Can you hear that sound?  Tick, tick, tick.  It’s the sound of time slipping away.  If you are, like many of us, receiving a “Notice of Valuation (NOV)” from your County Assessor that seems inflated (given recent events), then pay attention to that ticking sound because you don’t have much time to act.  This is the time of year when we homeowners get our NOV’s. Now, if we are lucky, our County Assessor has accounted for the fact that, unlike past assessment periods, the values of our properties may be declining rather than appreciating. So, what to do in the event your assessment suggests a value much higher than you feel is the case right now?  First, stay calm and try to be objective. Then, determine if an appeal is warranted.  If, after due diligence, you’ve concluded that an appeal is worth the effort, then go for it.  Before doing so, here are some things to consider:

• The current year actual value in the Notice of Valuation (NOV) is required by law to be the Assessor’s opinion of the value of the property as of the date specified in your tax notice from the previous year.  In this case, you want to value your home as of June 2008. Have your Realtor give you some comparable homes that have sold during that period.
• In reviewing this valuation, you, as the owner, should think about what the property was like at that time. Is the inventory on the NOV correct as of that date? What was the property used for on that date? What was its condition on that date?
• With this information in mind, you should investigate what the property would have sold at that point in time, not today. Often the best way to get information about value is to look at similar properties that sold during the that period. This is what Assessor’s do and often they can provide you with a list of properties in the area that sold during that time frame.

Once you have reviewed sales of similar properties in the area and accounted for the differences between your property and the ones that sold, does the current year actual value on the NOV seem to be a fair estimate of value relative to your results? If it is close, you may want to go no further, the tax saving one can anticipate is only about $5-$11/year per $1,000 value adjustment for residential properties (depending on the total mill levy in the area). If the NOV current year actual value is substantially higher than your research indicates it should be, you may want to protest/appeal the valuation. The first step in the appeals process is to protest the Assessor’s valuation. To do this you may protest by mail or protest in person, but you must do so before the close of business on the dealine specified on your tax notice. In your protest, state why you think the NOV current year actual value is wrong and what you think is the value of the property. The Assessor will review your protest and send you a written Notice of Determination that will either adjust the value or deny your protest. If the Assessor adjusts your value to an amount you feel is fair, your taxes will be calculated on that value. If you are not satisfied with the value in the Notice of Determination, you may appeal to the County Board of Equalization (CBOE). To appeal to the CBOE, you must file yet another written notice of appeal with the CBOE within the time frame specified in that Notice of Determination. Again, you will receive a written notice of determination from the CBOE. If the result of this process is not acceptable, you may then appeal to the State Board of Assessment Appeals, to District Court, or through arbitration. Finally, if you find a mistake in your assessment in a previous year that you did not protest/appeal, you may ask that the mistake be corrected by filing for an abatement of taxes for up to two years prior. Again, you will be asked to document the mistake in writing to the CBOE and request a refund of excess taxes paid due to the mistake. Most County Assessors have excellent web sites that explain the assessment and appeals process as well as providing valuable property information. Assessor’s web sites can be helpful, free information resources for property owners and real estate professionals alike.

For more information, including a free consultation, send us a request at REInvest Group.