Property Tax Appeal Blog | Property tax appeals

Atlanta, GA Area Property Tax Protest Companies

No one wants to pay more than necessary when it comes to items in their budgets, including taxes. When it comes to personal or commercial property taxes however, assessments can frequently be subjective. This can lead to assessments that are too high for a variety of reasons. Assessments are not an exact science, and that is why there is a process for protesting property tax assessments. While this is a process an individual can embark upon by themselves, most are too busy. This is where a tax protest company can provide value.

Are you still struggling in your efforts to win your Gwinnett property tax appeal? Then you need to be knowledgeable enough about the ways to do so. This doesn’t mean that you should learn the ins and outs of the complicated appeal process – you can let your tax advisor handle the nitty-gritty details on your behalf. Still, a little knowledge can go a long way in your efforts to finally enjoy reduced property taxes, year in and year out.

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If you have been hit with a big bill from your GA tax assessors’ office, you may be wondering just how they got those numbers in the first place. The fact is that tax assessors use the market value of a home – meaning what a home would sell for on the market – to determine what kind of tax you’ll need to pay. If you live in a great area and your home is modern and of good quality, you’ll have an easier time selling it. That means it’s worth more on the market, which in turn means the GA tax assessors can charge you more in property taxes.

You may think that your accountant has all of your tax preparation needs covered for you. However, if you own your home, a boat, an airplane, or any other piece of large property that can be taxed, you may need to talk with someone who specializes in property taxes. Property tax consultants can help taxpayers in a number of ways.

The Fulton County tax assessors have begun work on the 2013 property tax appeals. Some Fulton County property owners have received no change letters from the tax assessors regarding their 2013 appeals while some have been offered reductions in what is called a 30 day letter. After you receive a reduction offer from the tax assessors you have 30 days to either accept the reduced value or appeal to the second level of appeal, which is the Fulton County Board of Equalization.

Recently, some of the 2013 property tax appeals have been scheduled to be heard by the Fulton County Board of Equalization. As recently as last month, the Board of Equalization was continuing to work on 2012 property tax appeal hearings and even a few 2011 property tax appeal hearings were being heard. They are not done with 2012 hearings, however. It appears that the Fulton County Tax Assessors staff is frequently using the board of equalization hearing as a tool to gain access to properties.

Georgia Property Tax Appeals: New Georgia Property Tax Law

As of July 1, 2013, any appeal related adjustments to value are subject to these new provisions. The taxpayer may be charged interest on tax amounts due when the taxpayer owes the county money after the property tax appeal is resolved. Likewise, the tax commissioner may owe interest on refunds owed the taxpayer after the property tax appeal is resolved.

As stated in Georgia law, before tax bills are released, all counties should have already issued an Annual Assessment Notice to all taxable real estate owners. This Tax Assessment Notice should be distributed April - June of each year.

You asked for the best and you got it! Property tax appeal options. In our continuing efforts to be the property tax appeal resource center we have established several options for single family residential property tax appeals. We know that some of you don't have the time or resources to develop a property tax appeal case and aren't all motivated by the same cost/benefit profile. As a result of numerous inquires on what we charge, and the desire for other payment options, we now have four different single family residential tax appeal services options.

For those that are averse to contingent fees because you dont know, ultimately, how much you will pay, we now have a Gold Level flat fee option. For a one-time $350 fee Fair Assessments will perform the work it is known for. Regardless of tax savings generated there are no additional fees (unless you want to file your appeal to court).

The Hall County tax assessor sent out year 2013 property tax assessment notices on April 14. The appeal filing deadline for all counties in Georgia is now 45 days, so you have until May 27 to file a Hall County property tax appeal. A client of ours was thoroughly shocked when he got his 58% increase in Hall County, GA property tax assessment for tax year 2013. This was a community retail center, so it will be interesting to see if the Hall County tax assessor hit just certain property types, or whether many properties throughout Hall County, GA, were increased in value.

It is possible that the Hall County tax assessor is sticking it to commercial property owners and giving residential property owners a break. It has yet to be seen. During the recovery from the great recession the commercial real estate sector has been doing quite well, due to the low level of interest rates in the economy and institutional money seeking out higher rates of return with relative safety. Commercial real estate, especially the apartment sector has been especially desirable for institutional money and all commercial real estate capitalization rates have fallen since the height of the recession.