Is There a Cuyahoga County Property Tax Payment Plan?

Cuyahoga County offers two property tax payment plans through the County Treasurer’s Office. EasyPay lets homeowners who are current on their taxes spread future bills across smaller installments. The Delinquent Tax Payment Plan lets homeowners who have fallen behind pay off the overdue balance in monthly installments over as long as five years. Which one fits depends entirely on whether you are current or already in arrears.

EasyPay for Taxpayers Who Are Current

EasyPay is an escrow-style arrangement. You send the Treasurer money ahead of the February and July due dates, the office holds it, and it is applied when the bill comes due.¹

You pick the schedule. Monthly is the most common, but you can also pay semiannually in January and July or once a year in January.² You also pick a method: automatic bank withdrawal, or prepayment coupons you pay manually. Enrollment needs your parcel number, and each parcel takes its own application. Apply online through the Treasurer’s website, drop a printed form at the office, or call 216-443-7400 to enroll in coupons.¹

If you use automatic withdrawals, the Treasurer earns interest on the money while it is held and credits that interest back to your tax bill. In 2025 the office returned more than $410,000 in interest to EasyPay participants.² Coupon payments do not earn the credit because the Treasurer does not control when the money arrives.

The Delinquent Tax Payment Plan

If you already owe back taxes, the Delinquent Tax Payment Plan is the formal contract that lets you pay the overdue balance in monthly installments. Under Ohio Revised Code 323.31, the contract can run up to five years for owner-occupied homes, with a minimum of two years if you want a shorter timeline. Other property types also get up to five years; qualifying athletic complexes can stretch to ten.³ The Treasurer sets the number of installments, the amount, and the schedule in the contract itself.

Here is the part people miss. The plan does not replace your ongoing tax bill. You have to keep paying your current taxes on time and your delinquent installment on top of that. If either payment lapses, the contract can be voided.⁴

Who Qualifies

Ohio law draws a clear line by property type. If you own and live in the home, or own agricultural land, you have a legal right to at least one chance to enter a delinquent tax contract. The Treasurer cannot simply refuse you.³ For rental, commercial, and other non-owner-occupied property, the Treasurer has discretion to approve or deny.

Two situations will block or complicate a contract:

A tax lien certificate has already been sold on the parcel. If the status shows “Cert Sold,” you cannot enter a contract until the lien is released.⁵
You defaulted on a prior contract. A second contract requires a 10% down payment on the remaining delinquent balance. A third requires completion of financial counseling before the Treasurer will sign.⁵

You can enter a contract at any point before a court adjudicates a foreclosure. Even after a foreclosure case has been filed, an owner who has never defaulted on a prior contract can still sign one before the court confirms a sale, though signing the contract does not stop the case from moving to judgment.⁶ Earlier is better. Waiting until foreclosure is filed narrows your options.

How to Apply

What to Bring

You need your parcel number, which is an eight-digit code printed on your tax bill, deed, or reappraisal notice.⁷ It is also on the county’s MyPlace property portal. Bring valid photo ID such as a driver’s license, state ID, or U.S. passport. If you are signing for someone else, bring the authorizing document: power of attorney, letters of authority from Probate Court, or bar admission credentials.⁵

Land contract purchasers need a copy of the purchase agreement or recorded conveyance plus proof of residency at the property, such as a utility bill in their name. Heirs of a deceased owner must bring probate documentation showing their right to the property before they can enter a contract.⁵

What You Pay at Signing

For a first contract, you owe the first month’s installment plus any costs that have accrued, along with an administrative fee collected in full. If you defaulted on a prior contract, add at least 10% of the remaining delinquent balance.⁵ Payments at signing must be cash, money order, or certified check. Electronic payments are not accepted for this step, and cash has to be paid in person.

Where to Go

Applications are handled at the Cuyahoga County Administrative Building, 2079 East 9th Street, 1st Floor, Cleveland, OH 44115. Staff can review your documents on the spot.⁸ After signing, you receive a Taxpayer Summary addendum laying out your obligations and a copy of the executed contract. Monthly installments going forward can be set up as automatic debits from a checking or savings account, which the Treasurer prefers, or paid by cash, check, or money order using coupons.⁵

What Happens If You Miss a Payment

Missing a single delinquent installment, or falling behind on current taxes while under contract, can void the whole agreement. When the contract is voided and the Treasurer declines to offer a replacement, the Treasurer certifies the default to the County Auditor, and the prosecuting attorney is directed to begin foreclosure proceedings.³ The Treasurer may also include properties with broken contracts in a tax lien sale.⁵

The penalty cost of a default is steep. Ohio charges a 10% penalty on unpaid property taxes. A valid contract prevents that penalty from being charged on current taxes included in the plan while the agreement is active. If the contract later becomes void, the penalty is applied retroactively as though the contract never existed.⁹ That retroactive hit lands on top of an already growing balance.

The statute does give the Treasurer discretion to allow a new contract after a default, but the replacement terms are stiffer and the office is under no obligation to offer one. If a payment is going to be hard, call the Treasurer’s Office before you miss the date rather than after.

1
Cuyahoga County Treasurer. EasyPay Property Taxes
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Cuyahoga County. Cuyahoga County Treasurer to Return Over $410,000 in Interest to Taxpayers Enrolled in EasyPay
3
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 323.31 – Delinquent Tax Contract With Treasurer
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Cuyahoga County. Delinquent Tax Payment Plan
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Cuyahoga County Treasurer. Delinquent Tax Policies and Procedures
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 5721.25 – Redemption of Delinquent Land
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Cuyahoga County. Property Research
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Cuyahoga County Treasurer. Pay Your Taxes
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Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Revised Code 323.121 – Penalty