Decatur Tax Blog

Concerned about online fees?

2012-01-17T08:18:00.001-05:00

Over 22,379 visitors have used our online tax look-up website, www.decaturgatax.com since it was launched in late 2010. December 2011 was a record month with 1,916 visitors alone (and Decatur only has about 8,000 properties)!

Although people increasingly turn to our website to look up tax information, we hear occasional concerns from the public about the online payment option. The City of Decatur’s third party payment processor charges 2.2 percent plus 30¢ for online credit card payments through Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express.

Through our online survey, we’ve even received a comment that “The County has never charged a fee for payment.” Actually, DeKalb County’s website says “Payments may be accepted via VISA, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover, but a 2.5 percent transaction fee will be added to the payment.”

The perception that Decatur charges a fee that the county doesn’t charge may stem from the fact that DeKalb doesn’t charge a fee for online checks.

While that function is not directly supported by the city’s third party processor, you may be able to issue an online check to the City of Decatur through your personal bank at no charge to you. Several major and local banks or credit unions offer account services such as online checking that would enable you to pay through the Internet without incurring a fee. In other words, you could use our website to look up how much money you owe, then use your own online bank account to issue a payment without having to write out your own paper check. Please contact your bank for terms and details.

Decatur taxpayers can also pay online through PayPal, which I noticed is currently offering a “Bill Me Later” feature that offers six months to pay on payments of $99 or more. I’m not endorsing any one payment method over another, but that feature may be an option worth looking into for some Decatur residents or business taxpayers facing short-term cash flow problems. Details on that program can be found here.

And of course we still take payments the old-fashioned way—from checks by mail, payments in person, or payments from your mortgage lender!

Revenue office changes in the New Year

2012-01-09T08:50:00.000-05:00

Shaun Shabazz did a great job running the Revenue Division while I was on military leave over the past year. She conducted successful tax billings during the second installment of 2010 and both installments of 2011. Shaun also managed a highly effective delinquent collections process that resulted in no homes having to be at a tax sale while simultaneously achieving a very high real estate property tax collection rate!

Thank you, Shaun!

Holly Jackson served as a revenue clerk in the office for the year, and she did a great job as well. Her smiling face and warm presence won accolades from customers and co-workers alike. We are saddened to see her leave our little office, but are glad that she’s still here in City Hall working in the Development Department now.

Lastly, I’d like to thank the City of Decatur and my supervisor, assistant city manager Andrea Arnold, for their support for my deployment and facilitating my re-entry to civilian life here. I’m looking forward to getting reacquainted with the public throughout the New Year!

Grace period for 2011 taxes expires soon

2012-01-03T08:17:00.000-05:00

The City of Decatur’s second installment property tax bills were due on Dec. 20, 2011. No penalties or interest have been added to unpaid balances yet, but this grace period will end on January 5.

If you haven’t already done so, please pay by Thursday to avoid additional fees.

If you aren’t sure whether or not you have paid, please check our tax look-up website at www.decaturgatax.com, or call us at 404-370-4100. Due to mail, banking, posting, and data processing times, please allow 7 to 10 business days for payments tendered to show up on your tax records online.

Our office will be open until 5:00 p.m. every day this week. We accept payments through checks by mail; through credit cards or Paypal accounts online; and cash, check, or credit in person.

Postmarks will be honored on checks mailed to:

City of Decatur Lockbox

P.O. Box 945650

Atlanta, GA 30394-5650

If you intend to overnight a payment or visit us, our physical location is City Hall, 509 N. McDonough St., Decatur, GA 30030. Please note that we do not have a secure after-hours drop box.

Changes in the Revenue Division

2010-09-03T20:05:00.005-04:00

Please join me in congratulating Shaun Shabazz who will serve as Revenue Manager while I’m away from the office on an extended basis. Shaun has been working for the City of Decatur since 1991, and for the tax office since 1996. Shaun has been the Senior Revenue Officer here for four years, and the person who I always relied on the most.

Shaun Shabazz

Shaun has a great smile & laugh, which is why I'm a little embarrassed that the only recent photo I had of her when I prepared this post was from the day of our tax sale in August when nobody was happy!

Anyway, Shaun and I have been working for several weeks to ensure as smooth a changeover as possible, and I am grateful to city management for supporting this transition. Nobody could do a better job than Shaun will do in her new role. Congratulations, Shaun!

Also, after a very competitive hiring process, Holly Jackson is joining the Revenue Division as our new, temporary full-time revenue clerk. Holly is a Decatur resident, a former teller with Wachovia locally, and she is the mother of one Decatur High School graduate and of another child who is still in the City of Decatur school system. We are fortunate to gain somebody with Holly’s financial and customer service background—welcome, Holly!

Holly Jackson

Good explanation of HOST

2010-09-01T17:47:00.000-04:00

Even for a tax collector like me, the Homestead Option Sales Tax (HOST) can be tricky to understand, much less explain to the public. That’s why I was impressed by this straightforward, recent explanation of the SPLOST, LOST, ELOST and HOST by state Sen. Bill Heath, with a little of my own commentary in italics mixed in:

In addition to Georgia's state sales tax rate of 4%, there are four different types of local-option sales and use taxes that may be levied by local governments. They are most commonly known by their acronyms-SPLOST, LOST, ELOST and HOST. In addition to showing up on your sales receipts, you've likely also seen one of them show up on your ballot as a voter referendum.

Note: DeKalb County has the ELOST, HOST, and MARTA sales taxes. Last year the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners considered replacing the MARTA tax with a SPLOST.

A Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) is normally a one percent county sales and use tax that is enacted by the direct vote of the constituents. Used to fund specific capital outlay projects, a SPLOST is first initiated by a county government for approval by the voters. To increase accountability, this voter referendum must state the purpose of the tax, the length of time it will be imposed and the amount of revenue it will raise. This method of enacting a SPLOST is a sure way for constituents to have a direct voice over projects and the money they give to the local or state government...

Another type of local sales and use tax is the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST). A LOST also requires voter approval, but rather than being devoted to a specific project like a SPLOST, a LOST is intended to be used as replacement revenue for the local property tax. Revenues from this tax must go to reducing the millage rate and that reduction must be reflected in local property tax bills. 154 of Georgia's 159 counties utilize a LOST. The total revenue from this type of local sales and use tax topped $1.3 billion in 2009.

An Education Local Options Sales Tax (ELOST) allows county schools to propose their own capital improvement programs to voters. Unlike the SPLOST, the revenues from this optional 1% sales tax are not distributed to the county government but are instead levied by boards of education and must used for capital projects for educational purposes or may contribute to the retirement of the system's existing general obligation debt. Excess proceeds from an ELOST must be used to retire school-system debt, or if there is none, to roll back the millage rate. The total revenue from this type of local sales and use tax topped $1.3 billion in 2009.

The majority of Georgia counties have a 7 percent sales tax, that is, the 4 percent state sales tax plus a LOST, SPLOST, and ELOST. DeKalb is somewhat unusual in this regard by neither having a LOST (like Fulton County) nor a SPLOST (like Cobb or Gwinnett County). And DeKalb is distinctive in another way…

The final type of local sales and use tax is the lesser-known Homestead Option Sales Tax (HOST) which may be collected by counties that do not levy a LOST. A HOST is a sales and use tax option that must devote at least 80 percent of its proceeds to provide for an increased homestead exemption from county ad valorem taxes. The remaining 20 percent may be used for capital outlay projects and excess revenues must be used to adjust the millage rate. Only DeKalb and Rockdale counties currently utilize a HOST.

There’s a little more to read from Sen. Heath at this link, but it’s mostly about his home district which is on the other side of Atlanta.

Home scam warning

2010-08-30T08:19:00.000-04:00

Alabama officials are warning home owners about an Atlanta-headquartered shingle company. This is reminscent of roofing scams that Attorney General Thurbert Baker warned DeKalb seniors about during this year's Scam Jam at the Decatur Active Living Center. Baker said that somebody claiming to be a roofer will drop by an older person's home, tell them they have loose shingles, get up on the roof for a while without doing actual work, then come back down and demand payment.

From WAFF News on Aug. 19:

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF) - During the past month, the Better Business Bureau of North Alabama has been issuing statements concerning calls to their office regarding American Shingle, a company that was headquartered in Atlanta, GA with a local office in Huntsville (American Shingle & Siding of Alabama) and more than 20 other cities.

The company's employees had been going door-to-door in several parts of North Alabama, offering to provide free roof inspections and working with the resident's insurance company to approve roofing jobs. In each call to the BBB, the homeowners who had roof damage reported that they had been asked to provide part or all of their insurance money to the company before the roof replacement job would be placed on the company's schedule.

After payment was made and the consumer waited 4-6 weeks for their new roof, as indicated by salespeople, they would receive a notice stating that the company needed to delay the roofing job by an additional 4-6 weeks, pushing some jobs into late August or even late September. Consumers began to question if the company intended to repair/replace their roof, or just keep the insurance money that had been provided.

The rest of the story is available here. The company does not appear to have offered services to Atlanta-area residents. However, Georgia is often ranked as one of the top 10 states for mortgage schemes and other property related fraud.

City and County taxes

2010-08-24T09:17:00.001-04:00

Suppose you own a property—we’ll call it “Property A”—in Decatur worth $275,000 and you have no exemptions. Your City of Decatur taxes (plus fees) on Property A would be $4,831.56 for the year. Our millage rate is 32.935 mills (which includes taxes for Decatur schools) and we use a 50 percent assessment.

You would also owe DeKalb County $1,200.10 in taxes for Property A for the year. The County millage rate for Decatur residents is 10.91 mills. Georgia counties assess at 40 percent.

Now suppose you own a second $275,000 property, Property B, in unincorporated DeKalb—also without exemptions. You would owe $4,409.90 in DeKalb County property taxes for Property B. Your county taxes would not be $1,200.10 under this scenario. The millage rate for unincorporated DeKalb is 40.09 mills, not just the 10.91 mills that are imposed by the County on City residents:

The reason that an unincorporated property of equal value to a City of Decatur property would have a higher county tax liability than if it were inside the City is because the County is providing all the services (for example, school & fire services). Properties inside the City of Decatur pay a lower County tax because the City is providing the majority of services.

Surprise liens

2010-08-23T08:23:00.000-04:00

Chad R. Pomeroy (h/t TaxProf Blog) has written a scholarly article on the concept of “surprise liens” where a property buyer is unaware of a pre-existing lien because the lien, such as a federal estate tax lien, was never recorded at the courthouse. Here’s his eye-popping introduction:

Imagine you want to buy a house. You find the perfect place, exactly where you want to live, exactly the style you want. Like almost everybody, you do not have enough money to buy the house outright, so you need a mortgage. Getting a mortgage makes you nervous – you are taking on a principal obligation that is more money than you will make in the next five to ten years combined. But, everyone assures you, this is a safe financial decision – so long as you do not buy for speculation at the peak of a bubble, your newly purchased asset will adequately secure your obligation and ensure that you are not left responsible for an enormous debt if you suddenly lose your job or get sick. You are still nervous, though, about such a complicated and significant transaction, so you take the relatively extraordinary step of talking to a real estate lawyer. He says the same thing as your friends: your loan will be secured by your new house, and no bank will make a home loan to you unless you buy title insurance, which literally ensures that you will have clear title and that the bank will have a first-place protected interest in your new home.

That does it. Feeling confident, you take out the loan and buy the house. You move in and start to settle down. Then you get a letter from the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”). Your house is subject to an estate tax lien and will be seized unless you pay the full amount of estate tax that is currently owed by the estate of the fellow who sold the house to the woman from whom you bought it. Frantically, you call your lawyer. This cannot be right, can it? The IRS cannot have a superior lien based on the taxes owed by the estate of somebody you never met and who owned the home more than five years ago, can it? The lawyer reviews the IRS notice and does some research. Red-faced, he tells you the IRS can, indeed, seize your new home, even though you bought title insurance and the title insurer examined the public records. He had never heard of the estate tax lien until now, but it gives the IRS an interest that does not have to be filed anywhere and that still takes precedence over your rights. You have been victimized by a “surprise lien.”

