As a follow up to last week’s post, I have more information to help you file your appeal since there are no definitions on the county’s website to help you complete the application. You can also view my Facebook video for the same explanations.

See an example of the form below. I’ve decoded the language and here is the translation:

  • Property/Appeal Type: Real (real estate property)
  • Specify Ground for Appeal: everyone will appeal based on either Value or Uniformity. Appealing on the basis of Value means you disagree with the assessor’s value. Appealing on the basis of Uniformity means there are properties on your block or in your neighborhood that are very similar to yours, but have a lower assessment value. More on that below the form.
  • “You must select one of the following options:” choose BOE: Appeal to the County Board of Equalization with (the right to) appeal to Superior Court. The BOE is a board of volunteers that rule on your appeal after a hearing.
  • Billing Preference: you have the option to choose 85% or 100%. The reason is you will be expected to pay your property tax bill while you appeal. If the BOE finds in your favor, you will be refunded the difference in what you paid and the lower tax amount. If you choose 85%, that means you will pay 85% of the tax bill and hope the BOE finds in your favor. If they do, then the county has less money to refund at the end of the process.  If they don’t, then you will need to pay the other 15%.

I suggest you download and complete the form, then file online working off the completed form. You will have an opportunity to upload documentation of support before you submit your appeal, which isn’t made clear on the manual form.

How to determine Value

It’s important to note that the county says it hasn’t reassessed properties since 2015.

If you owned your property before 2015, and it is similar to many properties in the neighborhood, the easiest way to establish a rational opinion of value is to figure out the actual rate of appreciation of the neighborhood between December 2015 and December 2017. Apply that rate of appreciation to the 2015 appraised value, and that is your opinion of value. Your comment on the application is simply, “The actual rate of appreciation for X neighborhood is X% between December 2015 and December 2017.”

If you bought your property in 2016 or later, then determine the actual rate of appreciation from that year to December 2017. I’m finding that some people purchased their homes late last year or this year, and still received an incredible increase from the assessor. If you recently bought your property, then use the sale price as your opinion of value, provided that it is LESS than the assessor’s value.

If the calculation isn’t as simple as the actual rate of appreciation, you can search for sold properties on Realtor.com. Click on “Just Sold” and enter “Your Neighborhood Name, Atlanta GA” in the search bar. Once you have search results, you can filter by bedrooms, baths, property type and others to find properties similar to yours. You want to use properties that sold around December 2017 to determine your value. Download and save the listing information for the properties you choose to use. You can upload this information to support your value.

How to determine Uniformity

If you live in a community with a lot of similar properties, spend some time searching through your neighbors assessed values here. If you find that many of your neighbors are assessed lower than you, and your properties are very similar, then download those records and use them to support your opinion of value. For example, you live in Property 1 on the street, and Properties 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 all have a lower value, then your opinion of value is the same as Properties 2-6.

Exercise caution when appealing on Uniformity. If Properties 2-6 have a crazy low value, you might tip off the assessor’s office to increase those values.

Using “negative” qualities to support a lower value

Many of the neighborhoods around me started as post-war 2-bedroom, 1-bath homes, and have been renovated over time; or torn down and replaced over the last 10-20 years.

If your home is a split-level in a neighborhood of newer two-story homes, use this fact to support a lesser value. Include pictures of your neighbors’ homes to support the claim.

If you have a Georgia Power line and easement in your backyard, use this fact to support a lesser value.

If the tax records say you have 5 bedrooms, but two of those bedrooms are in the basement, well guess what, you actually have a 3-bedroom home with a full finished basement. Not the same as a 5-bedroom home that was built 10 years ago.

Other examples:

  • Your yard is hilly, but many other properties are not
  • You live on a busy street, but many other properties are on residential streets
  • You haven’t updated your house like your neighbors

I hope this helps! If you have questions, please feel free to email me at mhatch@beacham.com or call (404) 219-5968.

Good Luck!

Michelle