Why should I appeal? It is a right that every homeowner has and there is no risk (unless you added square footage to your home without pulling a permit). The assessments are determined by a computer program that analyzes numbers and doesn t account well for specific differences between quality of houses and neighborhood boundaries. There is always a chance that you can get a reduction of any kind. When you appeal an actual appraiser reviews actual sales comps to determine your appeal. This is going to be a much more accurate appraisal value. If I appeal can they increase my appraisal value? NO. They are not allowed to increase your value in this calendar year. Even if they realize you are under valued. It can only be reduced or stay the same. *I called Fulton Assessor s office 5/30 to confirm this* ++ I keep getting variable information on this question. However, IF they were ever to actually increase in the same calendar year, it would have to be supported by significant sqft increase an appraiser observed by visiting your property. It is unlikely that they will visit, even though they are entitled to. So I think this risk is low. And relates specifically if your property is more sqft than the tax record indicates ++ What if my house has more square footage than the tax record indicates and I appeal? The appraisal department is allowed to personally visit properties during the appeal process but it is not common. It is still a risk, I can t tell you it won t happen. If they do and they see more square footage, they can t change the value for this calendar year, but they will update the tax record and in 2019 they will appraise based on the larger property. If I agree with my value, is there any benefit to appealing? Yes. If you appeal and then go to the Board of Equalization you will get your value frozen at the current value for 2018, 2019, 2020. That means it won t increase with the market until your freeze expires in 2021. Win or loose at the Board of Equalization, you get the freeze. Will I need to pay the tax bill while the appeal is in process? This is only an estimate of the taxes, but yes, when the bill comes out in early Fall you will need to pay it while the appeal is in process. Often, the first response to the appeal will be used as the value for the tax bill, so if you get a reduction in the first response, it s possible your tax bill will be more accurate.
How do I decide whether to be billed at 85% or 100% of assessed value in my appeal? When you submit your appeal you have to choose if you want to be billed at the current assessed value (100%) or at 85% of it. Basically 85% means you will pay 85% of the total tax bill in the fall. Once the appeal is resolved, you will either be billed the difference in what you owe or receive a refund if you overpaid. If you can afford to, I recommend you pay the 100% and get a refund if you win your appeal. If you cannot afford to pay it all in the Fall, I would suggest the 85% method and it will at least delay the remainder of the bill. If you do not choose one, you will automatically be billed at the 85% rate. What if I bought in 2017? If you bought in 2017, your assessment should not be valued higher than your sales price. I don t believe its still the law that it can t be higher than your sales price, but there is little reason to make a case it should be higher than your sales price. You can still appeal and get your sales price frozen. What sales are used to determine the value & that I should use to make a case for my appeal? The 2018 values are based on ONLY 2017 sales from Jan 1 st 2017 to Dec 31 st 2017. Square footage is the primary determining factor, not bedrooms or bathrooms. You will want to find sold houses with similar square footage as yours and try to choose ones that look similar on the inside if there are photos available. If your house is renovated, find other renovated comps. If your house is unrenovated, look for unrenovated comps. Year built is also important. You may not want to use a new construction and 1920 s house. You can look for sales online, in the tax record, contact your favorite agent, or contact me at www.propertytaxtoohigh.com and I will select comps that I think will make a good case for you. Where can I find the best comps for my house to submit my appeal? It is most productive if you contact your preferred real estate agent or ask me to help you find comps. You are welcome to look at online sites like Zillow, Realtor etc and there is a way to look at comps on the county s website. You basically want to find 3-5 comps that are most similar but sold for the lowest price per square foot. Try to keep the comparables within the neighborhood code found in your tax record. To find the neighborhood code: go to http://fultonassessor.org/ and Click on Property Search Enter your property info and it will bring up your property record. Under the Summary section you will see that the neighborhood code for the property below is: 14242. Unfortunately you may have to check the tax record for each of the comps you choose to see if it is in the same
neighborhood code or not. If you have to go outside of this code area to find comps, the appraiser will value those less in his review of your appeal. But if it s all you can find, you should still send them. Summary Parcel Number 14 Location Address Legal Description Property Class Neighborhood 14242 Tax District 05 Zoning R4 Acres 0.263 Homestead N Exemptions 002400070741 705 PERSHING AVE SE ATL R3 - Residential Lots How should I determine what value to ask for? You can put any value in the appeal form for what you think the value is. But you do have to enter a value. I take the average price/sqft of each of the comps I used and multiple that by my sqft. To calculate price/sqft divide the sqft of the property by the value given or the sold price. 561,000 / 2800 = $200/sqft. Sample language is below: My house at 705 Pershing Ave is currently assessed for $561,000 which is $200/sqft at 2,800 sqft. These homes are comparable to mine in condition and the average sold price/sqft was only $171/sqft. 920 Confederate sold for $433,000 at 1953 sqft = $226/sqft 1081 Benteen sold for $425,000 at 2303 sqft = $184/sqft 872 Confederate sold for $370,000 at 2362 sqft = $156/sqft 1163 Morley sold for $380,000 at 2800 sqft = $133/sqft 864 Confederate sold for $494,000 at 3000 sqft = $160/sqft The average price/sqft is $171/sqft. My house at 2800 sqft should be assessed at $481,000
