Town of Aurora Property Tax: Exemptions, Payments & Appeals

Property taxes in the Town of Aurora are billed twice a year: a combined town and county bill goes out around January 15 and is due by February 15, and a school tax bill goes out around September 15 and is due by October 15.¹ Three authorities share the bill — the Town of Aurora, Erie County, and your school district — each setting its own rate against the assessed value of your property. Several exemptions can reduce what you owe, but all of them share a March 1 filing deadline, and missing a payment deadline triggers interest that compounds every month until the balance is cleared.

When Your Bills Arrive and When They’re Due

Mark two dates on the calendar. February 15 for the combined town and county bill, and October 15 for the school bill.¹ These are firm. A payment postmarked a single day late triggers a penalty, and that penalty keeps growing for as long as the balance sits unpaid.

If a bill doesn’t show up in the mail during the usual window, don’t assume you’ve been skipped. Call the Town Clerk’s office and ask for a duplicate. Non-receipt of a bill is not a defense against late penalties under New York law.

How to Pay

You have three options. You can pay in person at the Aurora Town Clerk’s office, mail a check to the Receiver of Taxes, or pay by credit card. The credit card route carries a convenience fee of roughly 2.65 percent, which on a $5,000 bill works out to about $132 extra. Keep your receipt either way; your mortgage company or your own records may need it as proof.

If Your Lender Pays Through Escrow

Most mortgaged homeowners never write a check directly to the town. The lender collects a monthly escrow amount on top of principal and interest, then pays the property tax bill when it comes due. Once a year the lender reviews the account. If tax rates rose and the balance came up short, your monthly payment goes up or you’ll be asked to make up the difference. If the account ran a surplus, you get a refund.

Even with escrow, watch for the payment to actually post. The lender handles the mechanics, but the penalty lands on you if something slips through.

What Happens If You Pay Late

New York law sets a minimum penalty of 12 percent per year on late property taxes, applied at one-twelfth of that rate for each month or partial month the balance stays unpaid.² That is at least 1 percent per month, and the actual rate can run higher depending on figures set by the state Commissioner of Taxation and Finance. Interest compounds monthly until the full balance is paid.

After the town’s collection window closes, unpaid balances pass to Erie County, which tacks on its own enforcement costs. If taxes stay unpaid for two or more years, the county can begin In Rem foreclosure, a legal process to seize the property and sell it at auction. Once the county files the delinquent tax list with the County Clerk, you have a final redemption window to pay everything owed plus a $500 statutory foreclosure fee. Miss that window and the county obtains a judgment and the property goes to auction.³ Losing a home over a bill that started as a few hundred dollars in arrears is rare, but it is entirely avoidable if you act before the two-year mark.

Exemptions That Can Lower Your Bill

Aurora homeowners can claim several property tax exemptions. Each has its own eligibility rules, but they share one deadline: March 1.

STAR (School Tax Relief)

STAR is the most widely used break. Basic STAR is available to homeowners whose combined income is $500,000 or less and who use the property as their primary residence. Enhanced STAR is for homeowners age 65 and older with combined income of $110,750 or less for the 2026–2027 school year.⁴

How you receive the benefit depends on when you first claimed it. If you’ve been getting STAR as an exemption on your current home since 2015 or earlier, you can continue to see it as a reduction on your school tax bill. Everyone else — new homeowners and anyone who never applied — registers with New York State for the STAR credit, which arrives as a check rather than appearing on the bill.⁵ Either path can save several hundred dollars a year.

Senior Citizens Exemption

Separate from Enhanced STAR, and compatible with it, is a senior citizens exemption for homeowners age 65 and older with income under limits set by local resolution. At or below the base ceiling, the exemption removes 50 percent of assessed value from the tax rolls for participating jurisdictions, with a sliding scale that steps the benefit down to 5 percent at the top of the eligible income range.⁶

Apply using form RP-467 through the Town Assessor. All income counts: Social Security, pensions, investment earnings. Renewals require updated income documentation each year. The Aurora Assessor’s office can confirm the specific income thresholds the town has adopted.⁷

