Despite the sagging economy, it appears property tax collections in Forsyth County will top last year.

Forsyth County Tax Commission Matthew Ledbetter estimated the county will collect about $194 million.

The taxes were due Saturday, but residents had until 5 p.m. Monday to pay their bills without a late penalty.

As of Monday, Ledbetter said about 85 percent of payments were in.

Once they've all been accounted for, he said he expects 90 percent of the bills will be in on time.

"We're very proud of that and in today's economy I think that's a pretty large number," he said. "That's pretty unreal honestly."

Ledbetter said about 2 or 3 percent more payments have been made on time this year than in 2007.

"We've had a real good turnout, and we're glad that people are paying them on time," he said.

He said a 1 percent fine will be added to delinquent bills.

Drive-through windows at the Cumming and Sharon Springs tax offices have helped, said Ledbetter, who commended his staff for their dedication and hard work.

"We've always had to work a good bit of overtime during tax season, but we've managed to be able to go without it through cross-training and different opportunities and they have really worked hard to do that," he said.

"With the economic situation the county's in it's pretty important and I commend them for the job that they've done."