Richmond homeowners face tax chaos after 33,000 billing errors
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Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios
It's a confusing time to be a Richmond homeowner.
Why it matters: The past few months have been full of city flubs, which include thousands of property owners receiving the wrong tax rebate checks and getting real estate tax bills meant for their mortgage lenders.
The latest: Those real estate tax bills were sent over the weekend after a system error messed up at least 33,000 taxpayer records, per a city release.
- The mistake left multiple residents — including Mayor Danny Avula — stressed and confused over whether the bill was real, and they owed money, or whether they should ignore it.
- One bill obtained by Axios said to pay by June 14 to avoid late fees and interest.
Zoom in: Now, officials are telling taxpayers whose mortgage lenders typically handle these bills to do nothing. To make sure the payment is covered, you can call your lender.
- Taxpayers who've accidentally paid twice can request a refund by calling 311 or logging into their online account.
- If you don't have a mortgage lender and typically pay your real estate tax bills yourself, do so before June 14, the city says.
Meanwhile, thousands of Richmond homeowners are still awaiting the tax rebate checks initially promised early this year (now arriving by June 30) after:
- The city sent checks last year to the wrong people and properties that didn't exist.
- Some of the correctly issued checks bounced.
What's next: The Department of Finance, which many Richmonders have lost trust in after years of failures, and the real estate tax billing vendor are investigating what happened with the system error and are working to fix the issue.
- Avula, in a statement Tuesday, said he's "personally spending time" with finance department staff to "understand the breakdowns that occurred."
- He also said he plans to bring in an expert on improving communication and processes "to prevent this type of issue from happening again."
- The department just finished fixing more than 200 Richmonders' incorrect personal property tax bills, which are due June 5.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to add a statement from Mayor Avula.