Questions & Answers

Question:  I want to appeal my property taxes.  Who can address my appeal?

Answer:  You cannot appeal the amount of your property tax.  You may appeal the value of your property to the Board of Review in March and depending on the decision of the Board it may affect your property taxes.  Filing an appeal is about value, not taxes!
 

Question:  Why do my taxes go up when my Assessed Value has gone down?

Answer:  As long as the Assessed Value on your property is higher than the Taxable Value, the Taxable Value will continue to increase by the rate of inflation or 5%, whichever is less.  This is true throughout the State.

Question:  I appealed my value to the Board of Review and it was denied.  I just bought the property and I feel they should have adjusted the value to the sale price.  Why didn’t they?

Answer:  The Board of Review is looking for you to provide evidence such as an appraisal or sales of other properties similar to yours that supports your estimate of Market Value.  If you do not provide evidence they have no basis for changing the value.  Just because you buy a property for $30,000 doesn’t mean that is the Market Value.  You may have got a great buy or you may have paid to much based on comparable sales.

Question:  I sold a property to my son on an unrecorded land contract e years ago.  He recently obtained a mortgage and paid me off, and his taxes have gone way up and he has received a tax bill for other back taxes.  Why?

Answer:  The year following the transfer of ownership the Taxable Value is supposed to increase to an amount equal to the Assessed Value.  If transfer is missed by the Assessor or the owner does not notify the Assessor they the changes will become retroactive once it is discovered.  This could amount to thousands of dollars.

Question:  The Assessor stopped and want to inspect the inside of my home.  Should I let him/her in?

Answer:  The Assessor is required by State law to inspect and value each property in that taxing jurisdiction.  You are under no obligation to let the Assessor into your home.  However, in order to fairly value your home, it is important that the Assessor physically view the property so an informed decision can be made.

Question:  My taxes are so high.  How can the City charge so much?

Answer:  Your tax bill is made up of many different taxing jurisdictions.  The City portion of your tax bill is only about 20% of the total.  The rest goes to the schools, the county, and intermediate school district.