About 75,000 City of Knoxville property tax bills will be arriving in mailboxes across the city, the state, and the country beginning this week.

The tax rate is $2.46 per $100 assessed value, the same tax rate as last year.

As always some important dates to remember are:

Taxes are due on October 1, 2010, and there is a 1 percent discount for real estate taxes for individuals and businesses that pay by October 31, 2010.

The deadline for paying city property taxes is the last day in February next year. Beginning March 1, 2011, taxes are delinquent and will accrue a 2 percent penalty and interest per month.

There are a variety of ways taxpayers can pay their bills including by check or money order via way of the United States Postal Service, by telephone at 866-378-2937, or in person at the downtown property tax office.

The mailing address is P.O. Box 15001, Knoxville, TN, 37901-5001.

Taxpayers can also pay online by accessing the city's website at www.cityofknoxville.org/finance/taxes.asp and following the instructions there. If an individual has questions, or doesn't receive a bill, they can call the City of Knoxville Revenue Office at 865-215-2084 for information and help.

The office - located on the fourth floor of the City County Building - is open from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. on weekdays - though it's probably more convenient to call with a question or to make a payment.

If someone does have a question or some sort of problem the city urges them to contact the property tax office for help as soon as possible. There is also information about property taxes on the city's website, listed above.

The $2.46 tax rate was adopted by City Council in 2009 and replaced the previous $2.81 tax rate that had been in place since 2005. It is the lowest city property tax rate in more than 40 years.

It means that the owner of a home appraised at $125,000 will pay $768.75 in property taxes.