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Who is responsible for the collection of taxes?
How do I change my address?
Who collects Shreveport city taxes ?
Outstanding Account Balance?
How are my taxes calculated?
How are my taxes computed?
What is Homestead Exemption?
When is the deadline to pay my taxes?
What happens if I do not pay my taxes?
People really fail to pay their taxes?
What's the Tax Sale?
What if a property is not sold at the Tax Sale?
What if I want to get my property back?
Why do I have to pay Fire District fees?
Caddo Parish Tax Millage Rates
"Small Town" Millage Rates (and Totals)
District Tax Millage Rates (Parcel and Service Fees)
Who is responsible for the collection of taxes?
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In Caddo Parish, the Sheriff is not only concerned with enforcing the law, but has the additional duty as Ex-Officio Tax Collector and is responsible for collecting parish taxes. Any property which has an outstanding balance of base tax, interest or other penalties or costs, is subject to being sold at the annual Tax Sale.
Whom should I contact to make a change of address?
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The Caddo Parish Tax Assessor's Office should be contacted at (318) 226-6701 for all change of address information.
If I live in Shreveport, does my Tax Notice statement from the Sheriff's Tax Division include city taxes?
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No. The City of Shreveport collects city taxes. The Sheriff collects only parish taxes. The phone number for City of Shreveport Tax Collection is (318) 673-5500.
How are my taxes calculated?
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The amount collected is based on an assessment that has been done by the Tax Assessor, which is another entity entirely separate from the Sheriff's Office. The assessment is used in calculations which include the amount of millage a particular property is subject to paying.
What is Homestead Exemption?
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In the state of Louisiana, homeowners are eligible for homestead exemption of the first $75,000 of the assessed value of the home considered their permanent residence. A person can have homestead on only one home. To file for Homestead Exemption, contact the Tax Assessor's Office at (318) 226-6701.
How are my taxes computed?
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Ten percent of the assessed value of your residential property is multiplied by the current year's millage rate to arrive at the total tax shown on the tax notice. Some property will have additional amounts for fire district and water district service fees or parcel fees. Here is a rough example how to calculate parish taxes (not city taxes):
Assessed value $75,000 or less = no parish taxes
Assessed value $125,000
$125,000 less $75,000 homestead exemption = $50,000.
10 % of assessed value over $50,000 = $ 5,000.
Approximate multiplying factor (excluding special taxes)= .15098
.15148 times $5,000= Approximate Parish taxes due = $754.90
When is the deadline to pay my taxes?
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Current-year taxes become delinquent at the close of business on December 31 of that year. After this date, the taxes become delinquent and are assessed at a rate of one percent interest per month or any part of a month.
What happens if I do not pay my taxes?
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Any delinquent account -- that is an account reflecting any amount of money due -- is subject to be sold at the annual Tax Sale in May. Your property will be advertised in the official "Parish Journal" and may be sold at the annual Tax Sale which is usually in May. The advertisement is usually published the last week of March, the first and third week in April, and the first week of May. The complete list is published in the "Parish Journal" and a small block ad is published in other parish newspapers.
Come on now, does anyone really fail to pay their taxes?
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Yes! Nearly 3,000 real estate property accounts are sold each year for delinquent taxes.
How can I find out if my account has any outstanding balance?
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Fortunately, most accounts are paid in a timely fashion. However, many times an account is unpaid because of an honest mistake or lack of knowledge as to "how the system works." Here's an example:
Let's say Buyer "B" buys a house from Buyer "A" on January 5, 1999. Well, "A's" name was on the tax roll for January 1, 1999, so the tax notice which is sent out in November 1998, goes to "A," not to "B." "B" will not receive a tax notice on the property until November 2000.
One thing we do to help the taxpayers is send a New Owner Notice to any account which shows any amount due. Those are normally sent out in the third week of February. This gives those new owners an opportunity to find out that taxes are due and are accruing interest.
At the end of February, we send out certified notices to all accounts which still shows a balance greater than $0. This will affect the Sheriff's Office in that many people will come in and pay their account balances, which will also include 1 percent interest per month and a $8 certified mail charge.
About April 1, advertising is printed in the "Parish Journal." This listing shows all accounts which have not been paid and the certified mailers that were returned as undeliverable.
About April 8, advertising is printed in the "Parish Journal." This listing shows all accounts with delinquent balances for the previous year.
About May 6, two advertising files are printed in the "Parish Journal." One is a listing of certified non-deliverable mailers. The second shows all accounts with a delinquent balance.
