Evaluation of Property Tax Appeal Findings

Originally posted 2008-12-30 09:47:38. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

The objective of the series of videos that follows in the next couple of days is an evaluation of the the findings of property tax appellate court.  This evaluation is not a guarantee that you will be successful with your appeal for an assessment in your property taxes, but it does arm you with the tools needed to possibly becoming successful in your quest to get your property taxes adjusted in your favor.

For your convenience, below you will find the links to the property tax reviews that we will be evaluating:

• Appeal Review 1

http://www.ingov/ibtr/files/JackRipley.pdf

• Appeal Review 2

http://www.in.gov/ibtr/files/DavidandPatriciaSullivan.pdf

The Appeal Process has time ranges and time limits which also will be part of the video series of discuss.  Please find the link to that information below:

http://www.in.gov/ibtr/files/AppealsProcess

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Indiana Property Tax Appeal (Part 2) -Filing a property tax appeal can be difficult.  This article gives links to the forms needed to file the appeal and a video tutorial on filling the forms out.

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Surviving a Recession in the Real Estate Business (Part 1)

Originally posted 2009-10-29 15:38:05. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

To survive a recession, you have to do as many businesses do reduce your expenses.  When you have a portfolio of properties you may be wondering what expenses you can reduce.  There ae a least two major expenses tha you can reduce with a little work and research.  One of those expenses is the property taxes.  The other expense is insurance premium.  You may be thinking that is only two expenses that is not going to do much.  Well, hold on.   Let’s examine the business.  The business has accounting, legal, and maintenance.  Those are other areas where expenses can be reduced, and we will explore ways to reduce of those areas over the next couple of days.

To reduce your property taxes, you must determine what the assessed value is for each of your properties.  In most states, the assessor may be using some variation of market value.  With the recent depreciation in market value, it is apparent that the assessed value does not match the current market value or for that matter the amount that you may have paid for the property when you purchased it.  The reason the assessed value does not match the current value is that most states re-assess value every four years.  Still yet, some states use a trending  or error equalizer to correct the assessed value.  This method does an annual adjustment of the assessed value due to changes in the market value.  The error equalizer may or may not fairly account for the impact that the recent increase in foreclosed and short sale homes has on market value.  The foreclosed and short sale homes have had an negative impact on the value of all properties that are for sale.  Therefore, it is doubtful that the error equalizer can account for the influx of these types of homes or the negative impact on property value.  That is why a property tax appeal may be recommended.  Please review the videos below for details on filing procedures in Indiana:

• Property Tax Appeal Review (Video 1 of Section 1)
• Indiana Property Tax Appel (Part 2)

Once you determine that the assessed value is higher than the current market value.  You will need to file an appeal.  For the appeal process, you will need the legal description of the property, the parcel number, the current assessed value for both the improvement (ie house, apartment, condominium, etc) and the land.  This information is available on the assessor’s website.  If the town that the property is located in does not have a website call the assessor’ office to ascertain the information.  

To read more on the assessed value, read What is Assessed Value and How Does it Influence My Property Tax. 

You will also need to get an appraisal of the property.  When hiring the appraiser, explain to the appraiser that you are filing an appeal and may need his or her to testify to explain the appellate committee the finding or evaluation of the appraisal.

Tomorrow and several days to follow, we will evaluating other ways to make money, reduce expenses, and increase income with properties that you currently own, so keep reading.

Great News, the End to High Property Taxes Is Almost Here

Originally posted 2009-02-13 06:00:44. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

On February 10, 2009, the Indiana Senate passed an amendment for the permanent cap to property tax bills. The bill passed the Indiana Senate with an overwhelming majority of 34 to 16 vote.  The bill goes to the House for consideration, but House Speaker, Patrick Bauer, suggested that the House representatives wait until next year’s session to vote on the amendment.

With the property taxes being an important issue to the residents and the forefront of the Indiana residents’ mind it may not be wise for the House to postpone their voting on the amendment. 

This amendment will cap the property taxes for homeowners, investors, and business owners, alike.  The homeowners would be able to benefit from only paying one percent of the assessed value of the home.  Whereas, the investors would pay only two percent of the assessed value of the property.  Still yet, the business owner will pay only three percent of the property’s assessed value.

If the amendment is passed by the House, Indiana’s resident can look forward to voting on the amend law in 2010.

Hopefully, the amendment will be approved in the House, as well.  If lower property taxes is important to you contact your congressmen and tell them so.  Your voice does have power.

3 Reasons Why It Would Have Saved You Money to File Your Property Tax Appeals Months Ago

Originally posted 2009-05-26 05:00:46. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Property taxes have been in the headlines for at least the last two years.  With high property taxes being at the forefront of the homeowners’ mind.  Realtors the state over are encouraging homeowners to file property tax appeals.

