If you live in Jefferson County, Alabama please don’t forget about your property tax assessments, which came out at the beginning of July. It is a good idea to check the value that the county has your house assessed at. If you believe it is too high it is possible to contest the value, but you have to do it by July 3o, 2010.
Knowing what homes in your neighborhood sold for can help you make an educated guess as to whether you may want to contest its value. It is also possible that the county has the heated and cooled living area of your home listed incorrectly which can result in an inaccurate assessment value. Please give me a call if you have any questions about your assessment.
Tom – if I’m purchasing a foreclosure that’s in some disrepair and considerably below the market in the neighborhood, and I’ve got an appraisal for well above purchase price but still well below the neighborhood value, what’s the best way to go about getting my tax value down, and do I have to wait until next July or can I go ahead and do it once I close?
Great question. You need to check with the appropriate county to find out when their appeal period is and also what types of proof of the value of your home they need. Some tax assessors may just need some MLS printouts, others may want more substantial data to back up your claim, such as a full appraisal. I would ask them if they can use the appraisal to change the value of the home, since it sounds like it was done recently. Good luck, hope this helps.
I’ve sent in the form to challenge my tax assessment for 2010. What are some factors I should highlight to get a lower assessment? I live in Center Point and most of the homes in my neighbor that have sold over the past year are foreclosures, which are conveniently excluded from consideration.
While there are a lot of foreclosures (which as you said are conveniently excluded) there are other “normal” sales which have been affected by the foreclosures. It is my opinion that the foreclosures bring down other sales so it may still be possible to get your taxes lowered. You can provide them simple MLS printouts of homes which have sold for lower amounts to prove your point or you can get a full appraisal which will provide more “credible” evidence of the lower value of your home. Please give me a call if you have any questions at 205-243-9304.