Obviously you should challenge the Fulton County tax assessors based on the accepted grounds for appealing their assessed values on your property. Keep in mind that your best chances for a winning property tax assessment appeal are in dealing with the assessors in a professional manner, presenting solid evidence, and getting an experienced tax consultant to handle your appeal.
But more than challenging the tax assessors of Fulton County, you should start exerting more control over your exposure to real and personal property tax. You may not have control over most of the factors affecting assessed values, such as tight supply, high real estate sale prices, and regional employment issues, but you can exercise control in other aspects.
Always be Vigilant about Assessed Values
The Fulton County tax assessors will issue an annual notice of assessment which contains relevant information about your property’s market and assessed values. The annual notice will also provide the deadline to appeal, a reason for any change in value, and an estimate of your property tax based on the assessed value. You should always compare the assessed value of the current year against the prior year value to note any change. Your vigilance will pay off when your property’s assessed value significantly increases and you get an appeal filed to attempt a taxable value reduction.
The bottom line: Just because you were happy with the 2014 and 2015 assessed values does not mean that you should be satisfied with the 2016 values. You can always challenge the new assessment because it is your right as a property owner and taxpayer.
You should be more vigilant in the case of income-generating property, such as apartments, since many things can go wrong during the assessment. These include incorrect classification, inaccurate computation of income streams, and unfair determination of the vacancy rate, among others. You must show the Fulton County tax assessors solid proof about the factors that have affected your property’s income stream and, thus, its taxable value.
For example, your property’s assessment for the current year may have increased when it shouldn’t have for various reasons. These may include increase in vacancy, increase in the number of tenants renegotiating rental fees, increase in bankruptcies in your tenant group, and decrease in income, among others. You may ask for a re-assessment by filing an appeal specifically for the income approach to be used as the assessment methodology.
Analyze the Marketplace Well
In line with challenging the tax assessors’ assessed value on your property, you should analyze the ups and downs in your market, too. You have to remember that it is not just the visual inspection of the subject property that will affect its assessed value but also external factors.
Look at what’s happening to similar real estate in your market area, perhaps even the whole county. You may observe inaccuracies that can adversely impact your property tax bill. For example, if comparable for-lease units in the area are assessed at $35,000 – down from $45,000 from last year – and your unit is assessed at $42,000 for the taxable year, you should challenge it.
Also use comparable sales of similar property in your area. Your county assessors may have overlooked certain comparable sales that have adversely affected your own property’s value. Even just calling their attention to it may result in corrections to property records without need for the administrative appeal, but it is best to file an appeal to protect your rights.
The bottom line: Challenge the Fulton County tax assessors instead of being intimidated by the process.
