Frequently Asked Questions

Annual property tax bills are due September 1st and you have up to January 5th to make your payment to avoid added interest (unless January 5th falls on a weekend – taxes are then delinquent on the following Tuesday).  The Town of Nags Head does not offer early payment discounts.  Interest begins on January 6th at a rate of 2% for the first month and ¾ of 1% is added each month thereafter until paid.

Yes, if you own property in the Town of Nags Head, you will receive two separate tax bills each year - one from Dare County and one from the Town of Nags Head.  These are usually mailed out anywhere from the end of July to the first part of August and are the responsibility of the property owner to make sure they are paid (either by the owner directly or a mortgage company).  If you do not receive a tax bill in the mail by August 20th, you can obtain a copy under the Online Inquiries and Payments section of our website by typing in either your name OR your parcel number.

No, the Town of Nags Head does not mail tax bills to mortgage companies, only the parcel owner(s) will receive a bill.  However, most mortgage companies directly download a file from our website.  If tax funds are held in escrow by your mortgage company, it is recommended that you send a copy of your tax bill to your lender.  Most mortgage companies do not pay taxes until October to late November.  It is ultimately the responsibility of the property owner to make sure their tax bills are paid before the delinquent date of January 6th. 

The Town of Nags Head reviews property transfers on a monthly basis to try and keep current on properties that have sold or transferred.  Tax bills are usually mailed to the owner of record as of January 1st and then we also mail a tax bill to the new owner. You may want to contact your closing attorney to review how taxes were prorated and distributed at the time of your closing. Unpaid taxes are advertised in the name of the owner on the date the tax becomes delinquent.

The Dare County Tax Listing Office is responsible for mailing out annual listing forms and valuing the personal property listed by all taxpayers.  The property owner is responsible for listing personal property (furnishings/equipment in a business or in property you rent to others, boats, boat motors, jet skis, untagged vehicles, multi-year tagged trailers, aircraft, golf carts, campers/RV's and manufactured homes) and real property (new buildings, additions, decks, enclosures, finished areas, garages, pools, sheds, bulkheads, docks and piers) on this listing form.  Failure to list property during the regular listing period which is January 15th through February 15th will result in a penalty of ten (10%) percent of the personal property tax amount listed under both Dare County and the Town, which will be added to both tax bills for each year that the property was not listed. You will need to contact the Dare County Tax Office (252-475-5952) to determine the reason for the Failure to List penalty if this appears on your tax bill and if you believe it is incorrect.

A municipal service district is a defined area within a town in which additional property tax is levied to provide projects or extra services that benefit the properties in that district. Nags Head has several beach nourishment districts as part of its beach nourishment funding plan. For more information, visit the Beach Nourishment Financing/Taxes webpage.