Back Taxes and Tax Sale

Date of Delinquency

Taxes are due November 30^th each year.  Any taxes that are unpaid by December 1^st are considered delinquent and become back taxes.   Payments postmarked before December 1^st will not be considered delinquent.   If November 30^th falls on a weekend then the due date is automatically moved to the following Monday.

Late Payment Penalty and Interest

Any unpaid taxes will be assessed a late payment penalty on December 1^st.   If the back taxes are paid in full by January 31^st of the following year then the penalty on each parcel will be 1% ($10 minimum) of the back tax.  If the back taxes are not paid in full by January 31^st then the penalty per parcel increases to 2.5% ($10 minimum) and interest is charged.  Interest is 6% above the Federal Funds Rate per year (7% min and 10% max) and interest is calculated with a start date of January 1^st.  The increased 2.5% penalty will be charged on the back tax amount as of December 1^st even if partial payments have been made in December or January.   If January 31st falls on a weekend then the deadline is automatically extended to the following Monday.  The following table shows the penalty and interest based on the date of payment or post mark.

During the last week of December each year, a delinquent tax listing will be posted at grandcountyutah.net and a post card will be sent to the delinquent property owners.  These are the only notifications required by law until the following year’s Property Tax Notice.

Tax Sale

Unpaid tax, penalty and interest are assessed as a lien on January 1^st and if not paid in-full within the 4 year redemption period, the property will be offered to the public at tax sale which occurs in May or June.  For example, a property with back taxes from 2016 had a lien attached on January 1^st, 2017.  Four years later in May or June of 2021 the property will be subject to sale.  The property is then deeded to the successful bidder.  Any amount in excess of taxes and fees will be remitted to the original owner. 

The tax sale is conducted by the Clerk/Auditor’s Office in conjunction with the Treasurer.  The Treasurer and the Clerk/Auditor will contact all property owners with property that is subject to sale.  Property owners have until 10:00 am on the day of the sale to pay all interest, penalty, administrative fees and taxes in order to redeem the property and avoid sale.  In accordance with State law, properties subject to sale will also be advertised in local papers.  Grand County has passed a resolution governing the tax sale procedures.

Back Tax Payments

Interest is prorated and added daily on back taxes. Interest is never compounded and is calculated at 6% over the Federal Funds Rate (7% min and 10% max) per year.  Contact the Treasurer’s office (435-259-1338) to get an accurate payoff amount for the date you plan to pay in full.   Partial payments can be made toward back taxes at anytime and partial payments usually help to reduce the amount of interest that accrues.

Through November 30th, all payments will be applied to the most current back tax year first.  For example if a taxpayer owes back tax from 2018, 2019 and 2020, then any payments will be applied to 2020 first then 2019 and finally 2018. Starting December 1^st, payments will be applied to the current year tax first and then the next most current back tax year.  Payments are also applied to interest first then penalty then principal in any given year.  These payment procedures are set by State law and cannot be changed by the County Treasurer.

Other Back Tax Information

If a property was recently subdivided or combined, other delinquencies may apply which do not appear on the tax bill until the following year.  Regardless of when the taxes where charged, the current owner is always responsible for any taxes on the property.  The property taxes follow the property not the person who owned the property at the time the taxes were charged.