Following the most recent tax evaluations, appeals have mounted among disgruntled property owners in the county.
During the past three weeks, 50 to 60 property owners have appealed to the tax assessors board, and if they aren’t satisfied with that board’s decision, it is then referred to the board of equalization, Chairman Guy Wells said.
“When an appeal comes to us, we look at the value of the person’s property, and we then look at the value of the surrounding properties in the neighborhood,” he said. “If there are two like properties with different values in a given neighborhood, then the assessors have to explain why there is a difference in value.”
In a recent case, an inequity was found in an owner’s assessment, and the assessors blamed the lapse in calculation on a computer error, so the ruling was in favor of the property owner, he said.
But it is not always that simple when a property owner is seeking a ruling in his or her favor, Liberty County resident Otis Amason said.
“There isn’t much the board of equalization can do unless you have done your homework and you have a legal precedent,” he said. “One either has to hire a tax accountant to find a legal basis, or a property owner can go online and look at the law themselves.”
These appeals are a step in the right direction though, because there seems to be discrepancies on how the county’s property is assessed, a concerned property owner said, who requested to remain anonymous.
The national average of house values has gone down 11 percent, but in the last two years the value of houses in Liberty County has climbed $10,000 to $12,000 per household.
“There are many select people in this county that get special treatment and even advice from (Glenda Roberts) on how to pay the least taxes ... If some people are getting special treatment, then the rest of us have to pick up the slack,” Citizens Advisory Committee Chairman John Henderson said.
Yet Roberts rebutted Henderson’s comments, saying “There are exemptions that are available to any taxpayer if they qualify for them. The qualifications for these exemptions are set out by the state, and we very closely adhere to these guidelines set out by the state.”
During the past three weeks, 50 to 60 property owners have appealed to the tax assessors board, and if they aren’t satisfied with that board’s decision, it is then referred to the board of equalization, Chairman Guy Wells said.
“When an appeal comes to us, we look at the value of the person’s property, and we then look at the value of the surrounding properties in the neighborhood,” he said. “If there are two like properties with different values in a given neighborhood, then the assessors have to explain why there is a difference in value.”
In a recent case, an inequity was found in an owner’s assessment, and the assessors blamed the lapse in calculation on a computer error, so the ruling was in favor of the property owner, he said.
But it is not always that simple when a property owner is seeking a ruling in his or her favor, Liberty County resident Otis Amason said.
“There isn’t much the board of equalization can do unless you have done your homework and you have a legal precedent,” he said. “One either has to hire a tax accountant to find a legal basis, or a property owner can go online and look at the law themselves.”
These appeals are a step in the right direction though, because there seems to be discrepancies on how the county’s property is assessed, a concerned property owner said, who requested to remain anonymous.
The national average of house values has gone down 11 percent, but in the last two years the value of houses in Liberty County has climbed $10,000 to $12,000 per household.
“There are many select people in this county that get special treatment and even advice from (Glenda Roberts) on how to pay the least taxes ... If some people are getting special treatment, then the rest of us have to pick up the slack,” Citizens Advisory Committee Chairman John Henderson said.
Yet Roberts rebutted Henderson’s comments, saying “There are exemptions that are available to any taxpayer if they qualify for them. The qualifications for these exemptions are set out by the state, and we very closely adhere to these guidelines set out by the state.”