Note: All listings are sorted alphabetically and include the name as it appeared on the Tax Roll for the delinquent year. Call (318) 681-0638 to find your account's status.
Tell me a little about the Tax Sale.
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The Tax Sale is held in Room G18 at the Caddo Parish Courthouse, 501 Texas Street, Shreveport, LA 71101. The first day of the Tax Sale, all the unsettled properties that appeared in the newspaper advertising are read aloud. People in the room are considered Tax Buyers. These buyers have pre-registered with the Sheriff's Office (Tax Buyer registration begins before the Tax Sale. Anyone can register up to the start of and during the sale.)
After the reading of a property, Buyers bid for a portion of ownership on the property. By law, the Sheriff continues accepting bids until the lowest bid is received in the interest of the actual property owner-- which gives the Buyer who bid that amount the right to purchase it.
What happens if a property is not sold at the Tax Sale (Adjudicated)?
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Any unsold property will be adjudicated to Caddo Parish. The Parish then becomes owner of the property.
What if my property is bought by a Buyer and I want to get it back?
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The original owner has up to three years from the date the deed is filed in the Clerk of Court's Office to redeem the property. A redemption is calculated by the Tax Collector. The amount of redemption will include a redemption fee, tax sale fee, interest due the tax buyer, the base taxes and monthly interest accrued on the account after December 31 of the delinquent year.
Why do I have to pay Fire District fees?
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Fire protection and emergency services for properties and citizens outside the City of Shreveport are provided by one of nine Caddo Parish Fire Districts. Fire District fees help fund fire protection and emergency services in your area. They are determined by your fire district and are voted on by the citizens in that district. Fire protection and emergency services inside the city are provided by the Shreveport Fire Department and are funded by city taxes paid by Shreveport residents.
CADDO PARISH TAX MILLAGES
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Tax Recipient Entity -- Millage
Red River Waterway -- 2.84
Parishwide School -- 83.98
Parish -- 3.02 (Shreveport & Vivian);
Parish -- 6.04 (Other than Shreveport & Vivian)
Juvenile Court -- 2.18
Public Health -- 2.56
Library -- 10.30
Public Facilities -- 0.95
Bonded Debt Service -- 3.50
Public Works -- 7.05 [Return to Questions List]
Jail Facilities -- 6.65 [Phone, FAX and e-mail information]
Courthouse Maintenance -- 3.01
Biomedical -- 1.95
Caddo-Bossier Port Commission -- 2.50
Caddo Parish Law Enforcement District -- 14.94
Caddo Assessment District -- 2.53
TOTAL -- 147.96 (Shreveport & Vivian)
TOTAL -- 150.98 (Other than Shreveport & Vivian)
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"SMALL TOWN" MILLAGES (AND TOTALS)
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Tax Recipient Entity -- "Small Town" Millage (Total with Parish Tax Millage)
Shreveport -- 51.63 (199.59 Total)
Downtown Development -- 7.99 (207.58 Total w/Shreveport)
Vivian -- 21.84 (169.80 Total)
Mooringsport -- 16.16 (167.14 Total)
Oil City -- 15.00 (165.98 Total)
Blanchard -- 9.39 (160.37 Total)
Greenwood -- 12.76 (163.74 Total)
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DISTRICT TAX MILLAGES (Parcel and Service Fees)
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Tax Recipient Entity -- Millage or $ amount of Fee
Caddo Levee District -- 3.21
Caddo Water Works # 1 -- 5.79
Caddo Water Work # 7 -- 4.69
Sewerage District # 2 -- 28.00
Sewerage District # 7 14.00
North Caddo Hospital District -- 5.00 [Return to Questions List]
Caddo Fire District # 1 -- 15.58 [Phone, FAX and e-mail information]
Caddo Fire District # 2 -- 9.68
.....Service Fee (FD#2) -- $75.00
Caddo Fire District # 3 -- 10.98
.....Service Fee (FD#3) -- $50.00
Caddo Fire District # 4 -- 16.00
.....Service Fee (FD#4) -- $100.00
Caddo Fire District # 5 -- 11.58 [Return to Questions List]
.....Service Fee (FD#5) -- $75.00 [Phone, FAX and e-mail information]
Caddo Fire District # 6 -- 9.08
.....Service Fee (FD#6) --$75.00
Caddo Fire District # 7 -- 18.25
Caddo Fire District # 8 -- 16.00
.....Parcel Fee (FD#8) -- $50.00
Caddo Fire District # 9 -- 10.00
.....Parcel Fee (FD#9) -- $75.00
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Fire Protection / acre -- 0.08