After inheriting a home from my father’s will it became clear to me that I needed to lower my property tax. Below I will share with you my personal tips for proper property tax appeal.
The first tip you need to know is that this is not a one-day process it takes time and effort. I find it alarming that only 7% of people actually go through with their property tax appeal. After going through it myself I can see why they stopped. I would have if I did not end up using a lawyer.The main word in a property tax appeal is the word “appeal”. You have to remember at the end of the process you or if you’re smarter than me your lawyer must present your case in a court like setting. It is surprising that there is a 75% success rate and yet only 7% of people appeal their property tax. It might be a long process but it can be done and it has great benefits.
The number one thing to remember when dealing with a appeal on your property tax is to know your true market appraisal. That was what I had to do with my father’s estate. In his case he bought the house ten years prior to passing away, and as we all now property value went down since then. I quickly figured out that I needed to receive my personal property tax card from the assessors office. The main focus in your argument against the board should be that the information the state has on the property is out dated and needs a revaluation. The best way to present this is with easy comparable neighborhood houses and also includes an updated house appraisal.
Remeber to call a lawyer to find out exactly what you need to do to lower your rates.
This article serves an example of what it is like to go through a property tax appeal. I hope it serves as a great reminder of the benefits and drawbacks to pursuing a more favorable property tax. The main thing I learned through my process is that this is not as easy as it sounds. This article helps me remember that. Looking back I highly recommend every homeowner appeal their property tax.
Keep at the top of your head that it is also always a great idea to look into hiring property tax appeal attorneys if you really want to start lowering your property taxes. Your property tax laws may vary from state to state. The Interwebs are a great resource (even better than the library), and you should consider using it when you are prospecting for a potential lawyer that you are going to hire. Of course attorneys are not a requirement for the appealing process, but if you want a better chance at succeeding then it is very wise to go with an attorney. You will be very surprised to learn that some law agencies can even promise something around a 90% success rate (thus the reason for hiring them). In the end, it’s all up to you to decide if you want to hire someone to represent you or not – but one thing’s for sure, and that’s that you can save money by appealing.