has
requested the bill.
In some instances, the taxpayer's tax service company – rather than
the mortgage company – was listed on the form. Tax service companies
are contract vendors of the mortgage companies, and they work with
hundreds of tax offices for the purpose of obtaining the bills for the
mortgage companies so they can pay taxes from mortgage escrow
accounts. The exact number of mortgage letters listing tax service
companies rather than a mortgage company is not known.
"It is important to note that the tax data, including the value, tax
amount due, and other critical information on these notices correctly
reflect the tax records," said Neal Dixon, Mecklenburg County Tax
Office director. "There was no error in calculating the tax bill
itself."
The tax service companies in question were listed on the mortgage
because they sent their electronic files requests in an incorrect
format, Dixon said.
Many mortgage company customers don't know the name of their tax
service. Because of this, some taxpayers are concerned that their
bills will not be paid from their escrow accounts. Although the tax
service company was listed instead of the mortgage company, the tax
bills will be supplied to the requesting mortgage company for payment.
Taxpayers are encouraged to contact their mortgage companies to ensure
they have the tax information needed to pay their tax bills. In the
meantime, the County is working to update the tax records to reflect
the mortgage companies rather than the tax service companies that are
employed by the mortgage companies.
