About 2.4 million Los Angeles County property tax bills go out each year, and the 2026-27 round carries a date that costs real money to miss. The first installment is due Nov. 1 and turns delinquent at the close of business on Dec. 10, when a 10 percent penalty is added. The Treasurer and Tax Collector’s bill insert lays out the schedule.
The two installments and their dates
The county splits the yearly secured bill in two. According to the insert, the first installment is due Nov. 1 and becomes delinquent at the close of business on Dec. 10. The second is due Feb. 1 and becomes delinquent at the close of business on April 10. The county’s annual secured bill page says bills are mailed on or before Nov. 1 each year, and that the same dates and penalties apply.
Nov. 1 falls on a Sunday this year, and Dec. 10 is a Thursday. A payment counts as on time if it is received, or postmarked by the U.S. Postal Service, by the delinquency date, the insert says.
What lateness costs
The insert says the Tax Collector will impose a 10 percent penalty on each installment that is paid late. On a first installment of $2,000, that is $200. The second installment adds a $10 cost on top of its 10 percent penalty if it goes delinquent after April 10.
The penalty is charged on the installment, not on the whole year’s bill. A homeowner who pays the first installment on time and misses the second owes the 10 percent and the $10 cost on the second only.
For a retiree on a fixed income, the practical question is which installment date lands in a tight month and whether any tax relief should be in place before then.
A 10 percent penalty on a $2,000 installment is $200 gone after Dec. 10, and relief programs run on their own filing windows. The Senior Property Tax & Home-Cost Relief Kit lays out the 5 kinds of property-tax relief.
See the 5 kinds of property-tax relief in the Relief Kit →
Ways to pay and what they cost
The insert lists the payment options and their fees. An eCheck, which pulls money straight from a bank account, is free. A credit or debit card costs 2.22 percent of the payment, with a minimum of $1.49. A monthly ACH payment plan, which also draws from a bank account, is free. On a $2,000 installment, the card fee would be about $44.40.
Online payments are accepted until 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on the delinquency date, according to the insert. Payment by phone is available at 1 (888) 473-0835, and the county notes that there are processing fees when paying by credit card or Visa debit card. Electronic payments need the property’s PIN, which appears in the upper left corner of the secured bill, the Treasurer’s site says. It warns that the PIN cannot be given out by phone, email or fax.
Relief the county lists
The Treasurer’s home page points to several programs for people who cannot pay the full amount at once. It lists installment plans for secured and unsecured taxes, Senior Citizen Property Tax Assistance, property tax relief for military personnel, and wildfire and emergency assistance. It also has a penalty cancellation request, including one for payments that were lost.
The bill insert adds two state and county breaks. The Property Tax Postponement program, run by the State Controller’s Office, takes applications from Oct. 1 to Feb. 10 each year. The homeowners’ exemption cuts the assessed value of a home by $7,000 for owners who live in it as of Jan. 1. An owner who lives in the home and has not filed for the exemption can ask the county Assessor about it. The Assessor’s office can be reached at 213-974-3211.
None of these programs is automatic. Each has its own form and its own cutoff.
If the bill never arrives
Bills are mailed once a year, and a missed bill does not excuse a late payment. Owners who have moved, who pay through a lender’s escrow account, or who have a new mailing address should check the amount through the county’s online tools. The Treasurer’s site offers a balance-due lookup and a payment history summary. Mortgage holders with an escrow account should confirm with the lender that the first installment is being paid by Dec. 10.
Getting the Dec. 10 payment done
The county’s own pages are the starting point. The Treasurer and Tax Collector’s site holds the payment pages, the balance lookup and the penalty cancellation forms. The bill and the insert in the mailing carry the same dates, so the due date for each installment can be copied onto a calendar as soon as the bill arrives.
A few details are worth gathering first: the bill’s PIN, the amount of each installment, and the bank account number for an eCheck, which costs nothing. Owners who plan to use a card should add the 2.22 percent fee to the amount they plan to pay. Anyone who thinks a payment was lost in the mail can keep the postmark or the bank record and ask the county for a penalty cancellation.
The county’s 2026-27 insert is the source for every date and fee here. Anyone unsure about a deadline can call the number on the bill before Dec. 10.
Two LA County dates, each with a 10 percent penalty
Missing Dec. 10 or April 10 adds 10 percent to an installment, and relief programs close on their own schedules. The Senior Property Tax & Home-Cost Relief Kit pairs an application log and renewal calendar with the 5 kinds of property-tax relief, so each deadline sits in one place. It runs 64 pages.
Keep every property-tax date in the Relief Kit’s renewal calendar →
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
