Effects of the sluggish economy are being reflected by the rising number of Orangeburg County properties for which taxes have not been paid.

Although he did not have exact figures available Friday, Delinquent Tax Collector Shelton Sistrunk says more properties will be on the block for the Dec. 7 tax sale covering the 2008 tax year.

Legal advertisements from Sistrunk’s office listing the properties will be published in The T&D over the next three weekends, beginning with a special section Sunday, Nov. 15.

“There are more properties in collection this year than last year,” Sistrunk said. “The collection rate is also down since not as many delinquent properties have been redeemed (to the owner of record) due to the economy.”

According to tax collection figures from Orangeburg County Treasurer Steve Summers, the overall collection rate declined from 98 percent in fiscal 2006-07 to 97 percent in 2007-08.

Property taxes are collected for each of Orangeburg County’s three school districts. Sistrunk says population density generally determines which parts of the county are most affected.

“I would say out of the three school districts (Orangeburg County Consolidated 3, 4 and 5), OCSD 5 is where most delinquent properties are located,” Sistrunk said. “OCSD 3 has more than OCSD 4, which has the lowest number.”

Bidding for properties listed for the delinquent tax sale reflects the total of the default and current tax year amounts. By law, the defaulter has one year and a day from the date of the sale to redeem the property.

“The defaulter has to pay the high-bid amount plus the additional interest rate in order to redeem the property,” Sistrunk said. “The rate increases 3 percent for each calendar quarter, up to a total of 12 percent during the fourth quarter after the sale.”

Orangeburg County Administrator Bill Clark says an increasing numbers of properties in delinquent tax collection are generally not a concern.

“Those tend to equal out over time,” Clark said. “For budget purposes, we never assume 100 percent collections. Taxes from those properties that go into delinquency are usually paid either in the current year or the years that follow.”

T&D Staff Writer Phil Sarata can be reached by e-mail at psarata@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5540. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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