Real estate and personal property tax bills in Charlotte County are expected to arrive soon.

“They’re being mailed today,” said Charlotte County Treasurer Patricia Berkeley on Wednesday. However, she said, “They don’t have to wait for it to come in the mail.”

She said citizens were welcome to come into the office to pay, but she suggested early payers still compare their bills once received to ensure accuracy.

She said she has copies of the bills available at the Treasurer’s Office that can be accessed.

With the original due date being Dec. 5, Berkeley noted in a previous interview that an extension of up to 90 days was allowed.

According to the county’s website, county taxes are billed twice each fiscal year. Taxes are typically due Dec. 5 for the first half of the fiscal year and June 5 for the remainder of the year.

Real estate and personal property taxes are still currently due Jan. 19 before any penalties would be assessed.

“We will be monitoring the checks and postmark date,” said Berkeley.

According to the county’s website, the county’s new online tax portal has been implemented.

Berkeley said they are working to get the website up and running in the next week or two.

The county’s website said a new online tax payment option will soon be added to the site.

The real estate and personal property tax bills delay stemmed from a conversion to an updated software program called Breeze.

“It’s been a lot more involved than we ever anticipated,” Berkeley said in a previous interview.

She said in May, the tax bills system was updated. She noted the county has been using the same company, RDA Systems, since 1994.

“This conversion has been totally different,” she said in a previous interview. “… We’ve experienced a lot of delays.”

In addition, she noted the staff at the Commissioner of Revenue’s Office had been working overtime in order to get all the information ready to come to the Treasurer’s Office.

According to information from RDA’s website, the company has “capitalized upon 36-plus years of experience working with local government and K-12 school districts. Breeze offers a brand-new state-of-the-art system to simplify and streamline revenue management.”

Currently, Charlotte County is the only locality using the updated system.

The Treasurer’s Office will be closed Jan.1-2 in observance of the new year.