Pomeroy goes on to describe other circumstances where liens can come to light after buying a property, and the reasons why current law allows for this. He concludes that although surprise liens have a long history and even have some advantages, such practices should be ended.

When Decatur sets a lien for unpaid property taxes, we are required to file that record with the DeKalb County Clerk of Superior Court. Those records are available to anybody doing title research.

Are all retirement homes tax exempt?

2010-08-18T08:18:00.001-04:00

In Georgia, a “nonprofit home for the aged” is exempt from property tax if the institution has no stockholders, income, or profit distributed to a private person, and is classified as a 501(c)(3).

But the exemption does not apply to “property of a home for the aged held primarily for investment purposes or used for purposes unrelated to the providing of residential or health care to the aged” (O.C.G.A. § 48-5-41(a)(12)(B)).

Which is why Columbus says it's going after the Spring Harbor continuing care community for taxes owed. WRBL offers this interesting report, at least interesting to fellow tax geeks. (Note: for some reason it'll take about 10 seconds after clicking play before this video starts.)

Assessment techniques under scrutiny

2010-08-12T07:53:00.000-04:00

The AJC had an interesting article on Monday about the use of credit-bid sales to determine property values in 2010 for Fulton County. Read the article here (hat tip to Georgia Zoning Blog). The practice, which Fulton says it is discontinuing, may result in inflated values for tax purposes.

DeKalb assessor Eugene James is also quoted in the article.

Decatur's Financial Discipline Pays Off in Recession

2010-08-10T07:00:00.007-04:00

On June 21st the Decatur City Commission adopted the City's budget for the fiscal year which started on July 1st. This was the most challenging budget year I've experienced in my twelve year with the City. The City's property tax digest decreased for the first time since 1995. While the drop was slight, just over 1%, it translated into $300,000 less in property tax revenue for this fiscal year. Considering that we were already estimating to spend $702,000 in fund balance for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2010 and the state of the economy was still looking grim, there was some serious concern about the ability to continue to provide a high level of City services.

Just to clarify, in simple terms, fund balance is the difference between revenues and expenditures and it is cumulative. For example, in some years the City brings in more revenue than it spends and that amount goes into the fund balance. In other years, the City may spend more than it collects and will use some of the fund balance to balance the budget.

The City is quite conservative in its approach to public finance. As it turns out, during a recession, you can finally appreciate the conservative financial approach that city staff have employed for the past two decades or more. The City's fund balance policy requires a fund balance between twenty and thirty percent of the operating budget. At June 30, 2008, the fund balance was about $7,200,000 or forty percent of the operating budget. If there was ever a time to have a healthy fund balance, June 2008 was that time. By June 30, 2009, the fund balance was down to $6,700,000 or thirty six percent of the operating budget. We thought we were going to spend $392,000 of fund balance to get through June 30, 2010 but it looks like that may not be necessary because of lower than anticipated expenditures and higher than budgeted revenues.

So, what does all of this mean to Decatur residents?
Basically, the City's conservative financial practices, including a healthy fund balance, allowed the City to weather the worst economy in recent history without making drastic service cuts or imposing a tax increase. The City, with the support of it stable political leadership, has been strategic and deliberate in its decision-making. We follow long-term plans that represent the community's values. The City's management team encourages and promotes innovation and creativity. This is part of the city organization's culture that doesn't happen overnight and cannot be conjured up when faced with any crisis, financial or otherwise. The City has spent at least twenty years preparing for a crisis and our preparedness is evidenced by our ability to thrive even in the midst of a recession. Unlike many neighboring communities and those across the country, the City is keeping its parks and playgrounds open and maintained, city facilities remain open at least five days per week, no employees have been furloughed or laid off, community events continue to be held, community engagement opportunities abound, capital investments are being made and public safety remains strong. In short, Decatur is still moving forward.

To see the City's budget and financial reports, go to http://www.decaturga.com/ and click on 'Residents' and then 'Annual Budget'. Also, I am available to discuss any budget questions or concerns. Feel free to contact me at 404-370-4102 or andrea.arnold@decaturga.com.

Savannah to execute tax collector

2010-08-05T19:15:00.000-04:00

Okay, they won't really kill one--it'll just be a performance. Next week when Savannah commemorates the anniversary of its first public reading of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, they will reenact the hanging of a tax collector! From the Savannah Morning News yesterday:

“Georgia’s First Fourth” will portray the arrival of the Declaration of Independence in Savannah on Aug. 10, 1776, said Jacob Grotheer, an interpretative ranger at Wormsloe [State Historice Site].

Archibald Bulloch, the president of the council on safety, read the declaration aloud in public that day, said Grotheer.

That proclamation will be restaged this weekend, along with a debate on the issue of loyalty, a portrayal of the raising of a militia force and the hanging of a tax collector.

The residents of Wormsloe, and the rest of Georgia, were split on the issues of the time, said Grotheer. Noble Wimberly Jones was so heavily involved in the patriot cause that he earned the nickname the “Morning Star of Liberty.” His father, Noble Jones, who settled Wormsloe in the mid-1730s, remained loyal to the crown.

The Habersham and Telfair families, along with many others in Savannah, were likewise rended by the revolution. The colony, after all, had been named for King George II, and its ties to the mother country proved difficult to break, said Grotheer.

The carefully researched and staged debate at Wormsloe will chart the colony’s path to the Declaration of Independence, and it will be followed by the public punishment of an ever-popular villain, a tax collector.

“They’ve been hated since biblical times,” Grotheer said.

Fallout from the housing bubble

2010-08-03T07:40:00.001-04:00

We seem to be hearing more lately on the enforcement side of the housing market.

Although the defendants have denied any wrongdoing, Countrywide has agreed to settle lawsuits with its shareholders for $600 million for misrepresenting the risks associated with its loose lending standards, according to the Los Angeles Times last night.

This follows last week’s announcement that Citigroup will settle with investors for $75 million over similar allegations.

California recently announced that it has revoked a record number of real estate licenses over the past year, because “The down turn in the real estate market has uncovered abusive practices which has caused the number of disciplinary actions to rise.” Mortgage loan modification fraud is being outpaced by short sale abuses according to the California Real Estate Commission.

In June, the U.S. Department of Justice announced an anti-fraud initiative called Operation Stolen Dreams to investigate and prosecute mortgage fraud.

According to the DOJ, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia is among the leaders of mortgage fraud prosecution. More on DOJ’s efforts in North Georgia, including brief summaries of recent mortgage fraud cases in Atlanta, Lithonia, and Dunwoody, can be found here.

10+ years of service!

2010-07-31T13:02:00.000-04:00

Two Revenue Division employees were honored earlier this summer for over ten years of service to the City of Decatur. Kate Hall and Gina Amos began working for the City over a decade ago in what was then called the “Tax Department” (now officially referred to as the Revenue Division). City Manager Peggy Merriss presented both employees with 10-year service pins and a certificate of recognition.

Kate Hall (above right) started working for the City in September 1999. Kate has an accounting degree from Bethune-Cookman College. She is our occupation tax expert, and is certified by GABTO and NBBLO, the state and national associations of business licensing officials. What Kate enjoys most about her job is working with seniors.

Gina Amos (above right), a Georgia native and a proud mother of three wonderful children, began as a temporary hire in September 1999 and became a permanent employee three months later. Gina has personal experience in real estate investment and foreclosed properties, and has received collections law training—both of which make her an asset to the office for property tax collections. Gina is co-chair of the entrepreneur club at Kingdom Building Ministries. What Gina likes the most about working for the City of Decatur is helping customers solve problems.

Although I’ve worked with them for only a portion of their careers with the City, I can say that Kate and Gina are both great to work with. Collecting taxes is challenging work, and it’s to Kate and Gina’s credit that they have persevered for over a decade. I may be their direct supervisor, but I have much to learn from them. To echo what Peggy said, thank you, Gina & Kate, for your service!

Potential tax credits for businesses

2010-07-23T07:06:00.000-04:00

In addition to collecting taxes, our office licenses local businesses and interacts with a lot of small business owners. This item in yesterday's Atlanta Business Chronicle may be of interest to several of them:

More than 84 percent of Georgia small businesses with fewer than 25 employees are eligible for tax credits to help pay the cost of employee health coverage, according to a report by Families USA and the small business advocacy group Small Business Majority.

In Georgia, 120,300 small businesses qualify for tax credits and 37,500 of them qualify for the maximum credit of 35 percent...

Read it all here.

Metro Atlanta foreclosures down

2010-07-12T07:43:00.000-04:00

Henry Unger at the AJC says foreclosures may be declining. From his "Biz Beat" this morning:

The foreclosure picture in metro Atlanta appears to be improving.

Foreclosure notices declined 25 percent in July when compared with June and 5.6 percent from a year ago, according to figures released Monday by Equity Depot.

Over the past two months, notices fell 6.8 percent compared with the same two months a year ago, Equity Depot data reveal...

Property tax collections drop nationwide

2010-07-06T07:32:00.000-04:00

Census data show that total property taxes collected across the country has declined for the first time since 2003. Even with the housing slump it takes valuations time to catch up with falling market values... The Tax Policy Blog has this take:

Tax revenues for state and local governments grew in the first quarter, according to newly released Census data for the first quarter of 2010 (historical table included). That's two quarters in a row of growth, possibly relieving a bit of the pressure that state and local governments have felt to raise taxes or lower spending. Among tax sources, individual income tax and general sales tax revenues were the gainers; corporate income tax revenue declined significantly, and property tax revenues declined slightly.

Even though the housing bubble popped in early 2008, starting a wave of foreclosures and rapid declines in housing values, local governments have mostly succeeded at keeping property tax revenue coming in by raising the rates. But the new Census data reveals that although the drop was slight, the 12-month total from March 2009 to March 2010 recorded the first decline in total property taxes since 2003.

Alert: Georgia in top 10 for mortgage fraud

2010-06-24T09:10:00.000-04:00

The FBI recently released its 2009 Mortgage Fraud Report. Georgia was one of the states with the highest amount of mortgage fraud according to law enforcement and industry data. The FBI considered factors such as the number of loan investigations by state, the number of reported misrepresentations during the loan process, the number of foreclosure filings, and the prevalence of debt elimination schemes.

Other states named included Illinois, California, Florida, Texas, New York, Maryland, Colorado, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.

In related news at last week’s World Elder Abuse Awareness Day Scam Jam 2010 in Decatur, state Attorney General Thurbert Baker warned the audience of mortgage debt elimination scams. Baker said that some elderly owners become so financially desperate that they hand over the deed to their house to con artists claiming that they can help. Owners end up with their equity stolen in the process.

Atty. Gen. Thurbert Baker warns of fraud at Scam Jam

Potential scams should be reported to authorities such as the DeKalb district attorney, the DeKalb solicitor’s office, the Attorney General, or the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs.

Benfield on “property tax waivers”

2010-06-22T14:52:00.000-04:00

LWV’s Voter Guide includes local candidates’ property tax positions

In questionnaires distributed to candidates for office, the League of Women Voters of Georgia asked, “What specific changes, if any, to property tax policy would you like to see?”

