After working with a lot of different people in the property tax consulting business I’ve come to the conclusion that the best people to do this type of work are those that are former tax assessor employees. Having a solid understanding of the mass appraisal process that the tax assessors use is a great advantage when you are working with tax assessment personnel and trying to negotiate a lower value. Being able to relate to the County assessment staff, understanding what their job is, understanding the parameters that they need to work within, and what you can and cannot do if you want to keep their trust is vital.
I can’t say that I’ve worked for every board of tax assessors in the world but I have worked for two different counties both Fulton County, Georgia, and Prince William County, Virginia, so you could say I know the property tax assessments, and appeals process inside and out. Having been the commercial appraiser manager for Fulton County, Georgia Board of Tax Assessors provides insight into the regular day-to-day operations there. When I walk into county tax assessment departments and can talk to the county appraiser and let them know that I used to do exactly what they do, that develops instant rapport.
I’m not saying that an individual homeowner or commercial property owner cannot get results from a property tax appeal. I’m just saying that some property tax consultants are better than others because of their background. Here in Atlanta there’s a lot of nepotism in the local property tax consulting firms. Junior is a property tax consultant because daddy is a property tax consultant. Daddy is a property tax consultant because he used to be an architect or a broker and had some opportunity to get into the property tax business. There are some good consultants out there, but you have to pick and choose.
There aren’t a lot of property tax consultants out there that are former tax assessors. There are a few, but in my mind there should be more. Having mass appraisal experience by working for a property tax assessor is invaluable experience when you are doing property tax consulting work. Some local firms have hired former assessor employees here and there and a few of us have started our own property tax consulting firms. I used to work for a private, national property tax consulting firm that hired former tax assessors as property tax consultants. They were later bought by a public company that did not appear to have any intention of hiring anyone with mass appraisal experience.
Property tax consulting became a big business during the great recession, but many of the people that are in it now will probably be out of it after their desired form of work becomes available again. Here at Fair Assessments LLC. We have been in real estate valuation services for over 20 years, including fee appraisal, mass appraisal, and property tax consulting. When tax assessors become property tax consultants, it’s only natural.
