How Do I Find Out If I Owe The Irs Taxes
The first signs that you may owe the IRS taxes are one of the following:
- You received a letter from the IRS stating so
- You didn’t receive your property tax refund
- You received a lien on your property
- Your wages were garnished
If any of those four things happened to you, then it’s a good sign that you owe the IRS back taxes. So how do you find out exactly how much you owe?
Getting The Tax Delinquent List
You already know how valuable this list can be. Now, you need to access the list. The best place to start is with your county treasurer .
Before you begin this process, its important to understand that the list is not free in most circumstances. Expect to pay anywhere from $100-$500 to get the list for your area.
If you live in a very small county, you may be able to get the list for free. Its worth asking about! The process is very simple:
- Ask your county treasurer for the tax delinquent list
- Determine the cost could be free, or up to $500
- Mail a check to the treasurers office with a letter of instruction
- Receive the list in the method you choose
Paying up to $500 for this list can sound expensive, but the potential savings it can create make it well worth the cost. The list will give you all the information you need to begin contacting property owners and cutting deals.
Information listed on this report includes a number of items. However, the main fields include the property owners name, their date of purchase, cost of purchase, tax amount, taxes owed, etc.
Many software platforms also let you see whos behind on their taxes or mortgages. These include Realeflow or PropStream. For under $100 per month, you can have unlimited access to these owners.
How To Find Tax Delinquent Properties In Your Area
Since property tax records are public record, its easy to find tax delinquent properties in your area. It takes a little legwork, but with the right steps, you can make a good investment investing in property tax liens.
Some local tax assessors have a list ready of properties with delinquent taxes. If this is the case, figure out where you want to invest and call the county assessor and ask for a list. Sometimes it costs money and other times its free. Even if it costs you a little money, think of it as an investment and include it in your calculations when you decide if investing in tax liens is the right choice.
Once you have the list of delinquent properties, you can choose which owners you want to call on to offer your services in helping them get out of their tax delinquency.
When you invest in delinquent taxes, you can charge interest for your services, much like a collection agency charges fees when they take possession of delinquent debt. Your goal in helping homeowners is to help them avoid foreclosure. If they dont come clean with their tax debt with the county, they could end up in foreclosure for tax delinquency.
You could also go the tax lien auction route, but that is more competitive and typically offers lower returns. When there are multiple investors in the mix, the bidding gets high and the profits low. The more you pay for the delinquent taxes, the less profit youll make when you get the homeowner to pay the debt.
Read Also: When Is Tax Filing Day
The Property Tax Year
The Texas Comptroller’s Office states the property tax year has four stages: appraising taxable property, protesting the appraised values, adopting the tax rates and collecting the taxes.
- Between January 1 and April 30, the appraisal district processes applications for tax exemptions, agricultural appraisals and other tax relief.
- Around May 15, the appraisal review board begins hearing protests from property owners who believe their property values are incorrect or who did not get exemptions or agricultural appraisal. When the ARB finishes its work, the appraisal district gives each taxing unit a list of taxable property.
- In August or September, the elected officials of each taxing unit adopt tax rates for their operations and debt payments. Several taxing units tax your property. Every property is taxed by the county and the local school district. You also may pay taxes to a city and to special districts such as hospital, junior college, water, fire and others.
How Do I Find Out If I Owe The Irs Taxes Online
If you are trying to figure out whether you owe the IRS taxes, it’s probably because you might have not filed your taxes or you got something from the IRS. In either case, it’s important to know that you’re not alone. Statistically, over 14 million taxpayers owe the IRS back taxes. Taxes are complicated and confusing, so it’s no wonder that you are wondering. So how do you find out if you owe the IRS taxes?
You May Like: Where Do I Pay My Taxes
Find Out Back Property Taxes And Tax Lien Information For Free
That is the second step on your Due Diligence checklist, the second question you should ask when buying land checking what taxes and tax liens are owed. And now you know how to do that for FREE.
The next Due Diligence item on your checklist should be: What is the property zoning? Im going to go over how to check that in part 3 of this video and blog series.
If you enjoyed this post make sure you like it, share it, tell your friends about it, and dont forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel so youre the first to know when the next video in this Due Diligence series is published. By the end of this series, you will have a comprehensive checklist of items you need to check before you buy any piece of land.
If you have any questions leave a comment below Ill make sure I answer them and help you out. Thank you for reading!