State Representative Stephanie Stuckey Benfield (D-House District 85), whose district covers parts of Decatur, gave one of the more provocative answers to the question of any local candidate for office, floating the idea of empowerment zones for depressed areas where property taxes could be waived. Here is her full response:

My district includes several neighborhoods that have been hard hit by the foreclosure crisis, so I'd work to enact changes in our tax policy to help those who are most in need. Some legislative ideas include: state rebates or tax credits for homeowners with modest incomes, property tax waivers in empowerment zones to attract new investors to hard hit communities, and encouraging more homeowners / renters to appeal their property tax assessments.

In response to the same question, Jason Carter (Democratic incumbent for Senate District 42) said he would like to see a bottom-up review of taxes in Georgia.

State Senator Steve Henson of North DeKalb says he would reinstate the HTRG property tax exemption. Henson is one of several politicians recently making a campaign issue out of the defunct exemption.

Decatur-area candidates Mary Margaret Oliver (Democratic incumbent in HD 83), Stacey Abrams (Democratic incumbent in HD 84), Tom Stubbs (Democratic challenger for SD 42), and Kenneth Quarterman (Republican candidate for HD 85) did not respond to the LWV survey questions.

Georgia's median property tax rate

2010-06-22T08:08:00.000-04:00

With a median property tax rate of a bit under 1 percent of home value, Georgia falls smack-dab in the middle of residential property taxes nationwide according to this Tax Policy Blog map published yesterday:

Avoid assessment scams

2010-06-15T07:09:00.006-04:00

The World Elder Abuse Awareness Day Scam Jam 2010 takes place today at the Decatur Active Living Center (231 Sycamore Street). The DeKalb County TRIAD event will provide information about scams and fraud to seniors.

Although property tax scams are somewhat rare, property owners should still be aware of recent developments in other states.

In March, Oregon property owners were flooded with solicitations to send in $189 fee to get your property taxes lowered. The letters were made to look like official government documents but were fake. The attorney general of Oregon issued a fraud alert to state residents. Fraudulent letters were also sent to cities in California in late 2009.

Although we have not heard of fraud like this recently in Georgia, we are likely to see an increase in the number of owners trying to appeal their taxes in 2011 because of assessment reform enacted by the state legislature. The new law will allow any property owner in Georgia to appeal their assessed value every year.

The new Georgia law may also result in an increase in the number of companies and consultants saying that they’ll help you file your appeal and reduce your assessment. While some of them may be true, be careful. Just remember:

You can file your own appeal for free
No government office in Georgia charges you a “service fee” to lower your assessment.
When in doubt, call. The City of Decatur tax office can be reached at 404-370-4100, and the DeKalb County tax commissioner’s number is 404-371-2000.

The city tax office will have a booth at the Scam Jam with information about homestead exemptions for the elderly.

Campaigning for a property tax exemption

2010-06-14T09:07:00.000-04:00

In what’s turning out to be a political hot topic leading up to the statewide elections this fall, another prominent politician has endorsed the restoration of the Homeowner Tax Relief Grant (HTRG). The HTRG was an exemption that Georgia homeowners received in addition to the basic homestead exemption. In Decatur the HTRG had reduced annual property taxes by about $250. The HTRG was basically eliminated by the Georgia General Assembly in 2009 until the economy rebounds.

Wayne Hill, who served as chairman of the Gwinnett County board of commissioners for years and was integral in developing the Republican Party in Gwinnett, is seeking nomination to run for state representative in the Sugar Hill area (District 98). Hill told the League of Women Voters, “I would like to reinstate the State credit on property taxes for all citizens of Georgia.”

Former governor and Democratic candidate for governor Roy Barnes has made similar statements. In radio ads, Barnes has said defunding the HTRG was “not right and it's not fair and when I'm Governor, it won't stand.”

If more and more candidates from both sides of the aisle continue running on this platform, it’s possible that we could see legislation during the 2011 session to amend the HB 143, the 2009 act that limited the circumstances under which the tax credit could be funded.

News roundup for homeowners

2010-06-11T08:10:00.000-04:00

Countrywide has been accused by federal authorities of collecting excessive fees from mortgage borrowers. On June 7, the AP reported that Bank of America, which bought out Countrywide, has reached a $108 million settlement to compensate the borrowers.
According to the AJC on Monday, “DeKalb County wants taxpayers to foot the bill to redevelop the sprawling GM plant in Doraville, a $36-million proposition.”
The Hill says that Congress is considering the elimination of the tax deduction for mortgage interest (h/t TaxProf Blog).
Zillow warns of “flopping”—an emerging form of short sale fraud.

School millage rates: some up, some down, says GSU

2010-06-10T08:11:00.000-04:00

At an Urban Institute conference in late May on the effects of the housing crisis on state and local governments, James Alm and David Sjoquist from Georgia State University gave a presentation entitled “Rethinking Local Government Reliance on the Property Tax.”

Alm & Sjoquist look at national property tax trends for the first half of their slides, but then focus on Georgia as a case study. One of their observations (on slide #22 of their presentation) is this table showing that declining property values have not caused an increase in the number of Georgia school districts increasing their millage rates:

However, it looks to me like an increasing number of school districts are no longer lowering their millage rates.

Their full PowerPoint presentation is available here.

Update on IRS evacuation

2010-06-08T14:02:00.000-04:00

TaxProf Blog gives the latest news links about the IRS mailroom grenade in Atlanta.

Evacuation near Atlanta IRS offices

2010-06-08T12:41:00.000-04:00

WSB 750 is reporting on air that the Peachtree Summit building is being evacuated because of a possible grenade onsite.

It may be totally unrelated, but the news caught my attention because the IRS has offices in that building, and we remember what happened in Texas earlier this year when a man flew an airplane into IRS offices in Texas.

Fox 5 has a photo of the evacuation on its website.

Tax-exempt musicians?

2010-06-08T07:55:00.000-04:00

In a case that could possibly affect property owners in Georgia whose tax-exempt status is murky, Athens-Clarke County is taking Nuci’s Space to court. (See this article from the Athens Banner-Herald.) Nuci’s operates a nonprofit venture for musicians but also stages for-profit concerts. They pay no property taxes, but Athens-Clarke argues that they should.

Meanwhile,the University of Georgia is being audited by the IRS for income from UGA’s non-educational ventures like its golf course. Athens-Clarke officials say the Nuci’s Space lawsuit would have no bearing on UGA because Georgia law is ironclad with respect to the non-taxability of schools. The outcome of the Nuci’s case should have no effect on educational, government, or religious institutions.

By the way, the largest tax exempt property owners in Decatur are DeKalb County, Agnes Scott, the City of Decatur, Columbia Seminary, the Decatur Housing Authority, DeKalb Medical, the First Baptist Church, Decatur First United Methodist Church, MARTA, and Decatur Presbyterian Church. Two final notes: 1) Decatur’s tax-exempt owners do pay stormwater bills and 2) they’re also some of the largest employers in town.

Assessment fairness under scrutiny

2010-06-04T14:22:00.002-04:00

The sunk housing market, studies by the Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership, a news expose about property assessments, publicity surrounding the assessment reforms of SB 346, and a class-action lawsuit in Fulton County have all highlighted the discrepancies between falling property values and rising or stagnant tax assessments in Georgia.

Nevertheless, some owners did not file property tax returns during DeKalb County’s January to March return season. (Or for that matter, throughout the state during the January to April return window of most counties.) What that means for owners who did not file a return is that no automatic review of the property’s value was initiated. Owners who did not file for a new value and who did not receive a notice of assessment change will retain their value from last year even though the market value may have declined.

Even the people who did file or who received a notice of assessment change for other reasons have begun questioning their assessor’s determinations. State Rep. Mike Jacobs has questioned the validity of change of assessment notices here in DeKalb. Jacobs and other critics have argued that the county ignored property returns and that they’ve proposed increased values despite a statewide freeze. Any defense of the county is likely to include the arguments that it is within the assessor’s authority to disagree with the returned value, and that property improvements are not subject to the freeze.

But leaving the legal wrangling aside for the moment, the most important and time-sensitive thing that property owners can do if they disagree with their new assessment is to appeal within 30 days of receiving their notice. If you did not receive a notice, you cannot appeal your value for 2010.

Although the City of Decatur tax office is not involved with assessments and we cannot change assessments, I strongly encourage any property owner in Decatur who believes their assessment to be out of line, but who has missed the deadline to appeal this year, to put a reminder to yourself on your calendar for 2011. The good news for Georgia property taxpayers is that because of SB 346 (which was signed by Gov. Perdue today), everybody will receive an assessment notice in 2011 meaning everybody will have the chance to appeal (even though this could have been done through the return process anyway). You don’t want to pay on the basis of a flawed assessment, and we have zero desire to bill you on that basis either.

Buying properties at tax sales

2010-06-03T07:04:00.001-04:00

A few items have popped up on the web recently about buying tax lien property in Georgia. The message board of auctions.org shows this unfair but entertaining exchange on May 15:

Q: I live in Ga. Does anyone know the process for acquiring tax lien property? The vacant lot next to me is going up for auction the first week in May because the owner has not paid his property taxes. Is it true that if I win the property through the bidding process, that the owner has at least a year in order to try and get the property returned to him?

A 1: loslunas87031 says:

have you ever been to a tax auction ? Its a zoo of idiots who watch too many late night tv infomercials, run the bids past market value and then realize they do not automatically own the property and the owner has up to several years to pay the tax and recover it.

A2: acermill says:

Yes, it is quite true. Georgia offers a one year redemption period for the delinquent taxpayer after the tax lien sale/auction. The delinquent payer need only pay the tax delinquent, plus a 20% penalty, and the ownership reverts to the original owner.

That conversation highlights the risks of buying properties at tax sale, but on May 22, http://www.financemoz.com/tax-liens-vs-tax-deeds-which-is-the-best-investment.html described the potential benefits:

If you are interested in either owning the property or getting a very good return on your investment and you live in or near a redeemable deed state, than you should consider investing in redeemable deeds. Redeemable deeds are kind of in-between tax liens and tax deeds. You purchase the tax deed at the sale, but there is a redemption period in which the previous owner can come back and redeem the deed from you. They have to pay a pretty hefty penalty in most redeemable deed states in order to do so, and the penalty is on the total amount that you bid at the sale. In Texas the penalty is 25% and in Georgia it’s 20%. Not a bad rate of return!

It should be kept in mind that whether it’s a good or bad investment, ultimately tax sales are unfortunate events. They signify that for whatever reason, somebody is in jeopardy of losing their own property, investment, or even their own home because they couldn’t pay the taxes.

Tax payments due today

2010-06-01T09:24:00.000-04:00

Property taxes are due today to the City of Decatur for the first installment of 2010. We honor postmarks. You can mail your payment to:

City of Decatur Lockbox
P.O. Box 945650
Atlanta, GA 30394-5650

Please enclose the payment stub of your tax bill with your mail, and write your real estate ID and tax year (2010) on your check. If you prefer, you can deliver your payment in person to 509 N. McDonough Street on the first floor of City Hall. If you bring in your whole tax bill, we’ll stamp the top portion as paid for your records. We don’t have a “drop box,” so please plan for parking accordingly.

First installment bills are based on 2009 DeKalb County property assessments. Your payment is due today even if your property value is under appeal with DeKalb County. If the county lowers your assessment in the 2010 digest we will receive from them this summer, your total year’s taxes will be recalculated during the second installment of 2010, and your first installment payment will serve as a credit against the tax total for the year.

Although payments are now due, there is a grace period up until June 15. A late penalty of 10 percent and a montly interest charge of 1 percent will be charged on unpaid amounts after that time.

State rep calls DeKalb's process "absurd"

2010-05-28T09:04:00.000-04:00

On his blog yesterday, State Rep. Mike Jacobs criticized DeKalb County's reassessment notices and offered guidance to property owners who have appealed their property values. Here’s an excerpt:

They’re at it again.

The DeKalb County Tax Assessors have sent out reassessment notices. Having received one this year, and having heard from many of my constituents who have received one, it appears that there is a common thread in this year’s crop of reassessments.

