Are Your Property Taxes Too High?

Are Your Property Taxes Too High?

Hi this is John Williams with RE/MAX and welcome to my video blog! This time of year I always get asked, “John, how do I challenge or appeal my property tax assessment?” Well, it depends on the state and county. Before deciding to go through the process of appealing your tax assessment, start with comparing your tax assessment to what you think your home is worth. If you believe the assessment is correct, then there is no need to appeal your assessment. If your assessment is lower then what think your home is worth, consider yourself lucky because you are making smaller payments.

However, if your assessment is higher than what you think your home is worth, you must follow the process laid out by each jurisdiction.

For Maryland, appeals may be filed on three occasions:
1.    Upon receipt from an assessment notice
2.    60 days from when you purchased the property if you purchased between January 1st and June 30th
3.    All other occasions, file by January 1st

District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.):
1.    You must file your appeal within 30 days of the of your assessment notice or by April 1st
2.    New home owners have the right to file within 45 days of the property’s transfer or by April 1, whichever is later

Commonwealth of Virginia:
1.    You first must request the local county board do an analysis
2.    After this is completed, you must file with the local county board by the deadline date specified for each county.
3.    If you are not happy with your results of the county board, you can appeal to the Board of Equalization of Real Estate Assessments (B.O.E.)

For each county, here is a brief description of the process:

Fairfax County
1.    You must file with the county by April 5th
2.    You must file your appeals with the B.O.E. by June 3rd

Arlington County:
1.    You must file with the county by March 1.

Falls Church:
1.    You must file with the county by March 15th
2.    You must File with BOE by July 5th

Alexandria:
1.    You must request review by March 15th
2.    You must file Appeal with the county by June 1st

Virginia:
1.    If you are not satisfied with the findings of the county board or the county appeal review is not completed on time, make sure you file with the B.O.E. by the specified deadline to preserve your right for an appeal in case you do not like the results of the county board.

I realize this seems complicated, so I have included links to each jurisdiction below. If you need anything, you can contact me at (301) 588-9777 or via email. Thanks for watching the video and please share it to help homeowners if they wish to challenge their assessment. Thanks and have a great day!