County Tax Collector to Send Nearly 31,000 Default Notices

The San Diego County Treasurer-Tax Collector's office will send 30,638 default notices to local land owners who failed to pay part or all of their 2010-11 property taxes, it was announced Friday.

The notices will include a bill with a 10 percent penalty, with an additional 1.5 percent per month additional charge if the owner still does not pay up. If the property remains in default for five years, the county is allowed to sell the land and keep the proceeds.

According to Treasurer-Tax Collector Dan McAllister, "The total amount due on these accounts is $206,505,796.''

The county sends out around 980,000 property tax bills annually, and expected to collect $4.445 billion in the last fiscal year.

"We are mailing 9,000 fewer default notices than last year, which is a positive indication that our economy may be improving,'' McAllister said.

Two months ago, he announced that more than 38,000 property owners had yet to pay their taxes, but around 7,700 ponied up before the June 30 deadline.

The bills can be paid at offices at the County Administration Center, Kearny Mesa, Chula Vista, El Cajon or San Marcos. Payments can also be made over the telephone at (877) 829-4732, or online at sdtreastax.com.

City News Service contributed to this report.