Portland property taxes run July 1 to June 30th of the following year.  For Multnomah County we usually see tax bills in early October.  This means that if you close on a house today, unless something out of the norm has been negotiated, you would owe the full year taxes by the November 15th due date to get the 3% discount.  A daily prorate is used based on the last known tax amount to figure out who owes who at closing.

The Multnomah County Division of Assessment, Recording and Taxation is the best place to start if you have questions about your property taxes.  Washington County Assessment and Taxation and Clackamas County Assessment and Taxation are your other tri-county tax resources.

If you want to appeal your property taxes, you must play by your county’s rules.  Multnomah County’s website states that appeals must be received by December 31 for the year being appealed.  There is no 2010-2011 appeal form online yet which makes sense as the tax amounts/property values are not known yet.  Check back and don’t miss the window.