Veterans Exemptions

Aurora offers the Alternative Veterans Exemption, which stacks in three layers. Wartime veterans receive a baseline reduction. Service in a combat zone adds a second layer. A documented service-connected disability adds a third.⁸ A separate exemption exists for Cold War–era veterans who served between 1945 and 1991, with its own application form through the Assessor’s office.⁷

Bring your DD-214 or other acceptable proof of honorable discharge, along with documentation of active duty dates and locations. For the disability layer, bring your VA rating letter. New York also recognizes discharge documentation issued through the Restoration of Honor Act, so veterans with an other-than-honorable discharge who later obtained a letter from the state Department of Veterans’ Services can still qualify.⁸

Disability Exemption

This is a different program from the veterans benefit, aimed at property owners with a qualifying disability and limited income. You qualify if you receive Social Security Disability Insurance, Supplemental Security Income, Railroad Retirement disability benefits, a U.S. Postal Service disability pension, a VA disability pension, or have a workers’ compensation award for permanent disability. An award letter or certificate from the relevant agency serves as proof.⁹

Like the senior exemption, the income ceiling and sliding scale are set locally within state-defined ranges, removing up to 50 percent of assessed value at the base income level and phasing down to 5 percent as income approaches the top of the eligible range.⁹ The property must be your primary residence. You can’t receive both this exemption and the senior citizens exemption on the same property. Forms are at the Aurora Assessor’s office.⁷

Agricultural Assessment

If you operate working farmland in Aurora, an agricultural assessment values the land based on soil productivity rather than development potential. The difference can translate into significantly lower taxes on the farmland portion of your property. A farm generally needs at least seven acres used as a single operation producing an average of $10,000 or more in annual gross sales over the two preceding years, though smaller operations can qualify at higher sales thresholds, and commercial horse boarding has its own rules.¹⁰

The March 1 Filing Deadline

Every exemption above shares the same filing deadline: March 1, which is New York’s taxable status date.⁷ Miss it and you wait a full year to apply again. First-time applicants should visit the Assessor’s office well before the deadline to confirm the right forms and supporting documents. Renewals for the senior and disability exemptions need fresh income verification each year — approval doesn’t carry over automatically.¹¹

If You Think Your Assessment Is Too High

Your tax bill is the assessed value multiplied by combined town, county, and school rates. If the assessment seems off, you can challenge it, but the timeline is strict. File form RP-524 (Complaint on Real Property Assessment) with the Town Assessor on or before the day the Board of Assessment Review meets. In most New York towns, including Aurora, that meeting falls on the fourth Tuesday of May.¹²

Evidence matters. The strongest grievances include recent appraisals, sale prices of comparable homes nearby, or documentation of property defects that reduce value. If you hire an appraiser, make sure the report is dated to the relevant valuation date, includes a physical inspection, and explains every adjustment with data. The Board issues a written decision within several weeks.

Small Claims Assessment Review

If the Board rules against you and you still believe the assessment is wrong, the next step is a Small Claims Assessment Review (SCAR). It’s a streamlined court proceeding designed for homeowners rather than attorneys. File a petition with the county clerk, pay a $30 filing fee, and appear before an independent hearing officer who evaluates the evidence from scratch.¹³ File within 30 days after the final assessment roll is published. The hearing officer’s decision is binding, so bring your best evidence the first time. There’s no second chance for the same tax year.

1
Town of Aurora. Town of Aurora Tax and Water
2
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Tax Law RPT 924-A – Interest Rate on Late Payment of Taxes and Delinquencies
3
Erie County. Erie County In Rem 173 Tax Lien Foreclosure Information and Frequently Asked Questions
4
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Types of STAR
5
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. STAR Resource Center
6
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Instructions for Forms RP-467 and RP-467-Rnw – Senior Citizens Exemption
7
Town of Aurora. Town of Aurora Assessor
8
Department of Taxation and Finance. Alternative Veterans Exemption – Eligibility Requirements
9
New York State Senate. New York Real Property Tax Law RPT 459-C – Persons With Disabilities and Limited Incomes
10
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Assessor Manuals – Exemption Administration AGML Section 305
11
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Senior Citizens Exemption
12
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. General Information and Instructions for Filing Complaints on Real Property Assessments
13
New York Courts. Small Claims Assessment Review