What happens after I submit my appeal? After you submit your appeal, you can track its progress in the appeal portal. After the deadline of July 6, the county will start sending what we call a 30-day letter which is a response to your request for a reduction. It may have a reduction or it may not. Either way, you still have the choice to go on to the Board of Equalization. It s called a 30-day letter because you have 30 days to reply to the notice indicating if you want to go to the board of equalization or not. Even if you agree with the value, or agree with the first reduction you received, you can go to the Board of Equalization and win or lose you will get that value frozen. When will I get a response to my appeal? The county will start sending out responses to appeals after the July 6 th deadline. It could arrive anytime from July to probably about October or so. Once homeowners start requesting Board of Equalization hearings those usually start being scheduled in the Fall and can run through Spring 2019. What will end a 3 year freeze that is in place? If you have a freeze from a prior year and you are still in your 3 year period, an appeal will likely break the freeze. If you need to make an adjustment to your tax record, call the appraisal department and confirm if making those changes will break your freeze. If a property sells, it will break the freeze. If you pull permits to perform any renovations it will break the freeze. What if I submitted a homestead application by the deadline, but it is not showing on my tax assessment? It is likely that they have not finished processing all of the applications but it should be applied to the bill. However, call the office at 404-613-6100 opt 4 and/or email them at: homesteadstaff@fultoncountyga.gov. and confirm that they indeed received your application and it will be processed in time for the bill. *I confirmed this on 5/30, but it doesn t hurt to call and check*
How much will my mortgage be increased due to the higher tax bill? You should call your mortgage company and see how and when they will adjust your mortgage escrow account. What traditionally happens is, the mortgage company continues to draw too little in funds, the bill comes in fall 2018, the mortgage company pays the whole bill even though your escrow account will be short. Then in Spring 2019 your mortgage company will catch up with you and offer you the chance to pay the overage in one lump sum, or spread it out over the next year s payments. It will also readjust your escrow to collect enough money in the coming year. So essentially your escrow will increase and unless you pay the overage in one lump sum, you will have an increase due to that being spread out over the coming year s payments. Should I provide documentation to support my appeal when I first submit the appeal? Will pictures help? Lists of work that needs to be done? You are welcome to include documentation to make your case for appeal in the first submission. You can send in PDF form: comparable properties, pictures, list of work needs to be done to the property, info showing that other houses near you are valued less etc. I have found though, that additional documentation is most effective at the Board of Equalization hearing. That doesn t mean it won t be productive in the first appeal submission. I have found a greater response to additional documentation at the Board of Equalization who are residents of the neighborhood. The county appraiser is the only one working on the first appeal submission and they traditionally are trying to make the case of the county first and foremost. Instead of actually considering your home, they are trying to find comps to prove the county s case. How can I prepare for the Board of Equalization Hearing? Once you have responded to the 30-day letter with a request for a BOE hearing, email or call the appraisal department and ask them for the comparable properties used to determine the response to your appeal. Do not let them send you to the section to find general comparables. You want to get their comparables they used to support their value. Once they send you these, you want to research them and find any and all reasons to refute the county s comparables, if possible. Then you want to present your own comparables, preferably different from the ones the county is using to support your case. This is likely best done with the help of your preferred real estate agent, or you can contact me at appeal@buyselldifferently.com for help. This is the best time to bring any and all photos of your house if they will help (mostly unrenovated pictures are best) and any lists of repairs that need to be made. If you can show that your house is unrenovated and the houses the appraiser used are renovated that is a very good case.
What can I expect at the Board of Equalization Hearing? The Board of Equalization hearing is a group of 3 residents local to the area of the appeal, one county appraiser and yourself. You should bring 5 copies of any and all documentation you are bringing to the hearing, 1 copy for each Board member, a copy for the appraiser and a copy for yourself. It will be a short 15 min or less hearing. You may choose to go first or let the appraiser go first. The Board can ask questions of both you and the appraiser. They will make a decision on the spot. If they do decide to give you a reduced value, they will recalculate a new price/sqft on the spot. This is why it is helpful to have offered the board a price/sqft analysis for them to work from. Make sure that any form you sign accepting the final value includes a 3 year freeze. *Please note that I am not a tax professional or employed by the county so if any of these answers are incorrect, I am stating now that these answers are from my experience working with over 280 homeowners over the last 3 years and my personal experience appealing. I do not deem these answers to be guaranteed* Maggie Paynich appeal@buyselldifferently.com