A property tax liability accrues in the name of the property owner of record as of January 1 of a tax year. If you have sold your property during the tax year and agreed with the buyer as part of your sales transaction that someone other than the owner as of January 1 is responsible for payment of taxes but you receive the tax bill in error, it is important that you contact the responsible party and provide them the tax bill as soon as possible in order to prevent additional penalties to you or them. This will also prevent your name being listed in the paper as the owner of a property for which there is a delinquency. We are not able to enforce an agreement for payment of property taxes and so it is the responsibility of the person in whose name the property was listed as of January 1 to ensure the bill is paid in order to remove the lien and the notice appearing.
You may want to contact an attorney for advice on how to handle legal consequences of a delinquent tax bill. All situations are different.
How do I . . .
Pay a delinquent tax bill for the tax year 2020?
- Up until April 15, 2021 you can pay your tax bill with penalties at the Hardin County Sheriff’s Department. List your Map ID number on your payment. Partial payment is not accepted. You may contact the Sheriff’s Department at (270) 765-5133, option 1. You can also search for your tax bill, pay online, and view additional tax information on the Sheriff’s Department website, here.
- After April 15, 2021, if a foreclosure action has not been filed in court, you will pay your 2020 tax bill at the Hardin County Clerk’s Office. Even if you receive a letter from our office, you must still pay your bill at the Hardin County Clerk’s office. List your Map ID number on your payment. Partial payment is not accepted by the Clerk’s office. You may contact the Hardin County Clerk tax department at (270) 765-2171, option 3.
Pay a delinquent tax bill for a tax year other than 2020?
- If a foreclosure action has not been filed in court, you will pay your bill at the Hardin County Clerk’s office. List your Map ID number on your payment. Partial payment is not accepted by the Clerk’s office. You may contact the Hardin County Clerk tax department at (270) 765-2171, option 3. Read below for other situations that may affect your payment.
Know for which tax year the bill is intended?
- The tax year looks like this:
- Year 2019 tax bills were sent to the owner of record as of January 1, 2019 and were mailed in November 2019, were due December 2019, began accruing penalties in January 2020 and were delinquent April 15, 2020.
- Year 2020 tax bills were sent to the owner of record as of January 1, 2020 and were mailed in November 2020, will be due December 2020, will begin accruing penalties in January 2021 and will be delinquent April 15, 2021. Click here for the tax calendar to learn more.
Set up a payment plan to pay a tax delinquency?
- As of April 15, you may be eligible to set up a payment plan for the prior tax year through the County Attorney’s Office. Please call (270) 765-6726 or email us at hcao@hcky.org to see if you are eligible to set up a payment plan. You may also be able to set up a payment plan through our office for other tax years for which there is a delinquency.
Pay a delinquent tax bill once a foreclosure action has been filed in Court?
- If a court action has been filed to enforce a tax lien or a foreclosure action has been filed in court, you will pay your delinquent tax lien at the Hardin County Attorney’s Office (unless the tax bill you seek to pay has been purchased by a third party; see below for information on third party purchases). Please call (270) 765-6726 or email hcao@hcky.org to determine your payoff amount. You should pay by certified check or money order. Please contact our office to make arrangements for payment or to discuss a cash payment.
Pay a delinquent tax bill if my tax bill has been purchased by a third party?
- In August each year every county schedules a sale of delinquent tax bills. A third party may purchase your tax bill (not your property) by paying the county the amount of your tax bill and all penalties and interest due at the time of the sale. Once a third party owns your tax bill, they are entitled to a lien on your property and may add additional penalties and interest to the amount owed. The third party may also file an action in court to force the sale of your property in order to pay the full amount of the delinquency. You must contact the third party to make arrangements for payment to them. You will not pay the county because the third party paid the county.
Request a payoff amount for delinquent taxes?
- If a foreclosure action has not been filed in court, you can contact the Hardin County Clerk’s Office at (270) 765-2171, option 3 to request a payoff, or utilize the delinquent tax calculator on their website, found here. If a foreclosure action has been filed in court, you can contact the Hardin County Attorney’s Office at (270) 765-6726 or email hcao@hcky.org to determine your payoff amount. Please be sure to provide your property Map ID number with your request.
Know if I am responsible for paying delinquent taxes on a property I plan to purchase at a Master Commissioner’s Sale?
- The purchaser of a property sold by the Master Commissioner will be responsible for payment of any liens against the property that are not paid from sale proceeds and should carefully research the title to the property and any liens on it before purchase. For more information on Master Commissioner sales or to visit the Master Commissioner’s website, click here.
911 Fee
- In 2018 Hardin County adopted a 911 fee for all occupied property units in Hardin County as the method to pay for 911 service. You previously were charged a 911 fee on your landline telephone bill. You may access the 911 Fee Ordinance and additional information relating to it here.
- Your 911 fee is due each year by December 31. As a convenience you are able to pay the fee to the Hardin County Sheriff’s Department when you pay your property tax bill each year. If your 911 fee becomes delinquent, you can contact Hardin County E-911 at (270) 737-0540 to make arrangements to pay in person or by money order, cash, credit, or debit card. You may also mail a check to the Hardin County Treasurer, P.O. Box 568, Elizabethtown, KY 42702. All checks should be made payable to the Hardin County Treasurer and should list your property Map ID. If you have further questions regarding your 911 fee, you may contact the E-911 office at (270) 737-0540.
Detention Center fees
- The state of Kentucky requires that an inmate pay some of the costs of their incarceration. If you have been an inmate at the Hardin County Detention Center you may receive a letter from our office telling you to pay the balance of the fees you owe. This is a personal debt that must be paid. You may pay your fees using one of the following methods:
- By phone: call 1-866-494-8556 Monday – Friday from 8 AM to 6 PM EST (additional fees apply)
- Online: www.payafee.net using the PayID provided in the letter you received (additional fees apply)
- By mail: mail money order or certified check for the full amount owed with the payment slip attached to the letter you received to the Hardin County Attorney’s Office, c/o Advent Financial
Systems, P.O. Box 6333, Elizabethtown, KY 42701-6333 - In person: at the Hardin County Detention Center located at 100 Lawson Blvd, Elizabethtown, KY 42701
- You cannot pay your jail fees at the County Attorney’s Office and we are unable to answer questions about the amount of the fees.