To help you determine if a property tax appeal is right for you, there is a recent article that I recommend you read at:

 

There are deadlines for filing; however, if you missed those deadlines it still may be benefical to talk directly with the treasurer’s office about temporary relieve.  In Lake County, Indiana, the homeowner can now make a six month payment arrangement instead of the three month payment arrangement.  Still yet, some homeowners and investor have spoken to the treasurer’s office and successfully gotten temporary reduction in their property taxes until their appeal is filed and heard before the board. 

In these economic hard times, it is imporant to ask for the help and not recive itthan not ask at all. 

For additional assistance and advice on filing your tax appeal please read and watch videos at:

Indiana Property Tax Appeal

Indiana Property Tax Appeal (Part 2)

The three reasons it would have saved you money to file your tax appeal months ago are:

• deadline for filing has passed
• due to Gary not receiving word from the appellate board on the property tax cap, Gary’s commercial property owners, automatically received a property tax rate increase to 5.85 percent
• getting your appeal before the board before the crowd

In real estate and all other business ventures, procrastination cost money.

Property Tax Appeal Review (Video 1 of Section 1)

Originally posted 2009-01-01 18:46:58. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

The objective of the series of videos that follows in the next couple of days is an evaluation of the the findings of property tax appellate court. This evaluation is not a guarantee that you will be successful with your appeal for an assessment in your property taxes, but it does arm you with the tools needed to possibly becoming successful in your quest to get your property taxes adjusted in your favor.

For your convenience, below you will find the links to the property tax reviews that we will be evaluating:

• Appeal Review 1

http://www.ingov/ibtr/files/JackRipley.pdf

• Appeal Review 2

http://www.in.gov/ibtr/files/DavidandPatriciaSullivan.pdf

The Appeal Process has time ranges and time limits which also will be part of the video series of discuss.  Please find the link to that information below:

http://www.in.gov/ibtr/files/AppealsProcess

The law that give jurisdiction power to the Appeal Board is below:

Public Law 198-2001

http://www.in.gov/legislative/iac/xml/old-ir/Vol24/10Jul/07NO050010226.pdf

Indiana Code 6-1.1-4-33

http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic/code/title6/ar1.1/ch4.html

Form 130 (Petition for Review of Assessment By Local Assessing Official – Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals)

This form is used to petition for property tax appeal.

http://www.in.gov/icpr/webfile/formsdiv/21513.pdf

Form 139 L (Petition for Review of Department of Local Government Finance Action)

This form is used to get money back for excessive property taxes.

http://www.in.gov/icpr/webfile/formsdiv/51104.pdf

Real Estate Investor Related Articles

Protecting Your Investments – This article discusses the business entities that are available that are available for investors to protect their personal assets when buying and holding properties.

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Indiana Property Tax Appeal (Part 2) -Filing a property tax appeal can be difficult.  This article gives links to the forms needed to file the appeal and a video tutorial on filling the forms out.

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Lack of Property Taxes Tops News in Northwest Indiana

Originally posted 2008-12-27 09:35:31. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

The Times has an article named, Lake Commissioners Pledge Veto for Food, Beverage Tax.   According to this article the Lake County Commissioners plan to veto the increase in tax on food and beverage.  Alot of the commissioners state that they do not want to go back on their word of “no new taxes”.  The idea of a commissioner trying to be true to campaign pledges is refreshing in an of itself.    One of the commissioner believes that the local government still has not done enough to cut the fat.  I, too, believe that not enough fat has been cut in government. 

One area that needs fat cutting is township assessors. There are over a 1000 township assessors and that is more than California, Texas, Ohio, and Florida.  Now, if you have not noticed Indiana is in some cases half the size of the states mention.  The reduction in township assessors not only save money, but it also is proposed to create fair property tax assessment.

The cutting of assessors is only one area that needs trimming.  Other areas that may need review is the amount of items that is on the property taxes.  The amount of taxes paid need to re-appropriated and it will take all of us to determine the best mode of action to get that done fairly.

Real Estate Auctions. What is it? What Happens If I Win?

Originally posted 2009-04-07 05:18:02. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

A real estate auction is the norm in this market that is why it is important to understand what a real estate auction is and more importantly understand the risk of the auction.

“You are the winner.” Those words are something that most people love to hear, but what does it mean when you are bidding on a property at a real estate auction? Does it mean that you are responsible for property taxes, federal income taxes, utilities, etc?

Another questions that must be asked by the bidder is what type of real estate auction is it? The type of auction is important because there are different facts that are important depending on the type of auction. For instance, if the auction is a tax sale it is important to know the redemption period that the orginial tax payer has before you can take possession of the property.

