Frederick County Property Tax Appeal (comparable sales, short sale, real estate)

[Camps2002]

Hi All,

We are closing on our house tomorrow (yay). We are paying $165,000 less than the value according to the 2009 Property Tax Assessment (boo). Obviously we are going to appeal this assessment. We have our purchase contract, and the comps (7) that our bank used when assessing the value of our home for mortgage purposes.

The bank assessed our home at $25,000 more than we are paying. Even if the county would agree to lower the assessed value to equal this price, it would save us roughly $120 each month.

We plan to appeal ourselves.

Have any of you had any successes/failures appealing your property tax assessments? I believe that given our documentation, we have a fairly strong case.

Opinions?

Thanks!

[Camps2002]

Additional information - - This was a private sale, not a short sale or foreclosure.

[trying2moveup]

We purchased in PG in December and paid 10K less than list (it appraised at list). We filed an appeal for property taxes right away, we're about 20-25K less than the January 2008 tax assessment in SDAT. We've never done this before so I don't know what the outcome will be- not too optimistic since our purchase price was not as discrepant from the tax assessment but with declining values continuing, you never know. Hey, it's a Starbucks latte or gas money or dry cleaning money, you know?!?

You sound like you have a very solid case. Be prepared to wait for a while to hear anything as everyone who is purchasing right now is probably (or should be) filing for appeal as well. Good luck!

We moved from Frederick, it's amazing how purchase prices have declined in that area.

[Camps2002]

Well, good luck to us both!

As for Frederick prices... we have sure seen a lot of foreclosures and shortsales, particularly in Villages of Urbana. We got pretty lucky (if you can get lucky in this market), our sellers were relocated for work and we suspect that their offer included paying the difference between what they bought for and what they sell for.

Otherwise it just makes no sense.

Now next year our house might be worth that Starbucks latte... but that's another thread...

[hedgie]

Not sure what the process is in Frederick but in PG County it's a three step process. The first step is easy to do on your own -- however, the homeowner generally gets turned down. For the second step we had an appraiser accompany us to the appeal and we "won" at that level. The third step is judicial proceeding. I suspect that the process is similar in all MD jurisidictions.

[chrismdusa]

Hey Camps2002...just wondering if you had any luck with your appeal. My wife and I just purchased in Frederick for $102,500 less than the assessed value and we are looking into an appeal. This thread is a little old now, but if you read this post, how did your appeal go? And how long did it take to complete? Thanks.

[Camps2002]

Hey there,

Our appeals process was successful. We were able to have our assessment lowered to the actual dollar amount that we paid. It took very little time to complete - - I want to say around a month or less. However, our lowered assessment does not go into effect until July. They don't change the amount of the assessment on the books until the new rates are calculated (I believe it is semi-annually).

Helpful hints:
* You will have a stronger case if your purchase is not a foreclosure or short-sale. If it is an "arms length" transaction, stress this.
* Look at Zillow and Franklymls.com to find comps in the area and use these figures to support your argument.
* Make sure that your property as classified by the city matches your real property in terms of square footage and anything else.

Best of luck to you!

[khighland]

Hi, My husband and I are realtors and have helped 4 of our clients successfully appeal their assessments with the state. I've written a blog post about it with links to the state website.
All Things Frederick - A Real Estate Blog » Blog Archive » How to Appeal Your Maryland Property Assessment
The state office only schedules appeals during January, Feb. and March. You'll want to wait until the end of the year to get comparable sales. They like to have about 5, if possible. But sometimes we've only been able to come up with a few, because sales have been slow for the last 2 years. If you need any help, I'll be glad to get some comps for you, just email me.

[khighland]

My Blog has moved, but the same post is in a new location: How to Appeal Your Maryland Property Assessment | All Things Frederick - A Real Estate Blog (http://allthingsfrederick.com/2008/12/04/how-to-appeal-your-maryland-property-assessment/ - broken link)

Property Values have dropped between 30 and 40% over the last 4 years. The process of assessments happens every 3 years, so if you are in an "off-year" you would do a "mid-cycle" appeal. If you get your new tax assessment in the mail and you want to appeal it, there is a form included.