Some South Carolina counties have begun issuing real property tax bills for 2017. As of September 29 Lexington and Charleston are the only counties that have released their tax bills, but the rest of the counties will continue to issue their bills throughout October and in to November.
This time of year a common issue arises concerning closings and assessed tax bills. It is important for you to remember and to properly advise your clients that once the bill is issued, ad valorem taxes are a lien on the property that must be paid at closing if not previously paid. This is true even if the seller escrowed taxes with their lender and the lender has informed the seller that the tax bill has been “paid.” Until the county’s tax records reflect that the bill has been paid, the tax bill continues to be a lien which must be collected and paid at closing. Any money that the seller escrowed for those taxes will be refunded to the seller by the lender. In most case the refund is done within 15 to 30 days post-closing (assuming the seller does not have an escrow shortage).
DON’T MISS OUT! It’s that time of year again for the annual Blair Cato Real Estate Agent Fall Charity Event benefiting the South Carolina Military Family Care Association! We will be hosting the event on October 5th from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at Spirit Communications Park. Don’t miss out on great food, drinks, and thousands of dollars of prizes and auction items.
But you don’t have to wait until October 5th for the fun to start! Click the link below to view and bid on the items that will be auctioned at the event. There are also some instant-buy items for sale. Remember that all proceeds go to a great cause to support military families across South Carolina. Last year we raised over $15,000 and this year we have our sights set even higher! See you all there on October 5th.
www.qtego.net/qlink/blaircato