What Is Property Tax Liens Investing
If youre looking to invest in real estate but dont want to own the physical property, tax lien investing could be a good option. Its different than investing in the stock market, but it can provide some healthy returns. Finding property tax liens can be just as much work as finding a cheap house to flip, but with the right steps, the profits are there for the taking.
Heres how the process works:
Don’t Miss: Do You Have To File Taxes On Social Security Income
What Happens To Foreclosed Properties
Before a home is foreclosed upon, owners can pay their back taxes or tax bill in full at any time before the property is seized.
However, this doesnt happen as often as youd think. Many properties end up being foreclosed on and sold at the city, township, or countys yearly Tax Lien Sale.
The town holds these sales in hopes of making back the cost of the unpaid property and real estate taxes, so the properties are usually auctioned at a fraction of their worth.
Thats tempting for a real estate investor, but it isnt the key to unlocking the potential of finding tax-delinquent properties. Catching the property owners before the county forecloses and sells the property is the key.
Find The Assessed Value Of The Property
To find your propertys assessed value, the local government will order an appraisal on the property. Some areas conduct annual appraisals. Others do them every 3 years or less frequently .
Some localities use the market value and others use the appraised value . Either way, they take a percentage of this value to come up with the assessed value.
The percentage they use is called the assessment ratio or the percentage of the homes value thats taxable. The ratios vary drastically around the country.
For example, if your homes market value is $300,000 and your local government taxes 60% of the value, youd pay taxes on $180,000 rather than $300,000.
Don’t Miss: Does Doordash Take Taxes Out
My Take On Tax Delinquent Properties
VectorMine/Shutterstock
Let me start by saying that this is only my opinion. I dont fault anyone for trying to find tax delinquent properties. They can be a great way to find property for little money down.
That said, my investment strategy revolves around helping people, and buying past-due tax notes just doesnt fit my model. I couldnt sleep well at night knowing Id be taking someones house from them for a small past due balance.
Yes, business is business, but I just dont believe in the model when it comes to buying with the goal of eventually taking the home. However, it can be highly profitable when done right.
And again, not everyone shares my investment philosophy, which is fine. Alternatively, some investors are just seeking interest, and tax delinquent properties offer a great return.
If you dont actually intend to foreclose on the home, it can be a great way to help someone get back on track while also getting a little interest in the meantime. Its a win-win.
I have looked into this, but the time and effort required were not worth the return for me. Its a labor-intensive process, and most balances fall under $5,000, so even at a 14% interest rate, here in Nebraska youd only get 7% annually. This is simply is not enough return for me to invest my energy into a deal
The best real estate investing software. Period.
Pros:
- Extensive property database
- Very accurate comp tool & filters
- Very low $97 monthly price
Cons:
How To Check Back Property Taxes
Okay, now, we need to find the Treasurers page for the County, and see if they have an online parcel search.
Im going to head over to google here and type in Costilla County treasurer parcel search.
Every county page will be different. You want to look for keywords on the Treasurers page such as online parcel search or treasurer parcel search. Here is Costilla Countys Treasurer page.
Im going to click on the link that says . On the page that follows, you will need to accept the Countys disclaimer.
And here is Costilla Countys Treasurer online database. So now youre going to need that second piece of information the parcel number . Ill paste that in the Parcel Number box and click Search for Property.
Okay so thats the parcel number we typed in and searched for and heres our result.
Sometimes the Assessor and Treasurer info will be shared across platforms. So here we can see the owners, same as the owner in our first video and article of the series which is a good thing to note because it means that the county information is consistent.
And a great benefit of Costilla Countys Treasurer database is that you can see the individuals involved in previous transactions , detailed owner information, assessment history, tax history, and land details.
Lets click on View Property Tax History and see if it gives us more details.
Also Check: How Much Taxes To Pay On 1099
Local Real Estate Wholesalers
When thinking of how to look up properties with tax liens, one way that is often overlooked is to let someone else do it for you. Thats exactly what real estate wholesalers do.
Wholesalers look for properties that their investor clients want to buy. Their frequent customers are investors needing to find cheap homes to flip and landlords.
Wholesalers negotiate with motivated sellers, determine properties investment potential, and put suitable homes under a purchase contract in their name.
The contract can be assigned to someone else. An investor who likes the property will pay the wholesaler a fee to take over the contract.
The contract price has to be low enough for the investor to pay the wholesaler, make repairs or improvements, and still be able to sell for an acceptable profit.
In exchange for the assignment fee, you dont have to look for properties yourself and you get an investment-ready deal already pre-negotiated by the wholesaler.
