Page 8 - Stuart Exposure - September '21

Page 8, Stuart Exposure

LocaL goverNmeNt

We Love To Offer Choices any amount they can afford, as long as the entire amount is New Chat Service
paid in full by April 1. If unable to pay the full amount on
Make The Right Choice For You! time, by making a partial payment, the required delinquent Have you ever had a problem or just needed a simple
penalty will be computed on a lower amount. If unable question answered and not been able to reach a human on
By Jenny Fields, Martin to pay the full amount plus the penalties before the tax a company’s electronic phone system and unfortunately
County Property Appraiser certificate sale, the amount of the certificate sold on the their menu did not list the specific topic you needed help
People come from all property will be lower; therefore, the taxpayer will be with – frustrating!
walks of life and have paying interest to a certificate holder on a lower amount. At the Martin County Tax Collector’s office, by calling
all different types of The downside to this plan is that the individual loses all 288-5600 or #TAX you will be connected to a clerk, not
lifestyles. We try to help discounts and each payment made requires an additional a menu. We have just added a virtual chat service, so you
our constituents have a $10 fee. will have another option to speak with a live clerk, not
better quality of life by We also offer several different payment options. The an automated message system. Look for the chat icon on
offering different payment quickest, easiest, and cheapest is online. Scanning the QR the bottom right of our website and start chatting with a
options to accommodate code on your tax bill will take you directly to your own live clerk. The service is fast and efficient – questions are
their lifestyle, relieving tax bill on our website to make a payment. If you’ve lost answered immediately. It’s “on-the-go” support! Support
their stress and lessening or misplaced your bill, just go to our home page on https:// can be accessed from anywhere on any smart device and
the financial burden. Let’s martintaxcollector.com, click on Payment Menu, and our appeals to our tech savvy customers.
talk about property tax, since usually that is an individual’s pay hub will come up with a page where you can easily pay We can now communicate with non-English speaking
largest bill. Almost $4.6 million in net income was any of our online services, or just call #TAX or 288-5600 customers with automatic translation. No more the burden
earned this year above our operating costs by our office and request your tax bill to be emailed to you. E-checks of finding translators for the uncommon languages,
(an amazing amount because of issues with COVID-19) are free. Credit cards are also offered online; however, since artificial intelligence provides us with translation
through effective management, increased efficiencies, the credit card processing company charges a 2.5 percent in all languages. Customers can speak to us in their
and motivated teamwork. The funds were distributed to convenience fee, which we get no part of. We also offer preferred language and the communication is instantly
the taxing authorities of Martin County to help keep the a private personal link for “confidential” taxpayers. translated to English. When we respond back to them, it is
burden of the taxes off our rooftops. Payment may be made by mail (postmark determines instantaneously translated back to them in their preferred
The option that gives you the lowest cost is to pay your the discount period), dropped off at our drive-through language, making for a more welcoming and satisfying
entire property tax bill in the 4 percent discount period in window at the Palm City branch, dropped off in our interaction.
one lump sum; however, some people are unable to come convenient drop boxes at all of our four locations or in We continue to provide efficiencies and better
up with that large amount of money at one time. our after-hours 24/7/365 lockbox at our drive-through conveniences for our taxpayers!
The best alternative if the individual needs to make window at the Palm City location.
payments is the installment plan. This plan almost gives For those taxpayers who like to walk in and hand- Save Our Homes (SOH) Benefit
you the same cost as paying the entire bill at one time, deliver their tax payment, we are ready and staffed to take
except you are paying your taxes in advance. The first your payments quickly and efficiently. We have a “Tax The Save Our Homes (SOH) benefit spread is the
year installments may be a little difficult, unless you are Payment Express” office set up in our business collections amount that the market value exceeds assessed value, and
a new property owner and choose this option for your first department at our Willoughby location. (Next to our DMV is not subject to being taxed. While real estate values can
tax bill, but once the property is put on the installment office). Please look for the large blue banner. fluctuate over time, the SOH assessment cap restricts the
cycle, this option really gives you almost the same value A taxpayer may walk into any of our four convenient annual rise in assessed value to 3 percent or the percent
as paying one lump sum, while you make four smaller locations and we are ready to serve you. Express lines change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is less.
payments instead of one large lump payment. are set up at all four offices: Hobe Sound, Palm City, For example, in 2021, the market value on a property
For individuals who are self-employed or live on Stuart, and Indiantown. Our customer wait time can be increased to $312,748. However, the 2021 assessed value
straight commission, we offer a partial payment plan. On viewed live on our website. We are here and waiting to only increased by 1.4 percent to $216,409 from $213,421
this plan the taxpayer may make as many payments and serve and help with whatever option you choose. We offer in the prior year due to the SOH assessment cap. In this
new contactless payment options in the main office and example, the 2021 SOH benefit is $96,339 ($312,748
Thank You branches which include cash, check, Apple Pay, Samsung market value less $216,409 assessed
Pay, Google Pay, credit card, and pin debit, with point-to-
value), the amount you will not pay
point encryption for your security. taxes on.
My name is Ruth We continue to look for efficiencies, conveniences, and The calculation will vary for
Phillips, I live in northwest ways to best serve the taxpayers better and save tax dollars properties with an agricultural
Georgia and I am 69 years while improving services. Make the best choice for you! classification. Please contact our office
old. On July 1, 1999, when Using your mobile device’s camera, scan this QR code for your actual SOH benefit.
I was almost 47 years and visit us on the Web, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
old, I was diagnosed
with a rare, fatal type of
cancer called malignant
peritoneal mesothelioma.
As some of you may know,
this disease is caused by
past exposure to asbestos.
The disease had spread throughout my abdomen and my
prognosis was only 8 to12 months left to live. I searched the
country's most prestigious hospitals and visited two of them,
only to learn that there was no effective treatment for my NoN-Toxic cancer immunotherapy
cancer. Fortunately, on TV, I learned about another patient
with my diagnosis who had been treated at the IAT Clinic
in Freeport, Grand Bahama, and after 2 years he was doing
great. We traveled to the Freeport Clinic and found that Available NoW
the non-toxic therapy given there is custom-tailored to each
individual patient with daily analysis using Dr. Lawrence Safe and Effective!
Burton’s proprietary method. Treatment is adjusted to
balance and maximize each patient's own immune system.
The only side effect I noticed was mild fatigue on some This is the Original Immunotherapy that
days. I have now lived 22 years additional years with
a very good quality of life and continue to surprise my balances and optimizes your immune system to
doctors, several of whom have retired and I have even fight almost any type of cancer.
outlived some of them! A few times throughout the years I
have had complications, but the Clinic staff has assisted me
through those periods. I know there is now immunotherapy Hundreds of successes over the years.
also in the United States, but it is frequently given along
with chemotherapy, has many side effects, is extremely Continuously available since 1977
costly and often not entirely covered by insurance. We
are so thankful we found this totally unique clinic and I in Freeport, Grand Bahama Island
recommend it as it has been lifesaving for me. Many others
we have met at the Clinic through the years, with a wide
variety of other cancer types, have experienced similar See our website for more info:
excellent results. We are grateful to the dedicated staff of
Quantum Immunotherapy for making this effective and www.Quantumimmunotherapy.net
non-toxic therapy available since 1978.
For those who would like more information, the toll- or call for more information: Toll-free number (561) 766-0878
free number for the Clinic is: (561) 766-0878. Its website
is www.QuantumImmunotherapy.net. Email: Quantimmuno@gmail.com