What Does an Address Have to do with Taxes?

Did you know that Knoxville-Knox County Planning’s Addressing Department is responsible for assigning and verifying all addresses within Knox County?

Addresses are issued to structures and occupancies, not the land they occupy. However, a vacant parcel may be assigned an address in anticipation of a structure being built or an old address may be associated with a parcel despite the structure being removed.

As tax season approaches, you are likely thinking about the tax deadline and where to pay your property taxes. Your property address is probably the last thing on your mind, unless you own multiple properties. After all, you receive mail, packages and utility service, so how could there be a problem? What many people do not realize is the difference between a property address and mailing address.

A property address is the primary address assigned to a tax parcel. If there are multiple dwellings or addresses on a parcel, only one address will be designated as primary. This is the address listed on the tax bill. A mailing address is the address where a tax bill is mailed. Multiple tax bills can be sent to a single mailing address if desired by an owner.

Why is this important? Numerous agencies share the address information maintained by the Addressing Department, including the Knox County Emergency Communication District (E-911) and the Knox County Property Assessor. Therefore, it is critical the property address matches the address in use by the property owner and tenants.  

Upon receipt of your tax bill, pay attention to the property address associated with the tax parcel ID. If you do not recognize this address, please contact addressing staff to research the discrepancy. Staff may be reached by email at addressing@knoxplanning.org, by phone at 865.215.2507 or in person on the 4th floor of the City-County Building.

If you need to update the mailing address, contact the Knox County Property Assessor at 865.215.2360. Be certain to indicate you are calling about the mailing address rather than the property address.

Visit the Knoxville-Knox County Planning’s website for additional information pertaining to addressing guidelines and procedures.