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.
Get to Know Your Property
Knowing your property is one of the must-know things that can become part of the solution to end your losing streak in fighting your property assessments. Bear in mind that to reduce property tax on your asset demands your intimate knowledge of it for many reasons.
First, the county government can make mistakes in the property’s specifications, such as the lot size, type of house, square footage of the house, and number of bedrooms and bathrooms. The more that you can prove the inaccuracies reflected on your property card, the more likely you can have your property’s assessed value adjusted to your benefit.
This is an important information to know since county assessors typically will not inspect the interiors of your home. The law only requires property inspections of the exteriors of the house and the surrounding yard. The result: Inaccuracies that increase the property’s assessed value, oftentimes in a significant manner. For example, you may have a one-story home that, from the outside, appears to be a two-story home because of the vaulted ceilings. You will then be billed, so to speak, for double the living area. You should then present your home’s actual layout to reduce property tax.
Second, the county’s assessors will have no knowledge about your home’s functional obsolescence, which can be attributed to the exteriors-only property inspection. You have the responsibility of pointing out functional obsolescence whereby your home has impractical and/or undesirable features. These can include a one-car garage in four-bedroom house, a walk-through closet serving as the entryway to the bedroom, and malfunctioning plumbing and electrical systems.
Functional obsolescence in your home can affect its resale value and its assessed value. The more features in your home that you can present as falling under this category, the more likely you can enjoy reduced taxes.
Know Whom to Approach
Keep in mind that getting reduced property assessments and, thus, property taxes starts with knowing where to go – the office of the tax assessor in your county. You should approach your county’s tax assessor as soon as possible, preferably before the deadline for filing appeals is up.
Nobody said that your goal to reduce property tax will be easy. You have to be a responsible property owner and gain as much knowledge to win your Gwinnett property tax appeal. The entire process can be stressful for you. For best results, you can work with a trustworthy tax service on this matter.
At Fair Assessments, LLC we handle everything in the appeals process for you - from start to finish.
