Collection Division
The responsibility of the Collection staff is to collect all current and delinquent taxes as well as solid waste fess and all fees associated with forced collections. Our staff does this with the goal that each taxpayer is treated in a fair and equitable manner.
Annual property taxes on real and personal property (excluding registered DMV bills) are due September 1st and must be paid by January 5th of the following year. Interest is charged at the rate of 2% January 6th and ¾% each month thereafter.
Payment Options
Pay Online:
To pay your tax on-line your web browser must support 128-bit SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption. Browsers that are currently supported are, Netscape, Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 or above, and Firefox 1.0 and above. Additional browsers may work, but have not been tested.
If you are not using a supported browser, or would prefer to pay your tax bill using a touch-tone phone, call 1-866-580-9996.
How does the system work?
You will be asked to enter the bill number or abstract number printed on your bill. Once entered, the system will gather information about your bill from the county tax system. The amount you owe will be displayed. Depending on your bill, you may be given the option to pay only a portion of the total amount due. Once you enter or accept the payment amount, the system will calculate the convenience fee and display it. The total payment amount, including the fee, must be approved before the system will continue. If you choose not to pay the fee, the entire transaction is canceled and no further action is taken.
Successful payments are updated on the county tax system immediately. If payment was for a DMV bill, any blocks will be removed from the NCDOT DMV system allowing the taxpayer to purchase their vehicle plates.
* On rare occasions, the county tax system, and/or the NCDOT DMV system connection is not available, and updates are delayed.
Safe and Secure - CCPaymentService, in cooperation with Harnett County, uses the latest encryption technology, is certified by the Credit Card Association, and adheres to all government regulations. Payment over the Internet or phone is convenient, safe, and secure.
Pay In Person or By Mail:
Remit payment to: 305 W. Cornelius Harnett Blvd Ste 101, Lillington, NC 27546
Prepayments to tax bills are accepted between February and August. This is to help lessen the one time cost to the taxpayer. Once property taxes are billed, usually in August, the taxpayer may wish to divide the bill by the number of months remaining in the year and pay monthly installments. This may help to have the bill paid in full by January 5th.
Please note that interest begins January 6th and once the tax bill is delinquent, our office DOES NOT make payment arrangements.
The advertisement of tax liens on real property takes place in or after March of each year. An advertisement fee is added to the bill and the property is required to be advertised in the name of the owner as of January 6th.
If the Tax Department receives a NSF check, payment would be immediately voided correcting the tax department records. An amount of 10% of the check or an amount of $25.00, whichever is greater will be applied to the bill.
Harnett County does not offer a discount on Ad Valorem property taxes. However, there are Exemption and Exclusion programs that may benefit certain citizens. Please click on the link for more information.
When you pay by Credit Card, Debit Card or ECheck:
N.C.G.S. 105-357(b) states that the tax collector may add a fee to offset the service charge the county pays for electronic payments. The convenience fees for these transactions are listed below and are paid to CCPaymentService, the payment processing service, not to Harnett County. The amount of the fee and total amount to be charged will be disclosed to you prior to you providing your credit card information and submitting the final payment.
PERSONAL DEBIT CARDS - $3.80 PER TRANSACTION
CREDIT CARDS – 2.50% OF BALANCE OWING
BUSINESS CREDIT/DEBIT CARDS, HIGH REWARDS – 3.25%
ECHECKS- $2.00 PER TRANSACTION
Forced Collections
Past due balances to Ad Valorem property tax bills are subject to the following forced collection methods:
Wage Garnishments
Bank Attachments
Rent Attachments
Sheriff Levy on Personal Property
Foreclosures
Tax Foreclosure Sales
North Carolina law provides Cities and Counties two different methods to enforce tax liens and sell real property for the collection of delinquent ad valorem taxes. Currently, Harnett County primarily uses the Foreclosure Method although it will occasionally utilize the In Rem Method. Both methods are discussed briefly below. Utilization of these two methods usually only occurs after other collections procedures such as bank attachment, rent attachment, and wage garnishment have proven inadequate to collect the taxes in full.
More information about tax foreclosure sales is available here - Harnett County Tax Foreclosure Sales
2024 Advertised Tax Liens
The 2024 unpaid Real Estate Property Tax Liens were advertised in The Daily Record on Tuesday, May 13, 2025. This is required by N.C. GS 105-369. Unpaid property taxes and unpaid fees constitute the first lien to real estate. The property is subject to foreclosure and other forced collection activities at any time. If there are questions concerning this please contact Harnett County Tax Department at 910-893-7520 or taxinfo@harnett.org.
View the 2024 Unpaid Real Estate Property Tax Liens