These professionals know many places where to find houses to wholesale, including county records. Among potential investment properties they can suggest for you, there may be tax delinquent homes.
And when you establish a relationship with a good wholesaler, they will look for deals that suit your specific criteria.
Some investors dont work with wholesalers or brokers because they dont want to pay their fees.
Spending time looking for investment opportunities yourself can cost you more than the wholesalers contract assignment fee.
Search For Money From Insurance
- VA Life Insurance Funds Search the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs database for unclaimed insurance funds.
- The VA may owe money to current or former policyholders or their beneficiaries.
- This database doesnt include funds from:
- Servicemembers Group Life Insurance
- Veterans Group Life Insurance policies from 1965 to the present
Don’t Miss: How To Apply For Irs Tax Forgiveness
What Is A Property Tax
Local governments levy property taxes on property owners within their locality. Governments use taxes to provide taxpayers with various services, including schools, police, fire and garbage collection. Property taxes are calculated by applying an assessment ratio to the propertys fair market value.
Performing A Sales Evaluation
The assessor values the property using comparable sales in the area. Criteria include location, the state of the property, any improvements, and overall market conditions. The assessor then makes adjustments in the figures to show specific changes to the property, such as new additions and renovations.
Recommended Reading: Is Doordash Worth It After Taxes
How To Find Out If Property Taxes Have Been Paid
Related Articles
Whether or not property taxes are paid is a matter of public record, and the information is often located through online county record portals. Property taxes and any special city or state assessments are paid based on the property’s assessed value with land and any improvements. Being delinquent on property taxes can result in a tax lien or tax deed sale, ultimately leading to foreclosure.
Ways To Assess Property Value
Property taxes are calculated by taking the mill levy and multiplying it by the assessed value of the owners property. The assessed value estimates the reasonable for your home. It is based upon prevailing local real estate market conditions.
The assessor will review all relevant information surrounding your property to estimate its overall value. To give you the most accurate assessment, the assessor must look at what comparable properties are selling for under the current market conditions, how much the replacement costs for the property would be, the maintenance costs for the property owner, any improvements that were completed, any income you are making from the property, and how much interest would be charged to purchase or construct a property comparable to yours.
The assessor can estimate the market value of the property by using three different methods, and they have the option of choosing a single one or any combination of the three.
Recommended Reading: When Will I Get My Federal Tax Refund 2021
Why Is My Property Tax Higher Than My Neighbors
In the majority of cases, this will be due to the assessed value of your home being higher. Your home may have a higher value if you have a larger plot of land, if your home is larger, or if your home has desirable features. In some rare cases, however, you may live in a different jurisdiction from your neighbor.
Local Property Appraisal And Tax Information
The Comptroller’s office does not have access to your local property appraisal or tax information. Most questions about property appraisal or property tax should be addressed to your county’s appraisal district or tax assessor-collector.
Appraisal districts can answer questions about:
- agricultural and special appraisal
County tax assessor-collector offices can answer questions for the taxing units they serve about:
- payment options
- other information related to paying property taxes
Questions about a taxing unit that is not listed as consolidated in a county should be directed to the individual taxing unit.
This directory contains contact information for appraisal districts and county tax offices and includes a listing of the taxing units each serves. Taxing units are identified by a numerical coding system that includes taxing unit classification codes.
This directory is periodically updated with information as reported by appraisal districts and tax offices.
Recommended Reading: What Is Georgia State Tax
Example Of A Property Tax Calculation
The tax rate for a property is determined by how many city and school districts a property lies within, and adding together the rates applied by each. This aggregate rate is referred to as the mill levy. Generally, every city, county, and school district has the power to levy taxes against the properties within its boundaries. Each entity calculates its required mill levy, and they are then tallied together to calculate the total mill levy.
The mill levy is the total tax rate levied on your property value, with one mill representing one-tenth of one cent. So, for $1,000 of assessed property value, one mill would be equal to $1.
For example, suppose the total assessed property value in a county is $100 million, and the county decides it needs $1 million in tax revenues to run its necessary operations. The mill levy would be $1 million divided by $100 million, which equals 1%. Or, if the city and the school district calculated a mill levy of 0.5% and 3%, respectively, the total mill levy for the region would be 4.5% or 45 mills.
To calculate a tax bill, two further steps are required. First, a propertys value is assessed via one of the methods described below. Then, the value is multiplied by the assessment rate, which varies by jurisdiction and represents the percentage of a property on which taxes are due.
