Tax Appeals: Explained

Bucks County Real Estate Podcast

Taxes always seem too high, but what do you do if they really are? Let’s take a look at the tax appeal process.

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Over the years I’ve written a lot about the process of tax appeals. Just this week, a community member interested in learning more gave me a call.
I’m sure that person wasn’t the only one wondering about the process of tax appeals, though, so I wanted to explain it here too.
First, how do you go about appealing your taxes? Most everyone believes that their taxes are too high, so how can you make sure that you really qualify to appeal?
Your property assessment is the first thing you should turn to. Here in Bucks County, your assessment should represent 10.4% of your property’s fair market value.
If after checking that value you feel you need to make an appeal, the first step is to go to http://www.buckscounty.org/ and fill out the assessment appeal form for a $35 charge.
When making an appeal, you have a couple of options. If you choose the option of doing it yourself, you’ll first need to fill out the form.

The process of appealing is actually rather simple.

On the form, you can either include an appraisal or a list of three comparable properties to substantiate your claims. For a property to qualify as being comparable, it must be in the same municipality, be of similar size, have similar amenities, and be relatively recent.
Finding these properties is something I can help with, and I’ve seen some amazing opportunities come from these appeals.
Otherwise, there are attorneys who will handle the appeals for you. In this case, an attorney will charge you a percentage of what your first-year savings would be in the event that they’re successful.
In truth, the process of appealing is actually rather simple. The most complicated part is gathering the data to support the appeal. If you want to go through the process during this tax season, you’ll need to make the decision whether to move forward soon.
If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.