When you get a bill from the Cobb County tax assessor office, that means that it’s time to start forking over large sums of money to continue doing business in the county. It’s not a fun time for anyone, but it can be even more hectic for a business that is behind on filing their returns. In fact, though, filing returns is just one step in a detailed process that governs the entire personal property tax cycle. Here’s what business owners in Cobb County need to know about this process, and why following it can help you save money.
1. Prepare and File Your Returns
The first step is that time-consuming step of determining your overall value, the value of all your assets, and any pertinent information regarding exemptions you qualify for, and submitting all of that to the Cobb County tax assessor. You’ll need to make sure that you do this by the deadline to avoid any penalties, or that you file for an extension if you need more time.
2. Keeping Records of Asset Depreciation
The next thing you need to do in this cycle is something you should be doing all year long. You need to be keeping track of how all your assets are depreciating, meaning losing value, or gaining value. This is very important because it gives you a number to compare to the tax bill that the assessor sends back. If they value your business property at much higher than it should be, it could be that they didn’t calculate depreciation the same way you did. Tax assessors have several ways to calculate the loss of value, and that could make a big difference on your bill.
3. Appeal the Bill if You Believe It Should Be Lower
This is the step that so many property owners skip. However, you do have the right to appeal a bill from the Cobb County tax assessor. This process is time consuming and takes a lot of expert tax knowledge to prepare your case. When you go to the appeal hearing, you will be asked many questions about the value of your property, the way you calculate deprecation, the exemptions you are qualified for, and more. You need to have an airtight case to prove that the tax assessor was incorrect in their assessments, or it’s possible that your case will be denied. You can go on to appeal a second time, but that is it.
4. Pay the Tax Bill
The final step in this cycle is to pay the bill. You will either pay the adjusted bill if your appeal was granted, or the bill that was presented to you originally. At this point, the most important thing to know is that your payments are being made on time. For most business property taxes, you’ll be paying in installments, and there will be a strict schedule to follow.
Taking a Closer Look at Step Three
Step three in this process is the one that so many business property owners don’t understand. Appealing a tax bill can be confusing, and it involves several steps on its own.
First you must let the assessor’s office know that you intend to appeal by sending an official letter and required form. Then you will be assigned a hearing date. The letter must be sent to the assessor within 45 days of receiving the bill, and the hearing could be scheduled anywhere from a month later to a year later. This means that you may not have much time to put together your case.
However, the appeals process is worth it for most business owners. Not only can you possibly prove that your property should be taxed at a lower rate, you may find exemptions you didn’t know you qualified for, and you will be able to ensure that your tax bill doesn’t change for the following two years. So long as you maintain your payments and don’t miss an appeals hearing, your tax bill is protected for two years after going through the appeal.
As a business owner, your property tax bill could be in the hundreds of thousands, or even in the millions, depending on how large your company is. Therefore, going through this process could save you as much as millions of dollars for several years. That is well worth the time.
Let Experts Help You
If you haven’t been through the appeals process before, and you want to be sure that you have the best chance for success possible, the first thing you should do is contact a tax professional.
At Fair Assessments, we can ensure that your property tax bill is true to what you should be paying. When you are ready to begin step three of the property tax cycle, we can step in. While you continue to go about running your business, we will file the appeal letter, do all the research necessary to prove that your property should be valued differently, and prepare your argument for the hearing. For a flat fee that is under $1,000, you can save hundreds of thousands or more on your tax bill.
We have two decades of experience in appraisal, property tax consulting, and more, to draw upon to help you win your appeals case. Our specialized knowledge in this area is what allows us to have such a high success rate. Over 80% of our clients’ appeals cases are awarded. We offer commercial property tax assistance throughout the entire Southeastern US, and residential tax assistance in the Atlanta, GA, area.
When it is time to take your case to the Cobb County tax assessor, it’s a good idea to contact the experts to ensure that you have the best chance at getting your appeal awarded. Then you can move on to the final step of paying property taxes, and get this entire cycle done with for the year.
Contact us to learn more about our services by emailing info@Fair-Assessments.com.
