Dare County collected more than $73.2 million in real estate and personal property taxes during the 2025 tax year, finishing the fiscal year with a collection rate of 99.60%, according to the county’s annual tax settlement presented Monday, Oct. 5.
Dare County Tax Collector Becky Huff presented the annual settlement to the Board of Commissioners, detailing collections for the county as well as the five municipalities for which Dare County handles tax collections: Duck, Southern Shores, Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills and Manteo.
The total Dare County levy for real estate and personal property taxes for the 2025 tax year was $73,524,487.73. That figure includes taxes assessed on real estate, mobile homes, boats, rental personal property and business personal property.
By the end of the fiscal year on June 30, 2026, Dare County had collected $73,229,672.53, leaving approximately $294,815 outstanding and producing a collection rate of 99.60%.
The amount collected represents an increase of more than $5.1 million from the previous tax year. For the 2024 tax year, Dare County levied $68,359,268.77 in real estate and personal property taxes and had collected $68,094,968.15 by June 30, 2025, for a collection rate of 99.61%.
During Monday’s presentation, Huff said Dare County ranked eighth among North Carolina counties that had reported their collection rates, with the highest reported rate at approximately 99.9%.
When the five municipalities for which Dare County collects taxes are included, the 2025 levy totaled $106,937,820.11. Of that amount, $106,550,701.92 had been collected by June 30, resulting in an overall collection rate of 99.64%.
Although the annual settlement closes the books on the fiscal year’s regular collection period, unpaid property taxes do not disappear after June 30. Dare County continues collection efforts on delinquent accounts.
Taxes on real estate, business personal property and individually owned personal property are due Sept. 1 each year and become delinquent Jan. 6 of the following year. According to the county, eligible unpaid real estate and personal property taxes dating from 2016 through 2025 are being processed for submission to North Carolina’s Debt Setoff Program.
The state program provides another avenue for local governments to recover delinquent debts. Under North Carolina law, qualifying debts may be collected by offsetting money otherwise owed to a debtor through a state income tax refund. The N.C. Local Government Debt Setoff Clearinghouse also notes that qualifying delinquent debts can be recovered from North Carolina Education Lottery winnings.
The program is one of several tools available to Dare County for collecting delinquent taxes. According to the Dare County Tax Department, other collection actions can include wage garnishment, attachment of bank accounts and rents, seizure and sale of personal property and foreclosure.
Following approval of the 2025 settlement, commissioners also formally charged Huff with collecting the 2026 taxes for Dare County and the five municipalities served by the county’s Tax Department. The action is required as the county moves from closing out the previous year’s tax accounts to collecting the current year’s levy.
More information about Dare County property taxes, payments and collections is available through the Dare County Tax Department.