If you are a property or home owner anywhere in the United States you are probably familiar with paying property taxes. Property taxes are a percentage of the worth of your home and/or property that is tacked on to your tax bill each and every year for as long as you own it. The problem with this is that property values fluctuate regularly, but property value assessors don’t come around to record that fluctuation on a regular basis. This means that you may be paying property taxes that are too high.What Can You Do About It?
In Nassau and Suffolk Counties there is relief from this assessment delay. If you belief that you are paying property taxes that are too high you can file for a tax grievance in order to get the amount you owe reduced. Not only is there an assessment delay, but there have also been cases where the assessors have not assessed correctly just to get the job done quickly or even worse, for the sole purpose of making you pay higher taxes. If your property has already been assessed but you believe that it was done incorrectly resulting in higher taxes, you can file an appeal to have a hearing officer review the assessment or have it redone entirely. Sometimes this is a lengthy process and you can file a tax grievance in the interim. In Nassau County you can file a tax grievance every year as long as you file by March 1. In Suffolk County you can file one every other year and the deadline is May 17. To make the process go as smoothly as possible you may need to get a lawyer to help with proper filing, document drafting and property value assessment.How Do I Know if I am Paying too Much?
Your property values are affected by a few factors. It fluctuates with the real estate market. Your property is worth the amount of money that you would be able to sell it for in the current market. When the real estate market is low, or houses in your area are selling for cheap, there is a good chance that your property value has gone down. This situation is not very beneficial if you are currently selling your home or property, but if you are paying property taxes this could be in your favor. If there is construction in your area or if a road has been widened so much it has infringed upon your property this would also cause your property value to be reduced. Look around your neighborhood. If there are houses that have been abandoned or there are a high number of houses in disarray your property value has more than likely decreased. If you notice any of these changes, but your property taxes have not decreased you need to have the property value re-evaluated and you can file for a tax grievance.