Time to pay up.

Real and business property tax bills for 2018 are out in Lincoln County, and mobile home taxes for 2019 will hit mailboxes in the coming week as county government seeks to collect around $26.2 million in real and personal property taxes. Lincoln County Tax Collector Blake Pickering said payments are due by Feb. 1 and can be made online or in person at the tax office on the first floor of the courthouse.

“You’ll need the PIN number on your bill and a credit card,” he said. “It will charge you a 2.25 percent fee for using the card, which is the same as if you come into the office — we’re working on having a E-check option available. Should be next year.”

Property owners owe the amounts listed on the bills and can pay them without penalty by Feb. 1, with a 1 percent per month fee tacked on every month after that. The windows and the adding fee stops by the final Monday in August, when any unpaid parcels will go on the auction block at the annual online tax sale.

The deadline for contesting tax assessments passed the first of August last year when the Lincoln County Board of Supervisors certified the land rolls, but Pickering said anyone who disputes their property taxes may still have a word with him.

“We’re more than willing to sit down and work with people if we’re able,” he said. “We understand people don’t usually think about this until they get their bill, so anyone is welcome to come talk to us about it.”

Pickering said anyone in a tight spot financially can set up a payment plan for their property taxes. The rules require half the owed balance to be paid by Feb. 1, a quarter by May 1 and the final quarter by July 1. Anyone wishing to set up a payment plan must do so at the office, as partial payments may be kicked back by the online payment system.

To pay taxes online, visit www.golincoln.ms/tax-collector.

There are around 24,000 parcels in Lincoln County. Pickering’s office sends out around 18,000 tax bills each year, with the remaining 6,000 forwarded to mortgage companies. Another 6,000 bills are sent to businesses.

For Fiscal Year 2019, which began Oct. 1 last year, the total value of assessed property in Lincoln County is $286 million, an increase of around $15 million from the previous year. The total tax amount owed by Lincoln Countians was calculated from a millage rate of 107.65 mills, an increase over the previous year.