Do you think you are paying too much property taxes on homestead and non-homestead properties?
Appeal the Just Value to the Property Appraiser’s office. The deadline to a formal appeal to the Value Adjustment Board (VAB) is September 20th, 2007. The appeal form is available from the Property Appraiser and is to be submitted to the Clerk of the Value Adjustment Board.
Since the Tax Collector prepares the bill based on the information provided by taxing authority -who tells the tax collector how much millage rate they need to raise the money to meet their budget- and by the County’s Property Appraiser-who value all property in their jurisdiction each January 1st, it is critical to confirm that the calculated Just Value is correct.
Dennis J Black, the author of How to reduce your property Taxes and founder of the Institute of Real Estate Studies-offers the following helpful hints…
The value assessment of the property needs to be reviewed. An experienced Realtor could assist you in putting together the correct information to support the claim for a change in the assessment of the property appraiser. Keep in mind the following:
- You must demonstrate that your Just value is incorrect, not that it is unfair. Avoid comparing the assessed value of your property with your neighbors’s, or how much they pay in taxes.
- Your supporting information must demonstrate what your property was worth on January 1st using data from the previous year.
- Make sure similar properties are being compared.
- What others paid for their properties is what it is relevant in the appeal, not what you paid for it.
These are some of the rules that the author informs need to be followed when formally appealing:
- The appeal’s filling fee is $15.00 per property.
- You must obtain at least 25 days notice of your hearing date. You can re-schedule once.
- Petitioners before the board may be represented by an attorney or agent.
- A condominium association may group their appeals.
- Be prepared -with supportive documentation- to prove that the assessment placed on your property is incorrect.
- Don’t compare your assessment with other assessments, but your Just Value with the Just Value of your comparables.
Ask an experienced Realtor or contact the Institute of Real Estate Studies for more information on how to prepare your appeal.
Good luck!……and remember to be polite……