If it is a sheriff’s sale, it is important to know if the sheriff sale eliminated the possible utility bills, the property taxes that may still be owed, and/or any other lien that may exist.

In addition, the buyer must know how and when is he or she expected to make payment on the property that he or she won at the auction. Some auctions require twenty five percent the day of the sale and the remaining amount within a week of the sale.

Once the buyer does all the research needed then he or she can purchase the property of his or her choice, but it is important to know that buying at an auction has a great risk because in most cases the property can not be inspected before purchase. In those cases, the buyer would have to rely on drive bys of the home and his or her knowledge of the area.

Still yet, the other type of auction is a bulk sale of foreclosed properties. Buyer beware that often these properties were listed with a real estate company, and the lender or asset company could not sell them due to expense that the lender or asset company could not afford or was willing to pay. The expenses were in some cases not discovered until the property was listed and the listing company did his or her due diligence for city or county violations, property taxes, utilities that may be owned on the property. Those expenses would have to be paid before the title could be conveyed due those expenses being a lien on the property. When it is discovered that those expenses exceed a certain amount the lender or asset company may decide to put the property in a bulk sale.

I have had clients who have purchase properties in a bulk sale who have lost money for the very reason above. Before going to the bulk sale or any auction for that matter get a copy of the list of properties and do your due diligent research on the properties that you are considering purchasing. Your due diligence research may include contacting the utlity companies, tax treasurer’s office and/or title company to find out if there are liens that you need to know about before purchasing the property.

An auction is a great way to acquire real estate, but it is important to understand the risk.

Real Estate Investor Related Articles

Protecting Your Investments - This article discusses the business entities that are available that are available for investors to protect their personal assets when buying and holding properties.

 

 

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Indiana Property Tax Appeal (Part 2) -Filing a property tax appeal can be difficult.  This article gives links to the forms needed to file the appeal and a video tutorial on filling the forms out.

Outraged Over Property Taxes

Originally posted 2009-03-23 09:20:57. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Why isn’t the Indiana property tax assessment making front page news?  I am sure it is making front page news with all the citizens of Porter County who on March 27 is going to have to pay higher property taxes.

I am appalled that the local paper has given little attention to the plight of Porter County’s property tax over-assessment.

Is it that the County Assessor John Scott does not see a problem with the higher taxes?

The assessor simply said, “let the appeal process determine if the taxes are too high.”

Why is it that the Local Government Finance Office care more about the citizens outrage over property taxes than the assessor?

Even local real estate brokers have had increase calls from outraged citizens about recent market values.  

Business owners believe that property taxes have went up 100 percent. 

Do not let yourself be taxed out of your home or business without a fight.  The assessor is not going to fight for you.  You can file an appeal.  You have until April 13 to file that appeal.  Visit www.in.gov/dlgf to get the forms needed to file that appeal.

I have include some helpful video to help with the process, as well.  See the links below:

Good Indication That You Need to File a Property Tax Appeal

Property Tax Appeal Review Video 1 of Section 1

Evaluation of Property Tax Appeal Findings

Indiana Property Tax Appeal (Part 2)

Indiana Property Tax Appeal

What is Assessed Value and How Does it Influenced My Property Taxes

Lack of Property Taxes Tops News in Northwest Indiana

Seniors Deadline Quickly Approaching

No Relief From Property Taxes in Porter County, IN

Originally posted 2009-08-26 05:00:24. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

The news has come down from Indianapolis that there will be no adjustments to the assessed value due to trending. Trending is utilized by some states to account for property value increase or decrease.

It is unrealistic to think that a state that just converted to a market value assessment system could possible understand or have mastered the market value. It is equally unrealistic for a state to believe that trennding alone can account for the record drop in market value of all homes in Indiana and for that matter America.

Some areas’ values have dropped as much as 35 to 50 percent.

In addition, the market value assessment system is so new to the state that Porter county blames the new change and formula for their delaying in getting the assessment values completed.

It is time to take action citizens. File your appeals. Do not take this seating down.

Lake County to Have Tax Sale

Originally posted 2009-03-21 05:48:30. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

If you are counting on the amnesty bill from the state of Indiana to give you more time to pay your property tax you may be out of luck.  The bill that was developed to help homeowners is stalled in the state General Assembly.    As a result of this stall, Lake County Treasurer John Petalas has scheduled the first property tax sale in two years for July 9.

What does this mean?  It means that if you are behind on your property taxes like 24,000 homeowners are in Lake County you may need to work on getting the money together to pay your back property taxes before then.

Remember, even if your mortgage payment is current, but your property taxes are not you can still lose your home.    The property taxes supersedes the mortgage payment, so most mortgage companies make sure they are paid.  However, if the property is an investment property the latter does not hold true, so if you can pay your property tax before July 9, 2009 do so or you may lose your home to a tax sale.

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