The Gwinnett County tax appeal process will require time, energy and effort as well as expertise in property taxes. Taxpayers who have undergone the process strongly recommend to their fellow taxpayers who plan to file their own assessment appeals to hire an experienced tax advisor. But it also pays to know the following two facts about the tax appeals process.
#1 Manner and Grounds of Appealing Your Valuation
All appeals must be in writing preferably with a United States Postal Service (USPS) postmark within 45 days of the annual notice of assessment date. Property owners need not follow a standard format when filing their Gwinnett County tax appeal letter because any letter of disagreement will suffice. All letters of appeal, however, should contain information about the property particularly the parcel number and/or complete address as well as the grounds for appeal.
There are three valid grounds for appeal. First, the value of the property (Can the property be sold for the appraised value?); second, the taxability of the property (Is the real property taxable in the first place?); third, the uniformity between the property in question and other similar property.
This is the reason why a tax advisor should be consulted first before filing a Gwinnett County tax appeal. You can discuss the chances of winning your appeal before taking the time to file it.
It must be emphasized that appeals made via fax and emails will not be accepted. Even metered mail will not be acceptable proof of beating the deadline since only a cancellation stamp made by the USPS will be considered.
#2 Appeal in Motion
When the Board of Assessors receives your letter of appeal, the Gwinnett County tax appeal process will be set into motion. It should be noted, however, that you can also choose arbitration, in which case your appeal will be on hold for appropriate legal action.
A staff appraiser is usually assigned to your case with the task of reviewing the assessment value and conducting a visual inspection of your property. If the appraiser agrees to change the property’s valuation, you will receive a 30-day notice with a new value that you can either accept or reject.
Be sure to inform in writing the Board of Assessors about your decision (i.e., rejection) as the body will consider your inaction on the matter as your acceptance. You are provided with a 30-day window to appeal the new valuation to the Board of Equalization (BOE). Your Gwinnett County tax appeal experience will be different with this body.
If the staff appraiser does not agree to your change of appraisal, you will also be notified of the decision. Your appeal will then be certified to the BOE for proper action. You should receive notification of the date, time and location of the hearing conducted by the BOE, which is usually 3-4 weeks in advance of the hearing.
Your Gwinnett County tax appeal may or may not prosper depending on your readiness to present your case. You should then hire an experienced tax advisor on matters related to the appeals process to increase your chances for a winning appeal.