The common thread is that, if you filed a Form PT-50R Georgia Real Property Tax Return (click for an article that I previously wrote on how to file this form), the tax assessors included the amount that you provided on your Property Tax Return as the “previous year’s value” for the bygone 2009 tax year. Then, the assessors increased that amount to what had been your 2009 assessment amount, telling you that the old 2009 amount would be the “current year’s value” for the 2010 tax year.

The rest of Rep. Jacob’s commentary is available here. The City of Decatur receives all its property assessment values from DeKalb County.

Property taxes less popular than income tax

2010-05-25T05:09:00.000-04:00

According to an April 2010 compilation of public opinion data by the American Enterprise Institute, property taxes are among the least popular of all taxes, and are perceived as less fair than the income tax. Findings include:

“Thirty-six percent in February-March 2003 told Kaiser/NPR/Harvard that local property tax was the tax they disliked the most, followed by 29 percent who chose the income tax.”
“Gallup shows a substantial jump since the late 1980s in the proportion of people mentioning the local property tax as the worst or least fair tax.”
The March 2009 Harris/Tax Foundation poll found that 5 percent of people think local property taxes are “very fair,” 6 percent think it’s somewhat fair, 33 percent think it’s fair, 30 percent think it’s somewhat fair, and 25 percent think it’s “very unfair.”

Does this mean that property tax offices are more disliked than the IRS? Gulp.

Barnes scolds loss of HTRG

2010-05-20T05:06:00.001-04:00

In 2009 the Georgia General Assembly passed HB 143, which allowed for the funding of the Homeowner Tax Relief Grant for 2008 (which lowered the most Decatur homeowners’ tax bills by $252) but denied funding for 2009. Locally, this resulted in an effective tax increase of $252, although the Decatur City Commission simultaneously increased a low income, senior exemption which reduced taxes by $230 for qualified homeowners. HB 143 left the door open for funding the exemption in future years if state revenues increase 3 percent above inflation.

Former governor and gubernatorial candidate Roy Barnes has come out with an ad criticizing the legislature and the current governor for not funding the HTRG saying:

As Governor, we increased the homestead exemption to give everyone a property tax break. But the politicians under the gold dome took away our tax cut. So our taxes went up but the taxes of the special interest went down. That's not right and it's not fair and when I'm Governor, it won't stand.

Morris News Service reports that the ad is running in Savannah, Macon, Augusta, and Albany.

More Georgia school boards balance spending cuts and millage rates

2010-05-18T05:00:00.001-04:00

While Muscogee and Chatham County school districts are considering property tax hikes to deal with thorny school budgets, DeKalb County is looking at spending cuts instead.

The AJC has reported that in DeKalb, “The tax rate will remain at 22.98 mills, which is the third highest in Georgia for schools, board chairman Tom Bowen said.” Budget savings will include 289 cut jobs, bigger class sizes, teacher furloughs, and a pay cut for the county school board.

According to the Times-Georgian, Douglas County is also looking at teacher furloughs and a hiring freeze, although Douglas hasn’t ruled out a change to their millage rate.

It’s official: Governor signs HB 1055

2010-05-13T08:00:00.000-04:00

Gradually over the next five years, Georgia property owners will see the state’s portion of their county property tax bills eliminated. Like I projected before, this will save the typical owner about $30 a year once fully implemented. Since counties are responsible for collecting the state’s portion, City of Decatur residents will see no change to their city tax bill, but will see their DeKalb County tax bill lowered. This all assumes that there is no legal challenge to the law due to the lack of a fiscal note being attached to the bill during the legislative process.

Here are the details from BusinessWeek:

Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue has signed legislation that would increase dozens of Georgia user fees and slap a new tax on hospitals to help balance the state's struggling budget.

The legislation Perdue signed Wednesday would also cut taxes for property owners and upper-income senior citizens.

"Signing this bill ensures a balanced budget and lays the groundwork for economic recovery," the Republican governor said in a statement.

The tax cuts would phase in over five years and were tacked on during this year's legislative session to give some GOP legislators cover to vote for a controversial proposal to tax hospitals on their revenue. The additional money from the 1.45 percent tax on hospital revenue is to be funneled to Medicaid.

Lawmakers were struggling to close a $785 million budget shortfall for the fiscal year that starts July 1. It follows 15 months of plunging revenues.

Perdue had pushed both tax cuts in past years without success. Together, they'll mean the loss of $387 million in revenue when they are fully phased in by 2016.

The approved property tax cut would eliminate the state portion of property taxes. Perdue's office said savings would amount to roughly $31.50 a household…

Property taxpayer news

2010-05-11T08:28:00.000-04:00

The special election to fill state Senate District 42 is today. Decatur News Online has been covering the candidates’ positions including what their budget priorities would be during an era of dwindling tax revenues.

For his advocacy of SB 346, state Sen. Chip Rogers has been named legislator of the year by Georgia Property Taxpayers Committee. GaPTC also named Rep. Ed Lindsey.

In a class action securities fraud case, Countrywide has agreed to a $600 million settlement for misrepresenting the quality of its loan portfolio to investors. Until collapsing during the nationwide mortgage meltdown and being taken over by Bank of America, Countrywide was the biggest mortgage lender in America.

Proposition 13, California’s landmark 1978 measure that capped property tax assessments, and arguably inspired legislative reform proposals nationwide and in Georgia over the last several years (such as HB 233, HR1, and SB 346), is undergoing new scrutiny by lawmakers in Sacramento. Some critics have blamed property tax reforms for California’s fiscal problems.

Lawmakers tout assessment reform

2010-05-10T07:10:00.001-04:00

Early on during the 2010 legislative session, SB 346 faced opposition from some officials about allowing year-round assessments. Their argument was that it would be too difficult to budget for when you have an unknown number of people who could appeal their value at any given time. But after scrapping that part of the bill, the Senate passed the bill unanimously.

The House wasn’t completely satisfied with the language in the bill that came over to them. They cleaned up the legal wording, inserted clauses to encourage electronic notices of assessment, and changed the Senate’s proposal for property value arbitration. An overwhelming majority of representatives (137 to 7) voted for the House substitute.

Now, any initial disagreements appear to be water under the bridge as state legislators head back home to highlight legislative accomplishments during the 2010 session, especially SB 346. Here’s a sampling of what state legislators are telling their voters:

Sen. Bill Heath (R-Bremen) declared, “Georgia’s property owners triumphed with the overwhelming bi-partisan support of Senate Bill 346.”

Rep. Lee Thompson (D-Lawrenceville) announced to his constituents that SB 346 passed and “is aimed at protecting taxpayers from unfair assessments and guaranteeing the right to appeal.”

Sen. Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock), the architect of SB 346, calls it “a point of pride.” The Marietta Daily Journal reported, “Rogers said a point of pride is his Property Tax Assessment and Appeals reform bill, Senate Bill 346, which is aimed at ensuring all Georgia properties are properly assessed at fair market value and that property owners have guaranteed rights to appeal. Rogers called it the most sweeping overhaul of the Georgia property tax system in decades.”

Rep. Barbara Macey Reece (D-Menlo) used nearly identical language as Lee Thompson (I think this must come from some type of press release template) saying, “Lawmakers gave final passage to comprehensive property tax reform legislation April 29. SB 346 is aimed at protecting taxpayers from unfair assessments and guaranteeing the right to appeal. The bill requires that every property owner receive an annual Notice of Assessment that includes the estimated property tax and expands the appeal time from 30 to 45 days. All relevant sales, including distress sales, must be included when determining Fair Market Value.”

Rep. John Lunsford (R-McDonough) said, “In an effort to give greater rights to our property owners and to expand those rights, the legislature passed Property Tax Reform, Senate Bill 346. This bill will protect taxpaying property owners by guaranteeing their right to appeal assessments and protecting them from unfair tax assessments.”

Sen. Tommie Williams (R-Lyons) said, “SB 346 revises numerous provisions relating to real property tax assessments and appeals and is considered to be the most sweeping overhaul of Georgia’s property tax system in decades.”

But not all reviews have been so positive. As noted earlier, some property taxpayers themselves have been more skeptical about the provisions of the bill. Also, Brett Harrington, an appraisal professional and blogger at Taxing Issues, has expressed concerns that SB 346 may not be “pro-taxpayer.” In response to my comment about SB 346’s requirement to fix the purchase price of a property as its property value for tax purposes for one year, Harrington noted:

Regarding the purchase price requirement, I agree, it could be significant. However, I am not 100% sure it is entirely taxpayer friendly. In some respects it places an emphasis on the purchase price, which can be problematic. This has been the case in places like CA & OH. When it comes to commercial/industrial transactions, the purchase price is not always the best indicator of market value for property tax purposes.

I believe the annual notice requirement is a favorable requirement. However, I think that changing/eliminating the “annual return” requirement would be much better. Taxpayers can file a return annually to initiate an appeal, but most taxpayers do not know this. What about eliminating the return requirement and allowing taxpayers to appeal after they receive their tax bills? Not only would it provide the opportunity to appeal, it would also be more cost and time effective for the municipalities.

Harrington concluded that, “Overall, in my opinion, this bill constitutes tweaks far more than reform.”

Different counties, different sales tax rates

2010-05-07T07:09:00.000-04:00

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ran a lengthy piece on sales tax collections yesterday. They concluded with this handy rundown on sales tax rates in the metro Atlanta area and what they’re based on:

Paying the pennies

Here are the 1-cent state and local sales taxes charged in five metro Atlanta counties, plus Atlanta. Everyone pays 4 percent to the state, and local governments may add sales taxes of their own. A LOST is a local-option sales tax, and a SPLOST is a special local-option sales tax, which may be used for specific purposes such as building schools or roads. SPLOSTs may end or be replaced by other SPLOSTs, so these figures may change over time. Bear in mind that each county or city tax will go up another penny if voters approve the transportation tax in 2012.

Atlanta — 8 percent

4 percent local (the same three taxes as DeKalb or Fulton, plus a 1 percent sewer tax) and 4 percent state

Sales tax on $50 pair of shoes: $4

DeKalb County – 7 percent

3 percent local (education tax, a homestead tax and MARTA) and 4 percent state

Total sales tax on $50 pair of shoes: $3.50

Fulton County – 7 percent

3 percent local (education tax, LOST and MARTA) and 4 percent state

Total sales tax on $50 pair of shoes: $3.50

Clayton County – 7 percent

3 percent local (education tax, SPLOST and LOST) and 4 percent state

Total sales tax on a $50 pair of shoes: $3.50

Cobb County – 6 percent

2 percent local (education tax and SPLOST) and 4 percent state

Total sales tax on $50 pair of shoes: $3

Gwinnett County – 6 percent

2 percent local (education tax and SPLOST) and 4 percent state

Total sales tax on $50 pair of shoes: $3

Millage rates & public hearings

2010-05-06T07:46:00.000-04:00

Under certain circumstances, Georgia law requires public hearings before a change to the property tax millage rate can be adopted. News from Muscogee County (Columbus, Ga.) provides a good illustration of this. Muscogee’s school board, which oversees one of the biggest school districts in the state, recently proposed a millage rate increase of 1 percent.

If the Muscogee Board of Education had decided to keep total school tax revenues constant, they would have had to lower their millage rate (assuming their total property values have increased since the prior year’s digest). In that case, they could have simply adopted the lesser millage rate at any public meeting.

But if a taxing authority (school board, county commission, city council, etc.) decides to increase the millage rate, as in the case of Muscogee, or even hold the rate steady (which would lead to an increase in total taxes if total property values had risen), then they must hold three public hearings to give taxpayers a chance to speak their minds. That’s why Muscogee’s school board has already scheduled and advertised three meetings.

