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Old 03-12-2011, 09:39 PM
 
553 posts, read 1,024,429 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Greeenback View Post
Smiling....

You know how to "clown."
.
English is not my native language, I am not sure what that means. Hope you are not saying something bad
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Old 03-12-2011, 09:41 PM
 
Location: Marion, IN
8,189 posts, read 31,178,539 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dressy View Post
Just for the sake of adding the "valuable info" to the thread , but not for the sake of arguing:
finishing attic and basement almost always mean adding a square footage of livable space.
Many places finishing the basement does not "count" as living space for the county no matter how nice it is. Some places clearly define that a basement remains a basement. It will increase the perceived value of a house and perhaps increase the price a buyer is willing to pay.

Without knowing the specifics of the location of the house you are considering it will be very difficult for anyone to tell you if the tax base will change based on improvements.
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Old 03-12-2011, 09:45 PM
 
553 posts, read 1,024,429 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Racelady88 View Post
Many places finishing the basement does not "count" as living space for the county no matter how nice it is. Some places clearly define that a basement remains a basement. It will increase the perceived value of a house and perhaps increase the price a buyer is willing to pay.

Without knowing the specifics of the location of the house you are considering it will be very difficult for anyone to tell you if the tax base will change based on improvements.
Well, the tax base is easy to find out and I know the one for my area - just go to the assessment officer web site.
what I was worried about was, that after buying a house I will have to report all those improvements done without permit.
you are right, it is impossible to tell without knowing the specific area. But I was hoping that people will just share what their experiences were. And I already found a lot of valuable advice.
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Old 03-12-2011, 09:47 PM
 
Location: Louisiana
290 posts, read 571,378 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Racelady88 View Post
Many places finishing the basement does not "count" as living space for the county no matter how nice it is. Some places clearly define that a basement remains a basement. It will increase the perceived value of a house and perhaps increase the price a buyer is willing to pay.

Without knowing the specifics of the location of the house you are considering it will be very difficult for anyone to tell you if the tax base will change based on improvements.


"Almost" took the words right out of my mouth.

"...for the county"

It is the nature of real estate.

And, for the attic, it needs to be of a certain height, conform to the rest of the gross living area, and some 'several' other items of concern (which I won't get into) before it can be perceived as GLA. But, Ms. Dressy did say, "almost."
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Old 03-12-2011, 09:58 PM
 
Location: Louisiana
290 posts, read 571,378 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dressy View Post
what I was worried about was, that after buying a house I will have to report all those improvements done without permit.
In my experience, the lender usually will not want to lend on a property that has not been updated via "permits."

If the tax assessor gets updated permits from improvements in which the prior owner had done which required permits at the time of your purchase, then after the purchase, you can tell the assessor that the improvements were included in the value when you purchased it. If the tax assessor assesses it again and adds to the taxes on the basis of the recorded value and then adding more taxes after recieving the permits, then they are clearly double dipping, in my opinion.

If a Lawyer is needed, I highly suggest consulting one. The Lawyer can easily take what you said to the Assessor, confirm it, and make the Assessor play ball, if the assessor decides to ignore you. This way, you won't have to pay for two appraisals or appraisal consulting.

Last edited by Greeenback; 03-12-2011 at 10:13 PM..
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Old 03-12-2011, 11:15 PM
 
Location: Tempe, Arizona
4,511 posts, read 13,545,760 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Greeenback View Post
EDIT TO ADD: I will always recommend a Real Estate Appraiser in challenging taxes, because it is best to do so. When someone has legal disputes, it is best to hire a Lawyer, and many Lawyers will suggest it, as it is best to do so.

No sir, this is what you want to think. I may have rubbed you wrong when I first came into this forum, but I am not biased!

When a situation comes up, and it is best to Hire an Independent Real Estate Appraiser, I will recommend it. ...
Greenback, perhaps it just your writing style. The way you generally address certain issues comes across as the only way to do it instead of just your recommendation or suggestion. That tends to get other posters riled up and thus all the rebuttals. I'm trying to be understanding, but it's a struggle to interpret your posts in the light you may have intended.
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Old 03-13-2011, 06:33 AM
 
Location: The Woods
18,337 posts, read 26,404,089 times
Reputation: 11335
The tax assesor can't come into the house. There's all kinds of properties I've seen that look like dumps outside to keep taxes down, that have all sorts of new things inside, attics or basements finished off without the tax people knowing, etc. If permits were drawn for any of the work, when values are updated, they might take it into account, otherwise, why would you report it and get your taxes raised voluntarily?
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Old 03-13-2011, 06:46 AM
 
Location: Hernando County, FL
8,488 posts, read 20,579,095 times
Reputation: 5397
Quote:
Originally Posted by Greeenback View Post
And, what do you think Independent Appraisers do? Comparable properties are related to Appraisal work. Comparable properties in real estate are related to value. And, value is based on a helluva a lot more than just comparable properties, especially when challenging the basis of the tax assessment.
In most areas, for most homes, the cost of an appraisal will be more than the tax savings you might see.

The OP was questioning how the taxes might go up based on upgrades to the home so getting an appraisal and presenting it to the county would probably be the last thing they would want to do.

It seems that every thread you post in is a veiled attempt to have someone get an appraisal rather than answering the original post.
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Old 03-13-2011, 08:32 AM
 
Location: MID ATLANTIC
8,660 posts, read 22,832,313 times
Reputation: 10485
When I have to deliver the news to a homeowner that their appraisal came in 40K below the expected value, and it's 60K below the assessed value, my only consolation prize is to hand them a copy of the appraisal, as well as, the appeals process for their real estate taxes in their county.

To the OP and her worry about unpermitted work - that is a real concern and the reasoning behind requiring a permit is sound. Too many "wanna be handy men to save a buck" have done more harm than good, some very dangerous. In your case, I would find an experienced home inspector (preferably a retired class A contractor or retired county inspector) that would know what shortcuts to look for.
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Old 03-13-2011, 09:20 AM
 
Location: Barrington
63,919 posts, read 46,539,278 times
Reputation: 20674
Quote:
Originally Posted by manderly6 View Post
That would not do you much good in NJ. There is only one basis for appealing your tax assessment. That is purely on sold comps.
I lived in NJ, twice. Appeals are handled at the county level. Appraisals were acceptable in both counties that I lived in, provided that the expert appraiser wittness was present, would testify and subject him/herself to a cross examination.

The appraiser was often challenged because he/she did not have first hand knowledge of the comp properties while the assessor did, including interior pictures.

The market value needs to be more than 15% less than the assessed value to be taken into consideration.
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