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WILKES-BARRE TWP. — With no savings, 91-year-old Abram Belles said he resorted to loans when he started getting behind on his property taxes several years ago.
The stopgap measure kept his Wilkes-Barre Township home of 67 years and a rental property in the township off the auction block at first, but the hundreds of dollars in monthly loan repayments sucked up the money he had intended to sock away for the next round of taxes.
In addition to this year’s taxes, he now owes a combined $7,805 in back taxes for 2013 and 2014, prompting Luzerne County to list both properties in the Sept. 24 back-tax auction.
He’s trying to sell the rental on Lehigh Street, which he inherited years ago, but is desperate to hold onto his Anderson Street home.
“It would break my heart if I had to move out of here,” he said as he shuffled through the structure, pointing out cherished kitchen cabinetry and home improvements he made when he had cash to spare and more pep to tackle the many projects on his still-growing to-do list.
The retired electrician said his bank has rejected his application for another loan, leaving a new county hardship program for delinquent taxpayers as his only immediate, tangible option to protect his home.
Qualifying senior citizens may receive an additional three months to settle the debt on owner-occupied homes if they are able to pay during the extension, with the option for the county law office to grant further extensions based on financial circumstances.
Elderly property owners with homes listed in the Sept. 24 auction have until Sept. 1 to apply for the hardship program.
Around 80 of these property owners have inquired about the program. Belles said he has completed an application and will submit it to the county before the deadline.
Northeast Revenue Service Inc., the county’s tax-claim operator, proposed the program because an increasing number of county property owners have been asking judges to remove their properties from sales due to economic struggles and illnesses in recent years.
Applications for the hardship program, which also covers residential property owners under 65 struggling with job losses or illnesses, are available at the Luzerne County tax claim office on the first floor of the county courthouse in Wilkes-Barre or at www.luzernecountytaxclaim.com.
To qualify, senior citizens’ annual household income must be below the cap for a state property tax rent rebate, which is currently $35,000, not including half of Social Security income.
Belles said his income is $1,500 per month, or $18,000 a year, including Social Security.
He moved into the home when he married the former Mary Rush in 1948 and said they worked as a team supporting each other until her death in 2008.
“We both always had jobs and worked hard,” he said, citing her jobs in a local silk mill and factory and his as an electrician and maintenance worker at various businesses and a township zoning officer for 20 years.
In addition to the loan repayments of around $400 per month, Belles said his fixed income must cover utilities and insurance on his properties and the car he still drives. He said he never seems to have money left over to stock up on food and is thankful for several homemade meals his neighbor brings him each week.
“Other than that, I live mostly on milk and cereal,” he said.
