Are You Paying the Right Amount of DeKalb County Property Tax?

Have you taken a close look at your DeKalb County property tax this year? If you aren’t looking closely at the information that’s sent do you, there is a chance that you could be paying far more in property taxes than you should be. Property taxes are something that you can never truly get rid of, even after you have paid off a property. There will always be taxes for owning that property. However, the amount that you are required to pay can change from one year to the next. Therefore, it is important that you take the time to learn more about these taxes and what you should do if you believe there might be a mistake of some type.

These Things Happen

Even though you might like to imagine that the DeKalb County property tax assessors will always get the information right regarding your taxes, that’s not the case. Things can go wrong and mistakes can be made. Always make sure that you stay calm just in case you do notice errors. It wasn’t something that was done on purpose, and you can simply appeal the findings, as long as you do so within 45 days of when your information was mailed to you.

The assessor will utilize mass appraisals to provide figures for the property taxes. This is because there are simply so many houses in the area that the DeKalb County property tax assessors would not be able to do a physical inspection of each of the homes. Instead, they look at a range of factors in the home to help them paint a picture of the home’s value and taxable amount.

They will consider the square footage of the buildings, along with the amount of land on the lot. They will consider the number of outbuildings you have, along with their square footage, as well. The assessors will consider the condition of the property, and if it is a residential property, they will look at whether you have a pools, the number of bathrooms, if you have a finished basement, etc.

You will want to look at the information that was mailed to you, along with the property tax worksheet, which you can get through the tax assessor. This will let you know what information the county has been using to get the estimate for your property taxes.

Since you know your property, you will want to look over that information to see if you notice any errors. Are there improvements that are listed for the property that were not made? Is the number of bedrooms and bathrooms correct? Does it say you have a pool when you don’t actually have a pool? Is the acreage correct? A misplaced decimal point can make a big difference in just how much you will have to pay for your property taxes.

Mistakes can and do happen, so you will always want to remain vigilant. In some cases, the mistake might be relatively small, and it will not take any time at all to fix. It might even be fixed right in the office when you are there. However, that’s not always the case. Most of the time, you will need to go through a proper appeals process instead. This can take a substantial amount of time and work on your part.

What Is Needed for an Appeal?

The answer to this question is that it will depend on a range of factors. The documents that you need will be the ones that are related to the problems that you found in the assessment. For example, if the acreage is incorrect in the information the county has, you will want to have a certified land survey that can prove otherwise. You might also need to have a third-party appraisal, contractor’s reports, photos of the property, or architectural drawings. You may even need to find some comparable properties to prove that your home was valued incorrectly compared to other, similar homes in the area at the same time.

Appeals Are Worth the Time They Take

The more information you have available the better off you will be. It can help to ensure that the tax assessors will have the data they need when it comes to making a proper decision when your property taxes are being appealed. There is a lot of information to consider, and there is always the chance that something could have gone wrong with the process.

You should always take the time to look at the information that is provided to you and always question it, if anything seems incorrect. Take a moment to imagine just how much extra money you could be wasting if your property taxes were assessed too highly this year… and for all of the following years after that. Even if it was only by a small percentage, that money will add up over time. Remember, you will only have 45 days from the date that your assessment was mailed to you. As soon as you get it, make sure you go over it and ensure everything is correct. If not, get started on that appeal.

Work with Professionals

Of course, you might find that you simply don’t have the time available to undertake getting everything ready for the appeals process on your own. Instead, you might find that the DeKalb County property tax appeal is much easier on you when you work with professionals in this field.

Consider the benefits of working with the team from Fair Assessments, LLC, a company that has a wealth of experience in this area, and who has even worked as a tax assessor in the past. They can help to make sure that you go through the appeals process the right way and that you are represented as best as possible during the appeals. They can help you to take care of all of the evidence gathering and will work hard to make sure you are only paying the taxes that you should be paying.