In addition to your basic property taxes, if your property tax bill seems unusually high especially during this housing crisis you may have a Special and/or Direct Assessment on your house. This will vary based on the area your residence is located, there may be charges necessary to pay off any voter-approved general obligation bonds or other indebtedness, special assessments, or direct levies. Such as, a Direct Assessment may be applied to your residence if voters decide to establish a sewage system in a neighborhood that is older where most of the homes use septic tanks. The direct assessment is used to cover the cost of this improvement to the community.
Most of the time, a direct assessment would be added on to your property tax bill over several years so the taxpayers are not inundated by the special assessment to pay for the improvement. Special and Direct Assessments have a reason they are added on to your basic assessment such as an improvement to a community and when that new improvement has been paid for the special or direct assessment is complete and will no longer be on your property tax bill. Normally, this type of debt is usually fraction of a percent increase in your existing property tax rate.
Direct assessments are placed on your property tax bill by the county tax collector for the local levying agency or district, not on behalf of the assessor, auditor-controller, and/or the county tax collector departments. Keep in mind, that Special and Direct Assessments are voter approved taxes so if there is any issue with it, it did not come from the Office of the Assessor. To find out more or to dispute a special assessment on your property, contact the levying district. Usually this information is on your property tax bill.
However, you cannot refuse to pay the property tax bill that contains the direct levy amount, even if the direct levy amount is under review. Always keep in mind that no matter how much you disagree with what is on your property tax bill it is always better to pay the bill and get refunded later than to have a lien against on your house. The processes to delete a delinquent property tax bill and all of the fines associated with that need several signatures and explanations within the Assessor's Office and Tax Collector's Office and can be complicated. So keep it simple, always pay your bill, any exception to this would be an extreme case.
About the Author: Valerie Faltas, Property Tax Expert has been involved in all facets of real estate for over ten years including assessments, appraisals, estates and trusts, investing and much more. She is a Certified Property Tax Appraiser, Licensed Residential Appraiser and a member of the International Association of Assessment Officers. As a real estate investor and advisor she is well versed in all aspects of real estate. To contact Valerie Faltas go to her website: www.propertytaxlittleblackbook.com. - 16477
Most of the time, a direct assessment would be added on to your property tax bill over several years so the taxpayers are not inundated by the special assessment to pay for the improvement. Special and Direct Assessments have a reason they are added on to your basic assessment such as an improvement to a community and when that new improvement has been paid for the special or direct assessment is complete and will no longer be on your property tax bill. Normally, this type of debt is usually fraction of a percent increase in your existing property tax rate.
Direct assessments are placed on your property tax bill by the county tax collector for the local levying agency or district, not on behalf of the assessor, auditor-controller, and/or the county tax collector departments. Keep in mind, that Special and Direct Assessments are voter approved taxes so if there is any issue with it, it did not come from the Office of the Assessor. To find out more or to dispute a special assessment on your property, contact the levying district. Usually this information is on your property tax bill.
However, you cannot refuse to pay the property tax bill that contains the direct levy amount, even if the direct levy amount is under review. Always keep in mind that no matter how much you disagree with what is on your property tax bill it is always better to pay the bill and get refunded later than to have a lien against on your house. The processes to delete a delinquent property tax bill and all of the fines associated with that need several signatures and explanations within the Assessor's Office and Tax Collector's Office and can be complicated. So keep it simple, always pay your bill, any exception to this would be an extreme case.
About the Author: Valerie Faltas, Property Tax Expert has been involved in all facets of real estate for over ten years including assessments, appraisals, estates and trusts, investing and much more. She is a Certified Property Tax Appraiser, Licensed Residential Appraiser and a member of the International Association of Assessment Officers. As a real estate investor and advisor she is well versed in all aspects of real estate. To contact Valerie Faltas go to her website: www.propertytaxlittleblackbook.com. - 16477
About the Author:
Get your free ebook written by Valerie Faltas, Property Tax Expert lower property taxes, reduce property tax, property assessment, assessor, real estate
No comments:
Post a Comment