You may wonder how total property values can increase in the midst of a statewide freeze. Well, the freeze does not apply to new property developments and improvements to existing property. That means that city and county values could rise leading to roll-back rates that would require taxing authorities exceeding the roll-back rate to hold three public hearings first.

Judging from comments on the Columbus Ledger Enquirer about the Muscogee school board’s decision, many taxpayers down there will take advantage of the opportunity to participate in those hearings!

Chatham County (including Savannah), which also runs one of the biggest school districts in the state, is also considering a millage rate increase for its school system.

Income tax assistance

2010-05-04T07:12:00.002-04:00

The IRS has announced that 200 of its “taxpayer assistance” centers will be open for special hours from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 15 “to provide help to small business owners and individual taxpayers dealing with notices and payments, return preparation and a variety of other tax issues.” (Hat tip to Tax Policy Blog for announcing this.)

It might be a good idea to arrive early because the IRS’s press release says that “two-thirds” of taxpayers who showed up to their last Open House were assisted. I suppose the other third were either too late or turned away?

Anyhow, the closest IRS location to Decatur will be in downtown Atlanta at 401 W. Peachtree St. NW (ZIP code 30308) at the Peachtree Summit Building. (Other Georgia locations are listed here.)

For parking, it looks like the parking deck at 384 Peachtree Street is your best bet, or just ride to the Civic Center MARTA station.

Feeling under-taxed?

2010-05-03T08:29:00.001-04:00

State lawmakers passed a little noticed measure during the final days of the 2010 legislative session that would allow state income taxpayers to donate as much as they want into the state’s general fund. Filers have become used to seeing options to donate to earmarked funds like the Georgia Wildlife Conservation Fund and the Georgia Cancer Research Fund. For the first time, House Bill 1272 will allow general contributions beyond what your tax amount due.

The Athens Banner-Herald wrote a harsh rebuke of the bill on their editorial page today partly on the grounds that taxpayers would have no clear indication of what purpose their donation is actually funding.

Nonetheless, the measure obtained bipartisan support in the General Assembly, passing 145 to 6 in the Georgia House (including yea votes by Decatur-area representatives) and passing unanimously in the Georgia Senate. The legislation says that, “it is the policy of this state to enable and encourage citizens voluntarily to support the general welfare of the state.”

SB 346 awaits governor's signature

2010-04-29T17:59:00.001-04:00

The final version of SB 346 (which I’ve described and given updates on here, here, and here) passed the Georgia General Assembly today. The AJC’s Gold Dome Live blog gives this summary:

A long-promised property tax reform bill — promising annual assessments and longer appeal time — received final passage from the General Assembly Thursday.

“With the passage of SB 346, we will protect taxpayers from unfair assessments and guarantee the right to appeal,” Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock said). “While this is a huge victory for Georgia property owners, it’s only part of the solution to providing a system that actually works With the passage of SB 346, we will protect taxpayers from unfair assessments and guarantee the right to appeal.”

The bill, considered the most sweeping overhaul of Georgia’s property tax system, would:
Requirement that every property owner receive annual Notice of Assessment, which guarantees right to appeal
Every Notice of Assessment must contain estimated property tax
Expansion of appeal time-period from 30 to 45 days
Alternative streamlined appeal option for property valued in excess of $1,000,000
Automatic taxpayer victory on appeals when government fails to respond within 45 days
Requirement that all relevant sales, including distress sales, be included when determining Fair Market Value
Requirement that only “current use of property” be used in determining Fair Market Value
Taxpayer must be given access to all data used in determining Fair Market Value
Sales price establishes Fair Market Value for next tax year

Rep. Ed Lindsey (R-Atlanta), who squired the bill through the House, said before the House’s final vote Thursday that the bill should give “greater rights to our property owners when it comes to appeals."

Countrywide investigation “heating up”

2010-04-27T10:38:00.000-04:00

From the Wall Street Journal’s law blog on Apr. 18:

With all eyes on Goldman Sachs, it might be easy enough to overlook an investigation that seems to have moved well past where we are in the Goldman matter. The subject of that investigation: Countrywide Financial Corp. (now owned by Bank of America).

Things seem to be heating up in the federal investigation of Countrywide and what brought on the company’s collapse. According to a WSJ story out on Monday by John Emshwiller, federal criminal investigators looking into the collapse of Countrywide have been calling witnesses before a grand jury, say people familiar with the matter. That step suggests, of course, that the investigation of the one-time mortgage giant, which has been continuing for about two years, could be moving closer to a resolution.

According to Emshwiller’s story, the grand jury began hearing witnesses on the Countrywide case late last year, though isn’t known which individuals the Countrywide grand jury here is looking at or what potential crimes are being investigated.

In the Countrywide criminal probe, the calling of witnesses before a grand jury doesn’t mean that charges will be filed. However, it does appear to signify a pick-up in the tempo of a probe that previously hadn’t appeared to be moving very quickly.

In the meantime, the SEC’s suit against former Countrywide executives rolls on. The suit asserts that the three men, including former CEO Angelo Mozilo (pictured), defrauded investors by falsely claiming that Countrywide underwrote low-risk mortgages at a time when the company was getting into increasingly risky parts of the lending business, including so-called “subprime” mortgages made to less creditworthy borrowers.

The SEC additionally accuses Mozilo of insider trading of Countrywide stock. A trial in the case is scheduled for October. All three defendants vehemently deny any wrongdoing and say they plan to fight the SEC charges.

Tax legislation cast in doubt

2010-04-26T08:23:00.000-04:00

State Attorney General Thurbert Baker, who is also a candidate for governor, has determined the tax and fee bill that includes a five-year phaseout of the state’s portion of property taxes (HB 1055) may run into legal trouble. The AJC explained it this way on Apr. 21:

Baker questions legality of legislative action on tax break

By Aaron Gould Sheinin

Attorney General Thurbert Baker said Wednesday that Republicans in the House and Senate might have violated state law in approving a controversial $387 million tax break last week, but said it's difficult for him to determine if courts would rule against lawmakers.

Baker said it "appears" Republican leadership "has not strictly adhered to the procedures imposed on itself by statute," according to a letter the attorney general sent to House Minority Leader DuBose Porter (D-Dublin).

Porter said Wednesday that Baker's letter "clearly indicates they did not follow the law." House Speaker David Ralston (R-Blue Ridge) and Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle declined comment on Baker's letter, which does not have the power of law.

But, should the new law be challenged in court and overturned, it would throw the 2011 state budget out of balance, leading to up to an additional $100 million in cuts.

Porter had asked Baker for an official opinion of the General Assembly's action last week in approving a bill, HB 1055, that originally featured nearly $100 million in fee increases. But when the bill hit the House floor last week, Republican leaders amended it to include a tax cut for wealthy retirees and a phaseout of the small property tax bill that goes to the state.

Seniors and property owners wouldn't see any savings before January 2012 and wouldn't get the full benefit of the tax breaks until January 2016, when fully phased in.

Porter and other Democrats argued that state law says no bill that has a "significant impact on the anticipated revenue or expenditure level of any ... state agency" can be considered by the House or Senate if it is introduced after the 20th day of the legislative session. The law also requires an official estimate, known as a fiscal note, of a bill's impact on state revenues.

The bill was approved in the House and Senate on April 15, the 36th day of the 40-day session. It was introduced well before the 20th day, but no fiscal note was included. The bill passed largely along party lines as Democrats questioned whether the bill was legal as amended. Both Ralston and Cagle overruled Democrats' objections and said the bill was allowable.

"The apparent failure of the General Assembly to adhere to laws generally applicable here raises significant legal questions that could result in challenges to the process engaged by the Legislature," said Baker, a Democrat seeking the party's nomination for governor. Porter is one of his four opponents in the Democratic primary.

But Baker said the "ultimate question ... is whether a court would determine there exists a substantive remedy for the failure to follow the procedural requirements established" in state law.

Baker said he has not been privy to what legal advice Cagle and Ralston received in ruling the bill allowable, so "it is impossible for me to ascertain whether or not their decision making was consistent" with state law.

Baker noted, however, that the state Supreme Court has ruled that the lack of a fiscal note on a bill signed into law does not necessarily mean the bill is unconstitutional.

One final note—although the reduction in your tax bill offered by this legislation would vary based on your property value, I’ve estimated that the typical Decatur homeowner would see their DeKalb County tax bill decrease by about $30 over the next five years.

Readers write: exemptions questions

2010-04-23T07:37:00.000-04:00

In response to my “Where is my exemption?” post, reader John Rose asked the following questions:

A few questions for you about exemptions, Russ:

1) Which of the eight exemptions listed on the city website are actually city laws (vs. state laws)?

2) How many people on average take advantage of each of those exemptions?

3) How much of an impact do each of those exemptions have on the city's tax revenues?

Good questions!

First, the Homestead Tax Relief Grant (HTRG), the exemption for residents over 62 with income less than $10,000 (S-1), and the exemption for disabled veterans come from general legislation that is applicable statewide. Currently the HTRG is not being funded by the state, so there are really only seven “active” exemptions.

The Georgia General Assembly passed local legislation which allowed for referendums and approval by a majority of Decatur voters for each of the other five exemptions: the basic homestead exemption (GH-1), the exemption for being age 65 or older (GH2), the exemption for being older than 62 with an income of less than $30,000 (GS-1), the exemption for being over 80 with less than 40,000 in income (S-2), and the exemption for residents over 70 (S-3).

To answer your other questions, this chart shows a very rough estimate of how many property owners benefit from these exemptions and approximately how much each exemption reduces tax bills by over the course of a year:

Of course those numbers fluctuate depending on the digest value, who’s aging and applying for additional exemptions, who’s moving out, and changes in the millage rates. There are also tax exempt properties like churches and homeowners who are on “year support” or deferment. Altogether, taxes are reduced by about $2½ million a year because of these exemptions (which includes the city and the school system taxes). More details on who’s eligible for these exemptions and how they’re calculated is available here.

I hope those answers help, and keep’m coming!

Property assessment bill advances

2010-04-22T08:52:00.000-04:00

SB 346 passed the state House yesterday. The Macon Telegraph ran this Associated Press story about the bill:

ATLANTA -- The House has approved a wide-ranging overhaul of property taxes in Georgia.

The bill's supporters say it's designed to create uniformity in the way homes are taxed and to give homeowners access to more information.

It passed the House 137-7 on Wednesday.

The bill requires that homes be assessed every year. It extends the appeals process from 30 to 45 days and requires that all comparable sales, including bank sales and foreclosures, must be applied when officials set an assessed value.

The bill has already passed the state Senate but the House made minor changes so it must return there for another vote.

State Rep. Ed Lindsey, an Atlanta Republican, said the bill would create transparency and fairness.

The Senate passed an earlier version of the bill unanimously in March. There were a couple of nay votes on the bill in the House. Among the lawmakers who represent portions of the City of Decatur, Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver voted yes, Rep. Stephanie Stuckey Benfield voted yes, and Rep. Stacey Abrams did not vote.

After the Senate passes this new amended version of the bill, it goes to the governor’s desk.

It should be noted that saying the bill “requires that homes be assessed every year” is misleading. The bill doesn’t require annual appraisals; it requires that notices of assessment be sent annually.

One property, two freezes

2010-04-20T07:11:00.001-04:00

The April edition of the Oakhurst Leaflet included a nice, short piece by Greg Wilkinson entitled, “Didn’t House Bill 233 freeze my property value?”

Mr. Wilkinson wrote, “Most homeowners are probably aware of Georgia HB 233, which was supposed to freeze your property value so the tax assessor can’t raise it while we are in this sour market. On the surface this is true, but there are caveats in the bill that allow the tax assessor to raise your property values should it meet certain criteria.”

