The administration of property taxes involves three main offices, namely, the tax assessors, the chief appraiser, and the tax commissioner. In many counties, the roles of the tax assessors and chief appraiser are combined in a single office. This is true for the Gwinnett County tax assessment process whereby the tax assessors have a chief appraiser and a staff of property appraisers.
Three Offices
Let’s take a look at the offices responsible for the tax assessment process.
#1 Tax Assessors
The Gwinnett County Tax Assessors has the responsibility for appraising the fair market values of real estate and for assessing the property taxes on real property located within its jurisdiction. Taxpayers can contact its office for the following matters affecting their property’s valuations:
- Reporting improvements and upgrades on the property
- Matters concerning the property tax assessment notice
- Appealing your taxable value
- Getting more detailed information about your Gwinnett County tax assessment
- Checking the property tax appeal deadline
It should be noted that the tax assessors are not full time employees of Gwinnett County. They meet periodically at the government center but typical inquiries are handled by the staff under the chief appraiser. If you have questions about these matters, you can direct your questions at the Gwinnett County Assessor’s Office in Lawrenceville, Georgia or at its official website.
#2 Chief Appraiser
The chief appraiser works for the tax assessors and has the responsibility of determining the taxable value of the real and personal property in the county. The taxable values are approved by the tax assessors before being used by the tax commissioner in determining the property tax. In Gwinnett County the functions of the tax assessors and chief appraiser are combined in a single office – the Gwinnett County Tax Assessor’s office.
#3 Tax Commissioner
The Gwinnett County Tax Commissioner issues the yearly tax bills and collects the property taxes from the property owners. The office also works with the sheriff’s office during the tax sale process on real property with delinquent taxes.
The Office Where It All Starts
The importance of getting an accurate Gwinnett County tax assessment cannot be overemphasized. When the assessment has errors, such as improper allocations between personal and real property, intangible and tangible assets, and individual components shared between several properties in a multi-property portfolio, the assessed values and taxes will likely be inflated.
The bottom line: If you want to pay the correct property taxes, you should start with the correct property valuation.
For assistance about your Gwinnett County tax assessment notice, contact the Gwinnett County Tax Assessor at 770-822-7212. Be sure to have your property’s tax identification number or parcel number handy as it will be required for verification purposes.
You can also send documents via fax to the Gwinnett County Tax Assessor at 770-822-7204. Be sure to call the office in advance when sending documents and schedule a meeting.
Gwinnett County tax assessment notices are usually issued the first week in April. This means taxpayers have until mid-May to file their appeals. Check the assessment notice date on your notice to determine the correct 45-day window for filing your appeal.
You can also check the status of your Gwinnett County tax assessment appeal online. Wait for 36 hours after filing your appeal to check its status.
