Lowering Your Property Taxes (An Appealing Possibility)
Posted by Lee Cameron on Friday, August 26th, 2011 at 1:20pm.
Central Florida home prices are still falling but, incredibly, property taxes are going up. Across the country, while home prices have fallen sharply since the boom, taxes have increased by nearly 20% in some areas. Unfortunately, most local governments do not measure property values every year so the taxes do not go down as prices go down. Luckily, there IS a way you can get your taxes lowered.
Your property-tax rate is set by the local government and cannot be changed, but it may be possible to get the assessment on your home lowered which in turn leads to a lower tax bill. Some experts say that more than half of homeowners are paying taxes that are too high because their home wasn't assessed properly in the first place.
Check the Assessment
When you've received notification of your assessment, you have a certain amount of time in which you can appeal. This time varies in different counties and cities so call your local assessor's office to get more information.
The easiest way to get an assessment reduced is to find a mistake. Once you've received your assessment, look it over carefully to make sure that no mistakes have been made. Are the rooms measured correctly? Have they accidentally included things that your home doesn't really have? It's impossible for local assessor's to go out and appraise each home personally every year, so values are determined through other means - area home sales, aerial photos and computer progams. Because of this impersonal process, mistakes can be made and if you find one, that's good reason to have your property assessment reduced. However, keep in mind that this could work against you too. If an assessor forgot to take into account your pool or if you've recently made big improvements, your assessment might actually go up.
Building Your Case
Though it may be a big help to find a mistake in the assessment, it's not required for a successful repeal. Even if you do find a mistake, that shouldn't be your only argument. The best information you can use to bolster your case is a list of comparable sales. You can find recent home sale prices on various websites (including, perhaps, your local assessor's site), newspapers or by asking a local real estate agent. Be wary of sales information that you get from sites like Zillow.com - they can be unreliable.
Once you've found a place to view home sales, find nearby properties that are comparable with your own. Look for houses in the same neighbor, with similar features, acreage and square footage. If these homes are selling for less than your home was assessed for, you probably have a case. Remember that your home was assessed on a particular date (which may have been months before you actually received your notice) so look for home sales from around the same time.
Unfortunately, home sales are low in many areas of Central Florida right now, so you may not be able to find enough comparable properties to make a solid case. If this happens, you can consider hiring a professional home appraiser. These appraisers will cost you some money upfront, but if they appraise your home at a price less than your assessment, you have something to bring to the appeal hearing.
If this seems like a lot of complicated work to do on your own, you have even more options. You can hire a property-tax lawyer to appeal the assessment for you. The fees can differ from office to office, but many charge a percentage of the tax savings you receive each year if successful. If unsuccessful, you may not have to pay them anything. There are firms that specialize in property-tax appeals, but do your homework - there are lots of scam artists out there as well. Be wary of anyone who insists that you pay upfront.
Appealing
Now that you've got your case built, it's time to call the local assessor's office and schedule an informal appeal. Make sure to bring whatever documents you need to help your case. If your assessor made a mistake, bring photos and documents to prove it. Bring documentation of every comparable home that sold for lower than your assessment. Bring the documents you received from your professional appraiser. If the assessor is still unconvinced, but you believe you have a strong enough case, you can ask to appeal to a local board. If that doesn't work, you can even appeal to a state-level board.
If your assessor agrees with your appeal, congratulations! Your assessment will be lowered and you'll find yourself paying lower taxes (until, perhaps, values and your next assessment go up). Don't expect to get refunded for the taxes you've already paid, but enjoy your new lower bills and the personal satisfaction knowing that you fought the law - and you won!
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