Indeed, several exceptions to the statewide freeze bear mentioning. 1) First and foremost is the exception for improvements made to the property. The law says, “Additions or improvements to property…shall be added to the owner’s valuation amount…” 2) Counties may also correct errors in the digest during the freeze. 3) There is also an exception for counties which had begun a “comprehensive county-wide revaluation of all properties in the county” prior to the bill’s passage, (which is why Bibb County, for example, has been in the news here and here for a revaluation that may lead to higher property values in Macon even in the midst of a statewide value freeze.)

As noted in the Leaflet, the statewide freeze in HB 233 expires in 2011.

Just to amplify on that aspect of the article, I’d like to note that HB 595, a piece of local legislation passed by the General Assembly in 2006, authorized a ballot question to let DeKalb residents vote to approve a DeKalb-specific freeze. HB 595’s freeze was approved by 80 percent of voters that fall, but that freeze also expires in 2011.

Because HB 595 is expiring, the state House has approved HB 1320 during the current legislative session. HB 1320 would extend DeKalb County’s freeze “indefinitely.” But the scuttlebutt is that the Senate will probably amend HB 1320 to make it simply another 5 year extension, presumably 2012 to 2016.

Unlike the statewide freeze that puts the burden on county assessors to freeze the value, HB 1320 requires property owners to apply for the freeze. More details and restrictions on DeKalb’s freeze are available on their tax commissioner’s website.

Property assessments in a down market

2010-04-19T08:21:00.001-04:00

All counties in Georgia are subject to the same state laws regarding property assessments for taxes. Although this story in today’s news from coastal Georgia is about Glynn County, the article does a good job of explaining why county assessments in Georgia may not capture the full decline in a property’s fair market values even when real estate is weak.

“Property tax digest may see little change”

4/19/2010

By NEVIN BATIWALLA The Brunswick News

Some homeowners hoping for property tax relief may be in for a rude awakening next month when Glynn County releases new property valuations.

While a small number of homes will drop in value, resulting in lower tax bills for owners, thousands of parcels won't dip in value at all.

How can that be when it seems almost everyone's house has lost value in an unprecedented nationwide real estate meltdown?

To determine what a house is worth, the county uses a complex mathematical system based heavily on sale prices of other houses in a neighborhood.

In years with a lot of sales, it works well because appraisers have more data from which to calculate a more accurate value for similar houses.

But when houses are not selling, as in today's weak housing market, it becomes more difficult to determine a true value.

"Our system doesn't work as well in low sales," County Chief Appraiser Bobby Gerhardt said.

As a result, homeowners in neighborhoods in which no houses have been sold will likely see no change in their values, he said.

A tide of foreclosures rolling over the area - which real estate agents say subsequently account for a significant number of sales at bargain prices - likely will have no effect on surrounding values.

In most cases, foreclosures in a neighborhood are not factored in when the county determines a value for a house.

The county considers a foreclosure to be an anomaly that doesn't reflect the true market of an area. Only when foreclosures make up all the sales in a neighborhood are they taken into consideration, Gerhardt said.

County Commissioner Don Hogan accepts Gerhardt's explanation, but said a lot of residents who are struggling during a weak economy won't understand why their property tax bills are not going to decline…

Read the rest of the article here. One thing that the story doesn’t mention is that SB 55 was passed by the Georgia General Assembly last year, which required county assessors to “consider” foreclosures when determining property values. SB 346, the property valuation bill before the General Assembly this year, would amend that language to say that assessors must use that criterion in the valuation process, not just “consider” it.

In Decatur, property values are overseen by the DeKalb County property appraisal department.

Decatur Tax Blog in the news

2010-04-16T08:52:00.000-04:00

Decatur News Online has published an article entitled “City's Tax Blog Seeks To Keep Residents in the Loop” spotlighting this blog (and myself). Take a look! Decatur News Online is also one of the local websites on our blogroll.

Incidentally, DNO publisher Geoff Koski and I were both recent graduates of Decatur 101, which--if you haven’t taken that class--is a terrific way of learning more about City operations and how your tax dollars are spent! If you’re interested in the 2011 class, read more about it here, and sign up early since there’s always a waiting list.

Legislative action on property taxes

2010-04-15T11:08:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was a busy day at the state capitol. Amidst a flurry of legislation being considered during the final days of the session, the Georgia General Assembly moved closer toward enacting two property tax related measures.

One bill would phase out of state’s share of property tax collections over the next five years. (The Senate had already passed SB 517 which would have ended the state’s portion immediately, but that bill looks moot now.) According to the Macon Telegraph, the newly proposed five-year phase out was tacked on to a bill about license plate and poultry inspection fees (HB 1055), and was designed in part to make the state budget more palatable to lawmakers.
SB 346, which would reform property valuations and appeals, was approved by the House Ways & Means Committee. The committee made several revisions including 1) improved legal wording of the bill, 2) requiring annual assessment notices but moving the notification date to July, 3) giving the option of sending assessment notices electronically if the jurisdiction is able to and the taxpayer chooses to, and 4) changing the arbitration process. Now the bill moves to the Rules Committee to be scheduled for a floor vote in the House.

My prior posts about the state’s share of property tax revenues is here and details about SB 346 are here.

Tip for homeowners & last-minute filers

2010-04-14T08:19:00.000-04:00

With federal income tax returns due tomorrow, I'm sure that most homeowners in Decatur have already completed their returns and claimed the interest paid on their mortgage loan as an itemized deduction. I ran across this article from Bankrate.com by Kay Bell who did a great job of explaining that tax breaks are also available to homeowners even if they only claim the standard deduction:

Homeownership offers many tax benefits. But recently, laws have been modified so that two home-related costs -- private mortgage insurance and property tax payments -- get special treatment at tax-filing time.

Real estate taxes have always been part of property ownership, as well as a valuable tax break for owners who itemized. Now some homeowners can add at least a part of their property tax payments into their standard deduction amount.

Another common home cost is private mortgage insurance, or PMI. This PMI is a policy that, as a homebuyer, you pay for, but it protects your lender in case you default. Homebuyers who don't put at least 20 percent down when they purchase a residence usually have to buy PMI. And some of those folks now can deduct that cost.

Property tax additions

Many homeowners itemize because they have substantial enough mortgage interest and property tax amounts to exceed their standard deduction amount. But in some cases, such effort isn't worth it.

Standard deduction amounts have increased over the last few years as part of tax-law changes. Those figures then are bumped up each year to reflect inflation. That means that some homeowners, such as longtime residents who've paid down their loan and don't have much in the way of mortgage interest anymore, don't have enough expenses to itemize.

Because it isn't worthwhile to itemize, these folks then lose the tax break offered by their property taxes. Not anymore.

Now homeowners who claim the standard deduction can add at least some of their property tax payments to their tax return's standard amount.

Single homeowners (which includes those who've never married, a married taxpayer filing separately, as well as heads of households) can add up to $500 of property tax payments to their standard deduction amounts. Married taxpayers who file a joint return can add up to $1,000 to their standard deduction.

To include the property tax amounts in your standard deduction, you'll need to file Schedule L.

Making your PMI claim

For most property owners who pay PMI premiums, the insurance is simply part of the price of owning a home. But some homeowners who purchased their primary residences or second homes in 2009 can claim a tax deduction on PMI premiums.

This tax break was tucked into the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 and originally applied to policies on home loans taken out in 2007. As the housing market continued to sag, Congress extended this tax break to certain premiums paid through 2010.

The tax deduction can be taken for policies issued by private insurers as well as insurance provided by the Federal Housing Administration, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Rural Housing Administration.

Claiming the deduction is easy. Most homeowners are already familiar with Schedule A, the form on which itemized expenses are claimed. The second section of that form, titled "Interest You Paid," is where mortgage interest and loan points are claimed, specifically on line 13.

Your lender also helps out when it comes to reporting PMI amounts. In box 4 of your Form 1098 (or the substitute year-end loan information statement your lender uses), you'll find the amount of PMI premiums you paid last year as part of your home payments…

To read about additional restrictions and rules about claiming the PMI deduction, read the rest of the article here.

One final note about your federal income tax. We sometimes get people during tax season coming to our office asking for federal tax forms or trying to turn their income tax payment to us. Sorry, but we can only accept local taxes and fees. But the Decatur post office will be open to take all of our federal tax returns.

State proposal offers slight reduction to total tax

2010-04-13T08:53:00.002-04:00

The Georgia General Assembly is back from a two week recess and in the homestretch of their 2010 legislative session. Before their break, the state Senate passed SB 517, which would eliminate the state’s portion of property tax bills in Georgia. If this measure passes the House and is signed by the governor, what this would mean for Decatur residents is a reduction of one-quarter mill from their DeKalb County tax bill.

Let’s say your total value is $275,000 and your DeKalb County 40 percent taxable assessment is $110,000. The state millage rate is 0.25 mills (keeping in mind that a mill means one one-thousandth). To calculate how much your bill would be reduced by, you would multiply your taxable assessment by one one-thousandth by the millage rate.

The $27.50 tax reduction in this example would be more or less depending on the taxable value of your property.

DeKalb County bills and collects the state’s share of your property taxes, not the City of Decatur. Since we do not bill for state taxes, there would be no change in your city taxes if this legislation passes.

Is my value correct? Reading your tax bills

2010-04-12T09:30:00.002-04:00

DeKalb County determines the fair market value (also referred to as your “100 percent value, ” “appraised value” or “total value”) of the properties in DeKalb County including properties within the city limits of Decatur.

State law establishes that counties’ property taxes are levied against 40 percent of the total value. This is known as your “assessed value,” “taxable value,” or your 40 percent “assessment.” Municipal governments may apply different assessments depending on the city ordinances.

As authorized by state law and city ordinances, Decatur uses a 50 percent assessment. We start with DeKalb County’s “total value.” For example, if your total value on DeKalb’s website is $250,000, DeKalb will tax you on $100,000 of that as shown on one of their tax bills:

The City of Decatur would also start with $250,000, but would tax you on $125,000:

This is why your taxable value for Decatur won’t match your taxable value for DeKalb. Please also note that the city does not have its own appraiser or assessor and cannot change your assessment. More information about property assessments, appeals, and billing is available on our homepage.

Grace period expires for business license fees

2010-03-31T18:42:00.002-04:00

City of Decatur business license payments were due by Jan. 31, but the City provided a 90-day grace period before late fees are added.

That grace period expires on April 30, and penalties will be applied against businesses that haven’t paid by the end of this month.

Also due with the payment is an affidavit verifying the business license applicant's legal status in the United States. This is a new requirement for 2010 under the state law of Georgia.

For more information about business licensing in Decatur, please visit this page of the City’s website.

Where is my exemption? Reading your tax bill

2010-03-30T19:43:00.000-04:00

Decatur property owners should receive their first installment 2010 property tax bills in the mail today or tomorrow. The most common question we receive is whether or not you have the homestead exemption, and where it’s reflected on your bill.

If you have the homestead exemption, the taxable value of your home is reduced by $20,000 across three different “funds” on your tax bill as follows in this example:

If you see those $20,000 figures, you have the homestead exemption. If you have more exemptions because of age and income, those figures will be larger. If the exemptions column shows all zeroes, there is no exemption on your account.

For this installment, the basic homestead exemption reduces your tax bill by $115.95 (regardless of your assessed value).

Sticking with the example in the graphic, assume that the DeKalb County property appraisal department determined that the value of your home is $200,000. The City of Decatur applies a 50 percent assessment of $100,000. With the homestead exemption, your City of Decatur property tax bill for the first installment of 2010 would be $1,833.80. Without the homestead exemption, it would be $1,949.75.

For more information you can read the tax insert we sent with your bill or, as always, you can contact us directly for help.

