The taxes that are due on September 1st are levied for a fiscal year that runs from the preceding July 1st to the following June 30th.

Real estate taxes are the legal obligation of the owner of record as of January 1st. Transfer of ownership during the year places the tax liability on the owner as of the date the taxes become delinquent. Ordinarily, taxes are prorated at the time of transfer of ownership. To determine if your taxes were prorated at the time of closing, contact your realtor or closing attorney. If you want to insure that you have no tax liability, you may request that payment be made to the City of Rocky Mount at the time of closing. If current year taxes are not yet due, we will accept prepayments based on the previous year’s rate.

The following exemptions are available and application must be made at the County Tax Office. The deadline for application is June 1 of the current year.

• Disabled Veterans
• Honorably discharged veterans (or the unmarried surviving spouse of a veteran) who have a total, permanent service related disability as of January 1, or receive benefits for specially adapted housing under 38 U.S.C. 2101 may qualify for Disabled Veterans.
• The first $45,000 of the assessed value of the permanent residence is excluded.
• There is no age requirement or income requirement for this exclusion.
• Verification by the Department of Veterans Affairs is required.
• A one time application is required, and periodic review of all applications will take place by the County tax office.
• Senior Citizens/Disabled Persons
• Persons who are 65 or older and/or totally and permanently disabled and have owned and occupied their permanent residence whose income is no greater than $33,800 may qualify for Senior Citizens/Disabled Persons.
• The first $25,000 or one-half of the assessed value (whichever is greater) of the permanent residence is excluded.
• Income is defined for the purposes of this program, as all money other than a gift or an inheritance, including all interest, social security benefits, disability benefits, pensions, etc. Written verification of income is required.
• Applicants under the age of 65 must complete a disability certification form.
• A one time application is required and periodic reviews and confirmation of all information will take place by the County Tax Office.
• Circuit Breaker
• Persons who are 65 or older and/or totally and permanently disabled and have owned and occupied their permanent residence whose income is no greater than $50,700 may qualify for the Homestead Circuit Breaker.
• The taxes are based on a percentage of the income rather than an amount taken from the assessed value. Taxes which exceed this percentage become deferred taxes, which are a lien against the property.
• Interest accrues on the deferred taxes as if they had been payable on the original bill date.
• Upon a disqualifying event, the current plus last three years of deferred taxes plus accrued interest become payable and due.
• The application process for this program must be completed every year at the County Tax Office.
• Builder’s Exemption
• Persons who are engaged in the business of buying real property, making improvements to it, and then reselling it may qualify for the Builder’s Exemption.
• Residential Real Property:
• Property that is intended to be sold and used as an individual’s residence immediately or after construction.
• Excludes property that is occupied by a tenant or used for commercial purposes.
• 3 years maximum exemption available from the time the improved property was first subject to being listed for taxation.
• Commercial Real Property:
• Property that is intended to be sold and used for commercial purposes immediately or after improvement.
• Exemption ends at the earlier of the following:
• Five years from the time the improved property was first subject to being listed for taxation.
• Issuance of a building permit.
• Sale of the property.
• The application process for this program must be completed every year at the County Tax Office and the County Assessor determines the increased value.

• Edgecombe County

• Nash County

Nash and Edgecombe Counties are responsible for the assessment and City of Rocky Mount is responsible for the billing of taxes where missed months of taxation exist between motor vehicle registration expiration and renewal dates. This is known as gap billing. Legislation enacted during the 2017 General Assembly Session established the requirements and procedures to conduct gap billing.

Gap billing of property taxes occurs when there are one or more months (a gap) in billed property taxes between the expiration of a vehicle’s registration and the renewal of that registration or the issuance of a new registration. The vehicle is an unregistered vehicle during the gap in registration.

There was a gap in the registration of your vehicle resulting in a gap in the taxes billed. The registration for your vehicle previously expired. The vehicle registration was recently renewed, or a new registration was issued. During the gap in registration, the vehicle was unregistered. The City is required to collect property taxes for unregistered vehicles per North Carolina General Statute 105-330.3.

No. Property taxes paid to the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles (NCDMV) at the time of registration renewal or issuance are for the same 12-month period as your registration. The taxes billed on a gap property tax notice are only for the months your vehicle was not registered with the NCDMV.

A gap property tax notice will cover at least one month and will cover all months between registrations, without limitation.

Vehicle value is determined as of January 1 of the calendar year in which the gap property tax notice was computed.

Appeals of value, situs (location where taxed) and taxability must be filed with the County tax office within 30 days of the Due Date that follows the gap property tax notice date. The letter of appeal should detail your reason for appeal and include any documentation that will assist us in reviewing the account.

Taxes are due on September 1st and are payable through January 5th. If January 5th falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the payment period is extended to the next business day. Interest accrues for taxes paid on or after January 6 at 2% for the month of January and accrues at 3/4 of 1% for each following month.

Taxes are delinquent if not paid before the Interest Begins Date that follows the September 1 due date. Delinquent taxes are subject to collection actions, which may include bank account attachment, wage garnishment, levy on personal property or setoff of income tax refunds.