When do you pay your annual real property tax?
Sec. 60 of the Real Property Tax Code (or PD No. 464) states:
“Payment of real property taxes in installments. — Real property taxes may, in the discretion of the taxpayer, be paid without penalty in four equal installments; the first installment to be due and payable on or before March thirty-first; the second installment, on or before June thirty; the third installment, on or before September thirty; and the last installment, on or before December thirty-first, except the special levies authorized under Sections forty-seven and fifty-five of this Code which shall be governed by the local ordinance or Department Order issued by the Secretary of Finance, as the case may be.”
For taxpayers who choose to pay the entire year’s real property tax within the first quarter, there are discount incentives.
I used to habitually paid real property taxes for the entire year within the 1st quarter. Why? First, to avail of the discount. This percentage varies from one municipality or city to another as this is the discretion of the local government. But it runs to an average discount of 10%. That can be a big savings for many people. Second, I want to pay just once and forget it the rest of the year. Who wants to go every quarter to City Hall to pay the quarterly portion? I don’t.
You can save even more!
Here’s a tip if you want to save even more. I am passing this on to you before the end of December because you need to act within this month if you want to avail of the further savings.
If you ask your city or municipal treasurer, you will discover that if you pay next year’s real property tax before the end of this year, oftentimes your discount rate will be much higher. The discount rate for next year’s real estate tax can be as high as 20% if you pay before end of December but that rapidly drops to roughly 10% if you pay between January-March of the following year.
That is a lot of savings right there. You save a lot more by paying NOW.
Considering that most people have spare money in December due to bonuses and 13th month pay, you may want to opt to pay next year’s real property tax before end of this December.