Get Some Green for Going Green: GA Power Home Performance with Energy Star

2010-03-25T12:24:00.007-04:00

This is the second post regarding tax incentives that are available for Decaturites that are "going green." This information is brought to you by the Decatur Environmental Sustainability Board. You can read our last post about the Georgia Appliance Rebate Program by clicking HERE.

Georgia Power- Home Performance with Energy Star Rebate Program
Georgia Power offers up to $1900 in rebates to customers who hire "Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Contractors" to make energy efficiency improvements in their homes. These contractors are certified by the Building Performance Institute and are registered with Georgia Power as participating contractors.

How does the process work?

First customers must chose a contractor from Georgia Power's list of Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Contractors.
GA Power customers are pre-screened by discussing the program with a contractor.
After the pre-screening process, the contractor will determine if a Home Performance assessment is the next step.

Once it is determined that a Home Performance assessment is appropriate:

The customer and contractor agree to the initial Home Performance assessment and all contractor fees. Necessary appointments are set.
The contractor meets the customer at their home to perform the Home Performance assessment, which covers: a visual walkthrough, a diagnostic analysis, and a list of necessary improvements.
Once assessment is complete, the customer is responsible for paying the contractor the total cost of The Home Performance assessment. The cost of the comprehensive home assessment varies between contractors. Please ask your contractor about the comprehensive home assessment fee.
Once the work is complete and the customer has paid the contractor, the contractor submits the rebate forms to Georgia Power on behalf of the customer for the corresponding rebates.

Rebates are offered in the following amounts for a variety of improvements:

For more information, please visit: http://www.georgiapower.com/energystar/home_performance.asp

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Lena Stevens
Resource Conservation Coordinator
lena.stevens@decaturga.com
City of Decatur, Georgia

Less property tax, more sales tax?

2010-03-22T09:27:00.000-04:00

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Jim Galloway predicts that state leaders are trying to engineer a shift away from property taxes toward a system that relies more heavily on sales taxes. Here’s an excerpt from Galloway’s “Political Insider” article:

Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) gave strong hints of how Georgia’s tax burden is likely to shift. “We have a broken property tax system that’s a relic of a 19th-century agrarian economy,” he said. Rogers thinks the state’s income tax is too closely tied to unemployment to be reliable. He and other Republicans have been eager to dump the corporate income tax for years.

Which leaves an obvious target. “We have a sales tax system that exempts more products and services than it actually taxes,” Rogers said.

And that brings us back to 78-year-old Zell Miller, whom the lawmakers want to join Perdue [see my post about the proposed tax study commission--RM] in the tax rewrite. Why?

Because Miller knows the state budget and is not tied up in a political campaign, said House Majority Leader Jerry Keen (R-St. Simons Island). But Keen was being disingenuous.

The Capitol’s GOP leadership wants Miller for two reasons. First, among Republicans, the former governor and senator is a living saint. Secondly, Miller is an essential part of Georgia’s tax history.

Fourteen years ago, Miller pushed through the sales tax exemption on food. A sales tax on food is the kind of reliable revenue stream that Wall Street respects. Taxes on real estate are vulnerable to bubbles. People without jobs don’t pay income taxes. But everyone has to eat.

And if Republicans want to reinstate the sales tax on food, it would be nice to have an endorsement from the man who lifted it.

Georgia tax tinkering

2010-03-18T18:38:00.004-04:00

If the recently introduced House Bill 1405 is passed by the Georgia General Assembly, a new commission adopted by the state may lead to a “total overhaul” of Georgia’s tax system. Here’s the story from yesterday’s Augusta Chronicle:

ATLANTA -- A bill introduced this week with the support of Senate and House leaders sets the framework for a systematic study of Georgia's tax system this summer and fall by a blue-ribbon committee and creates an extraordinary mechanism for submitting any recommendations it may produce to next year's Legislature.

Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle and House Speaker David Ralston have a morning news conference planned at the Capitol to outline their thinking for the proposal.

House Bill 1405 makes no mention of the state's current budget problems but potentially provides a path lawmakers can travel if they wish to make fundamental, long-term changes and gives them a fall-guy to blame (a blue-ribbon commission) if the political fallout is too hot.

The bill, first of all, creates an entity to be known as the 2010 Special Council on Tax Reform and Fairness for Georgians. Its job is to conduct a thorough study of the current revenue structure and to report its findings to the speaker of the House and the lieutenant governor no later than Jan. 10, 2011.

Click here to read the full story. State Rep. Larry O’Neal says the proposal would not affect local taxes. That being said, I think the commission would have the authority under the current wording of the bill to review property taxes because those are part of the state’s total revenue structure.

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House bill could affect tax revenues

2010-03-18T09:47:00.000-04:00

House Bill 1093 passed the Georgia House of Representatives yesterday. The bill would allow cities and counties to provide the state Department of Revenue with information about its licensed businesses. DOR would use this information to uncover businesses that are not complying with sales tax laws. From the Rome News-Tribune:

Legislation passed by the House on Wednesday would let the Georgia Department of Revenue compare local business license lists against its list of companies sending in sales tax collections.

A pilot program in four counties and their cities last year turned up hundreds of businesses that were either operating without remitting sales tax to the DOR or paying the sales tax without being registered locally.

House Bill 1093 would let local jurisdictions opt to send their lists to the state for crosschecking.

State Rep. Katie Dempsey, R-Rome, said the principle is sound.

“If everyone pays their fair share of taxes and those taxes are remitted as they should be, it will certainly reduce the shortfall we’re experiencing in this economic crisis,” Dempsey said.

The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration...

The current language of the bill makes participation optional for cities and counties. The governing authority, in our case the Decatur City Commission, could pass a resolution enabling my office to send a business report to the state.

However, the legislation does not authorize DOR to provide local governments with any of its tax information. State Democrats have argued that if DOR provided cities and counties with sales tax data, local officials could pursue businesses that have sales tax certificates but who don’t have business licenses. Earlier versions of the bill required cities and counties to provide the data, but this appears to be strictly optional.

Lawmakers point to a pilot program in four counties that showed potential tax revenue of $100 to $300 million. However, I believe that assumption is based on 100 percent participation by local governments, and not all local governments will agree to provide this information to DOR.

Get Some Green for 'Going Green'- Georgia Appliance Rebate Program

2010-03-16T18:04:00.010-04:00

Going green is getting cheaper thanks to tax incentives available through the federal and state government, as well as through Georgia Power. If you have been thinking about getting a new programmable thermostat or adding insulation... now is the time!

The City of Decatur's Environmental Sustainability Board has researched the incentives that are available to our residents for energy efficiency improvements to their homes, and I will be sharing this information with you over the next several days.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Lena Stevens
Resource Conservation Coordinator
lena.stevens@decaturga.com
City of Decatur, Georgia

Incentive Name: Georgia Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program

Description:

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 appropriated funds to each state for the establishment and administration of appliance rebate programs. The amount available to Georgia residents is $8,642,490. This is a first-come-first-served rebate program launching February 12, 2010. Georgia residents who replace an existing appliance with a new ENERGY STAR qualified appliance purchased after February 12, 2010, are eligible to apply for the rebate. Approved applicants will receive a Visa® Prepaid Card via mail. ENERGY STAR appliances eligible for the program include clothes washers, dishwashers, air conditioners, heat pumps, furnaces, water heaters, refrigerators and freezers. Purchases made prior to February 12, 2010 will not be eligible.

What products are eligible?

>Click HERE for a complete list of eligible items.

Clothes Washer- $50 or $99

Dishwasher- $50 or $99

Refrigerators- $50

Central Air Conditioners- $99

Gas Furnace- $199

Solar Hot Water Heater- $199

Who is eligible?
Georgia residents with a valid residential address who purchase a qualified ENERGY STAR appliance from a Georgia retailer will be eligible to receive the assigned rebate for that appliance. Rebates are limited to one rebate per appliance type per household. For example, a consumer who purchases two of the same appliance would qualify for only one rebate, but a consumer who purchases two different appliances would qualify for two separate rebates. Separate rebate applications must be completed for each appliance purchased. The maximum rebate limit per household is $1,200.

How can I make sure there are still funds available for rebates?
Consumers and/or retailers can confirm the availability of the remaining $8.6 million rebate funds by checking www.GeorgiaRebate.com or by calling toll-free 1-866-296-1633. The Web site and phone number will provide a current estimate of the remaining rebate funds in the program and the approximate number of days until funding is depleted. The rebates will be awarded on a first-come-first-serve basis until the funding is depleted.

How do I apply?

Follow these steps in order:
1. Check the availability of funds at http://www.georgiarebate.com/ or by calling 1-866-296-1633. The rebate funds that remain are updated automatically as applications are received.

2. Buy a new ENERGY STAR qualified appliance to replace an existing appliance. Georgia residents are required to buy from Georgia retailers. Online and out-of-state purchases do not qualify. Purchases made before February 12, 2010, are not eligible for the rebate.

3. Arrange to remove and recycle the replaced appliance. Retailers can provide assistance with
recycling options.

4. Apply for a rebate online at http://www.georgiarebate.com/ or by calling 1-866-296-1633. You will need the receipt from your appliance purchase to complete the application. Print the application confirmation page and mail it with the sales receipt within 30 days of your online application. Phone applicants will receive the application confirmation page by mail and then mail it with the sales receipt within 30 days of the phoned application.

Receiving Your Rebate
Once the rebate claim is physically received and the receipt is verified, the customer's rebate will be approved and payment will be mailed. Rebates will be issued in the form of a Visa® Prepaid Card preloaded with the rebate amount and should be received by the customer within 2-3 weeks from time the required forms and receipts were mailed.

Mixed reaction to SB 346

2010-03-15T09:00:00.003-04:00

The passage of Senate Bill 346 has elicited strong reactions over on the AJC’s “Gold Dome Live” blog. Some readers are thrilled about the bill; some see it as useless. Here’s a sampling:

Munroe Burbank: "This is not good, and has absolutely nothing to do with lowering taxes. Sure, these days, assessments probably show a downward trend because of housing market crisis, but this won’t last forever. I was assessed every 3 – 4 years from 1996 – 2006, and each time my taxes went up because the value of my property went up. Once the economy is back on its feet and real estate values rebound, this yearly assessment will amount to an annual property tax increase."

RSJ: “SB346 is a very good piece of legislation. It adds transparency to the assessment process and removes the need for filing a return to initiate an assessment appeal. Prior to this law, if the County elected not to send a taxpayer an assessment notice, the taxpayer had no appeal remedy for the current years’ assessment, unless they went to the County between Jan and March or April and filed a form called a real property tax return. Guess what – 99% of the citizens of this state had no idea that this was the process and thus when their tax bill came in the mail, there was no recourse. Now, at least the taxpayer will be formally notified each and every year what their assessment will be and it will be up to them to take action as to whether or not they feel an appeal is warranted. SB346 has some components that are not perfect but, overall, it is a solid example of our elected offficials acting as good legislators instead of just good politicians.”

“None Supporter of SB346”: “This legislation is a tool to force county assessors [sic] office to go broke so that the state can eliminate property taxes in each county, take over pushing for a state sales tax increase so that they control how much money goes to each county. Remeber [sic] folks, the propery [sic] tax bill you now pay is arrived at the amount of dollars it takes to run your county divided by the total assessment of the county. Now, take that away and you sales taxes will surely skyrocket! Then the political game of who and what county receives the sales tax collected, oh, wait, the state still owes the counties of Georgia millions of collected sales taxes in error already, cough up please Mr. Sonny.”

Read all the comments for yourself here.

Senate passes property assessment bill

2010-03-12T09:18:00.001-05:00

The state Senate passed SB 346 yesterday by a 54-0 vote.

Sen. Ronald Ramsey (D), who represents a portion of DeKalb County, told the Atlanta Business Chronicle that “This bill is taxpayer relief. It will restore people’s faith in government.”

