Maricopa County property tax due dates fall in two installments each year: the first half is due October 1 and becomes delinquent after 5:00 p.m. on November 1, and the second half is due March 1 and becomes delinquent after 5:00 p.m. on May 1. Miss either deadline and the county charges 16% annual interest on the unpaid balance, calculated from the original October 1 or March 1 due date.1Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-18052 – Due Dates and Times; Delinquency2Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-18053 – Interest on Delinquent Taxes; Exceptions; Waiver
The Two Installment Deadlines
Arizona law splits the annual property tax bill into halves and sets a separate delinquency date for each. The first half is due October 1 of the tax year and becomes delinquent if it isn’t paid by 5:00 p.m. on November 1. The second half is due March 1 of the following year and becomes delinquent after 5:00 p.m. on May 1.1Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-18052 – Due Dates and Times; Delinquency
You don’t have to use both installments. Paying the whole year at once is allowed, and the Treasurer will accept a full-year payment through December 31 without charging interest on the first half, even though its November 1 delinquency date has already passed. When December 31 lands on a weekend or holiday, that deadline rolls to the next business day, and the same rule applies to the installment delinquency dates.1Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-18052 – Due Dates and Times; Delinquency
Small bills work differently. If your total property tax for the year is $100 or less, the county doesn’t allow installments. The full amount is due October 1 and becomes delinquent after 5:00 p.m. on December 31.1Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-18052 – Due Dates and Times; Delinquency
When Your Tax Statement Arrives
Arizona law requires the county treasurer to mail tax statements before November 1, and Maricopa County typically sends them in September. Each statement includes two payment stubs so you can pay in full or by installment.3Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-18054 – Tax Statements for Mortgaged Property; Liability
If mid-October arrives and nothing has shown up in your mailbox, call the Treasurer’s Office. You still owe on time whether the statement reached you or not. You can also look up the current bill on the Treasurer’s website using your parcel number, which appears on your Notice of Value, your deed, or any prior tax statement.
How to Pay Before the Deadline
The Treasurer accepts payment through several channels:
- Online by e-check through the Maricopa County Treasurer’s website, at no extra cost.
- Online by credit or debit card on the same site, with a third-party convenience fee (roughly 2% or more depending on the card).
- By mail to the Maricopa County Treasurer, PO Box 52133, Phoenix, AZ 85072-2133. The envelope must be postmarked on or before the due date.
- In person at 301 W. Jefferson St., Suite 100, Phoenix, AZ 85003. The counter takes cash and checks; card payments go through a lobby kiosk.
- At any full-service Arizona Chase branch, as long as you bring the payment coupon from your tax statement.
If Your Mortgage Escrow Pays
When your lender collects property taxes through escrow, federal rules require the servicer to estimate your annual tax, collect one-twelfth each month, and forward payment to the Treasurer before the delinquency date.4eCFR. 12 CFR 1024.17 – Escrow Accounts Servicers do sometimes miss. If the county sends you a delinquency notice, contact your servicer right away and consider filing a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. What to Do if Your Mortgage Servicer Did Not Pay Your Property Taxes From Escrow The lien attaches to your property regardless of who was supposed to pay.
Reverse mortgage holders should be especially careful. With a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage, staying current on property taxes is a loan condition, and falling behind can trigger a default notice and eventually foreclosure, even though the mortgage itself carries no monthly payment.
What Happens If You Pay Late
Interest on delinquent property taxes runs at 16% per year. It’s simple interest, not compounding, and it’s calculated by the month, with any partial month counted as a full month.2Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-18053 – Interest on Delinquent Taxes; Exceptions; Waiver On a $3,000 balance, that runs about $40 a month. The meter starts the moment the delinquency date passes.
Once the taxes have gone unpaid for roughly 13 months, the Treasurer adds an advertising fee equal to 5% of the unpaid amount or $5, whichever is greater. The fee covers publishing a public notice that the property has delinquent taxes.
Tax Lien Sales and Foreclosure
Every February, Arizona counties hold tax lien auctions covering taxes that went delinquent during the previous tax year. Investors pay the overdue amount and receive a lien certificate. Ownership doesn’t change hands at this stage; the investor takes the county’s place as creditor.
To clear the lien, you pay the full delinquent amount plus the 16% annual interest. If you don’t redeem within three years of the date the property was first offered at sale, the lien holder can file a judicial foreclosure action and take ownership of your home.2Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 42-18053 – Interest on Delinquent Taxes; Exceptions; Waiver A property tax lien recorded before a bankruptcy filing is a secured debt that survives a Chapter 7 discharge, so bankruptcy is not a way out.