Basics of Property Management: Screening Potential Tenants

What To Do When The Local Assessor Overvalues Your House And Your Taxes Go Up

21 July 2016

Jesse Obrien

Getting a huge tax bill isn't fun for anyone, but before you start getting angry because the township or city assessor has overvalued your house and caused your taxes to skyrocket, realize that you have options. You might be able to decrease the tax amount you owe, but you've got to know the right actions to take in order to do so. Use the following steps to have your taxes reduced when the assessor has overvalued your house.

Set an Appeal Date

The first thing you should do is to inquire about setting a formal appeal date. That will give you adequate time to collect information. Don't spend so much time getting steamed about the situation that you wait to ask for an appeal date, because if you do, you might miss the deadline or draw out the process even longer than necessary. Once you've got a date, you'll be able to focus your efforts on that meeting.

Make Sure the Assessor Has the Right Information

Sometimes, the assessor evaluates properties based on old property records or other information that is not accurate. They might think your home has four bedrooms instead of three, or they may have assumed that you had a finished basement with living space. Ask to see your home's property card or file and ensure that everything listed is accurate. If there are errors, the assessor can verify your claims, correct the record and lower the assessment value. That will result in lower taxes for you.

Seek Out a Certified Appraiser

Many people enlist the help of a local real estate agent to provide them with recent comparable sales of properties nearby to prove that the township or city's tax assessor has overvalued their house. While this may work at times, a better decision is to pay for an appraisal of your house by a certified residential real estate appraiser.

An appraiser's primary job is to provide an opinion of value for a property at a specific point in time. While a real estate agent can provide you with comparable sales that reflect current market conditions, they can only provide a guess about what that means for your particular home. An appraiser will analyze market trends and make adjustments to that information to come up with a Sales Approach opinion of value--but they might also provide an opinion of what your house's value would be if it was built today from the ground up, known as a Cost Approach value. These different approaches will give you and the assessor a much clearer, more accurate idea of your house's value.

If the appraiser finds that the assessor has overvalued your home, their appraisal will be a strong piece of evidence at your appeal meeting. However, be aware that an appraiser is an independent entity and might find that the assessor was correct in their valuation.

After taking the advice in this article, you may be able to cut your tax bill and have your house evaluated properly. Work with the assessor and the appraiser to ensure that everything is resolved in a timely manner. For more information, contact a company like East Coastal Appraisal Services.

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