The home I’m looking at has a Clayton address, but when I called the town about the average water bill for the house, they referred me to the Johnston County Utilities department. Why?
A. It’s possible to have a Clayton, NC address, but not live under the municipal jurisdiction of the town of Clayton. If you live in the town’s municipal jurisdiction, you’ll have to pay them taxes, along with the county. If you only live in the county and not any municipal jurisdiction, you only have to pay property taxes to the county. Keep in mind, towns like Clayton and Smithfield will soak you for user fees if you don’t live in their ‘real’ town. Town sports leagues and other municipally-funded programs and facilities typically charge out-of-towners more because they aren’t contributing to the tax base.
