Although the latest changes to Georgia's property tax laws require that a notice is sent for every property, every year, it is still advisable to file a real property tax return. There is no doubt in my mind that some counties will be looking for loopholes to avoid sending out a much larger number of notices than they have in the past. As a result, for 2011, I suggest filing a return at a lower value than what they appraised it for in 2010. Then they will have to either accept your returned value, or send you a 2011 assessment notice that you can appeal. Please note that some counties require returns be filed by March 1. Contact us for additional information.

Latest CRE Price Analysis Reverses Positive Direction in October

Discounted Foreclosures Account for 25% of Home Sales in Third Quarter

by Jann Swanson on December 2, 2010

Commercial Mortgage Default's Rise in Third Quarter

U.S. Home Prices Fell 3.2% in Third Quarter, FHFA Says

U.S. home prices fell 3.2 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier as demand weakened without federal tax credits, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said.

The Atlanta area led declines among the 25 largest metropolitan regions, with a 10 percent slump, the FHFA said in a statement. Prices rose 4.6 percent in the San Diego area for the biggest gain, according to the agency, which measures sales of homes with mortgages backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

Home sales fell to record-low levels after the April 30 expiration of a tax credit of as much as $8,000 for buyers. An overhang of distressed properties and an unemployment rate hovering near 10 percent will likely cause more price declines, according to Celia Chen, an analyst with Moody’s Analytics Inc. in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

"Our overall expectations for home prices is that they’ll drop by another 8 percent by the third quarter of next year," she said in a telephone interview before the FHFA report.

Measured from June 30, prices fell 1.6 percent, the Washington-based FHFA said. Economists had projected prices would decrease 1.1 percent, according to the average of 15 estimates in a Bloomberg survey.