The bill would set the sale price of a home as the fair market value for tax purposes for one year following the sale. The legislation would also require counties to mail out assessment notices annually, which would give property owners the chance to challenge their assessments, and would extend the window to appeal to 45 days.

Here are more details from the Macon Telegraph:

ATLANTA — The state Senate approved a major overhaul to Georgia’s property tax system Thursday, continuing a multi-year effort to hold down the taxes local governments depend on and homeowners seem to hate.

Senate Bill 346, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers, passed unanimously and moves now to the House of Representatives, where similar reforms also are popular. Rogers’ bill includes dozens of changes, but the idea behind them is to keep property assessments from ballooning.

Those assessments — basically an estimation of a home or other property’s value — are used in conjunction with local millage rates to figure annual tax bills. But as the mortgage crisis has forced home values down, assessments haven’t kept pace, leaving many people feeling their property taxes are unfairly high. Rogers’ bill requires that assessment notices be sent to property owners every year. It extends the appeals process from 30 to 45 days and requires that all comparable sales, including bank sales and foreclosures, must be applied when officials set an assessed value.

It also locks in a home’s assessed value for one year after it sells.

Other property tax legislation is moving forward in the House, aimed at capping the annual increase in a home’s tax value, regardless of what the housing market does. House Resolution 1 and House Bill 517, both of which deal with such caps, passed the House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday.

Efforts to cap assessment growth failed last year, but House Republicans are pushing the matter again. Rogers’ reforms seem to have wider appeal. For example, Democrats who blocked House Resolution 1 last year have said they won’t fight Rogers’ bill.

The bill is expected to receive bipartisan support in the state House.

3rd Annual Citizen Survey

2010-03-09T14:47:00.007-05:00

The City of Decatur wants to know what citizens really think about their community life and municipal government. Such input helps the City Commission make better-informed decisions and enables city staff to provide quality services that meet real community needs.

To gather such information and insights directly from citizens, the City (with the help of the National Research Center) randomly selected a number of Decatur households to participate in our 3rd citizen survey. If you were selected to participate you would have received a notification card in the mail beginning, Friday, 26 February 2010. Surveys were placed in the mail on Friday, 5 March 2010 so be on the lookout.

If you weren't selected but would like to get in on a piece of the action, visit the City's online forum Open City Hall. Two of the questions (one concerning a bond issue and the second concering tax rates & service levels) included in the survey are making an appearance in order to give all residents a chance to respond.

For more information on the citizen survey and to see results from the previous two surveys, check out the Citizen Survey page on our website.

Senate scraps year-round appeal proposal

2010-03-09T08:30:00.000-05:00

Senate Bill 346, which would make significant changes to property assessments and the appeals process in Georgia, was favorably reported out by committee yesterday.

But the proposed bill has been amended to remove a key provision from the bill. Rather than allowing for year-round appeals, the bill would simply extend the current 30-day appeal window to a 45-day window.

The proposed requirements for counties to send assessment notices to property owners annually (which would give owners more frequent opportunity to appeal) and setting the sale price of a home as the maximum fair market value for one year following the sale remain in the bill.

While the substitute language makes the overall bill less controversial, The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports today that there are still lingering concerns by county officials that the state proposal puts new administrative requirements on local governments without funding them.

GPB had reported earlier this month that the property assessment bill would be withdrawn pending the state’s February revenues. That appears to have been an inaccurate prediction since the numbers announced today are abysmal and most of the original measures in SB 346 are still on the table.

What are business personal property taxes?

2010-03-08T08:16:00.000-05:00

In addition to real estate property tax, Decatur bills for taxes owed on personal property such as marine vessels, aircraft, business inventories, office or work equipment, furniture, or fixtures. In 2009, personal property tax bills were calculated by multiplying the assessed property value by the city’s combined millage rate of 32.935. Bills were mailed in October and were due by Dec. 21, 2009.

The property value is determined from a Taxpayer’s Report of Personal Property filed with the DeKalb County Board of Tax Assessors by the owner or the owner’s agent. If no report was filed, the value was based on an on-site audit or review of the previous year’s report or other related information.

State law requires personal property taxes to be based on the residency of the taxpayer and location of the personal property as of January 1 of each year. Personal property owned on that date must be reported and listed for assessment by March 1. Taxes must be paid regardless of any change in the residency of the taxpayer or disposition of the property later in the year.

If the DeKalb County Board of Tax Assessors tells us that you were a resident of the City of Decatur on January 1, or maintained a business located in the City of Decatur on that day, and you are liable to pay the full amount of personal property taxes as billed for the complete year.

Our office recently mailed out notices to individuals and businesses who owe personal property tax for 2009 and prior years. Interest will continue to accrue on unpaid balances by 1 percent monthly. If you received a late notice and have questions about your bill, please call us.

Upcoming events

2010-03-04T14:58:00.001-05:00

I meant to post this earlier this week so I could have helped advertise a little for the City of Decatur Development Department’s homeowner night on Tuesday. Forgive me!

Fortunately, a couple other events are coming up that would be of interest to Decatur homeowners and property taxpayers:

According to DecaturMetro, Decatur realtors Terry Michel and Sean Dammann will host a forum tonight on the state of Decatur’s real estate market. Read more details here.
Of special interest to owners of older homes, the Decatur Old House Fair will take place this Saturday. Regina Brewer, City of Decatur Preservation Planner, says “This day-long celebration will feature new ideas, practical advice, innovative materials, and quality services for owners of older homes. Homeowners can attend how-to seminars and workshops on restoring old windows, creating a maintenance plan, tax credits for rehabilitation, historic landscapes, researching an old house, and much more.” Visit http://www.decaturoldhousefair.com/ for more information.
A webinar tailored for businesses appealing their valuation will be conducted by Advantax on March 23. I can’t endorse Advantax or the content of the class, and it seems a little pricey for a webinar, but it may be beneficial to some commercial property owners.

Please let me know if I’ve left something relevant out!

Reminder: homestead exemption deadline nears

2010-02-25T15:09:00.000-05:00

The deadline to file for a homestead exemption with the City of Decatur is Monday, March 1. If you applied in a prior year, you do not need to file again. But if you’ve never applied, or if you’ve only applied with DeKalb County, you need to apply with the City. If you miss the Monday deadline, you won’t be able to receive the homestead exemption until 2011.

You can apply for the basic homestead exemption through our online form here.

For more details about homestead exemptions, see our main webpage or look over my recent post on the subject.

Does this appeal to you?

2010-02-23T09:26:00.000-05:00

As discussed here yesterday, if you are a Decatur property owner and you intend to appeal your property value this year, you may file a return with DeKalb County by March 1. This explanation appears on the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s website:

If you wish to appeal the value of your property, you may file a tax return with the Property Appraisal Department between January 2nd and March 1st, at which time you may declare what you consider to be the fair market value of the property.

This will generate a review of the value by the Property Appraisal Department; a notice of assessment change will be sent to you in late March or early April if the Board disagrees with your value.

Under current state law, you will have thirty days after the county sends you back a notice of assessment change to formally file an appeal if you disagree with the notice. If you need more information, the DeKalb County property appraisal office can be reached at (404) 371-0841.

(Note: SB 346, currently under review in the Georgia General Assembly, would extend that 30-day deadline a one-year deadline, although this is one of the more controversial aspects of the legislation and may not survive the Senate Finance Committee.)

Two tax offices?

2010-02-22T09:06:00.001-05:00

Property owners in Decatur owe property taxes to two entities: to DeKalb County and to the City of Decatur. Your city property tax payments fund the operations of city government (including police, fire, public works, and other services) and the City of Decatur school system.

Dealing with both the county and the city on property tax issues can be confusing for new residents. Homebuyers sometimes report to us that they only knew about the county’s tax bill or that they only knew about the city’s tax bill. Some are quite surprised to get two bills! (Or actually three tax statements since the City bills in two installments.) Real estate agents and closing attorneys who let their clients know about this dual-billing up front can help prevent disputes later on about who set aside how much for taxes at closing.

Separate tax authorities also means that homestead exemptions are filed separately. As I’ve noted before, new owners that reside in their homes (not for investment or commercial property) need to file for homestead exemption once with both the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner and with the City of Decatur Revenue Division.

We do not have separate appraisal departments. DeKalb County determines all the fair market value for properties in the county, including properties within the city limits of Decatur. We receive those values from DeKalb County in an annual property tax digest. We have no discretion to change values established by the county. By our ordinances, the City applies an assessment of 50 percent to the fair market values established by the County (while Georgia counties use a 40 percent assessment for their own billing). Appeals can only be filed with DeKalb County.

If DeKalb County reassesses your property, they will forward the new values to our office. You will be re-billed or your new value will be reflected on your second installment city bill depending on when we receive the updated value from the County. Either way your overall tax liability for the year will be based off of the new assessed value.

To summarize:

Frequently asked owner questions	Decatur or Dekalb?
Who determines my property value?	DeKalb County
Where do I file for homestead exemption?	City of Decatur and DeKalb County separately
Who handles property appeals/reassessments?	DeKalb County
Who bills for property taxes?	City of Decatur and DeKalb County separately

When in doubt, give us a call and we'll be happy to steer you in the right direction!

Georgia tax news roundup

2010-02-18T10:46:00.000-05:00

Last night, Georgia Public Broadcasting’s Valerie Edwards reported that “A Senate proposal to revise how property taxes are assessed was withdrawn pending February revenue numbers.” (See this “Lawmakers” video about one-quarter of the way through). The broadcast did not specify whether the bill withdrawn was SB 346 or another property tax measure (although I don’t know of any other property tax bills in the Senate right now). I called the Secretary of the Senate’s office to confirm, but they said that SB 346 was still listed in their paperwork as “in committee.” If the GPB report is true, this would be a surprising reversal from state legislators.

In other news, today’s AJC raises concerns that metro-Atlanta property assessors have overvalued homes in the region.

This morning, WSB’s Clark Howard has written up several tips on appealing your property assessment. As a reminder, property appeals in Decatur are handled by DeKalb County and must be filed with them by March 1.

Lastly, new efforts underway in the Georgia General Assembly may lead to higher occupational tax collections. In an attempt to increase plummeting sales tax revenues, state legislators are moving toward requiring the state Department of Revenue to share sales tax certificate information with local jurisdictions in exchange for local information about which businesses have licenses. The idea is that the information sharing would lead to detection of businesses that are not paying their sales taxes or occupational sales taxes.

Taxes and fees? Part II

2010-02-17T08:37:00.000-05:00

Stormwater fees

When it comes to City stormwater fees, everybody pays. Even tax-exempt property such as churches, DeKalb County property, and MARTA are required to pay stormwater fees to the City of Decatur. Even the City of Decatur pays stormwater fees to itself for the roads and other City-owned property!

But how are stormwater fees calculated? The stormwater fee for 2009 was $75 per “ERU”—an acronym that refers to the quantity or amount of impervious surface at your property. Impervious surface such as pavement leads to run-off that has to be drained by the City’s stormwater infrastructure. A single-family dwelling is “assessed” at a quantity of 1 ERU. Larger properties are charged a proportionately increasing ERU figure. For example, an office building with a parking deck may have more than 50 ERUs.

To see how many stormwater units you are paying for, look at this portion of your last tax bill:

For questions about the City’s stormwater policies, please contact the City’s Stormwater Utility.

Taxes and fees?! A two-part series

2010-02-16T13:44:00.000-05:00

In addition to your property tax, most owners in Decatur have two additional fees on their accounts every year: residential sanitation (trash pick-up) and stormwater (for drainage).

Part I: Sanitation

Most residential properties have one sanitation charge, which for 2009 was $225. Condo associations or multi-family dwellings may have arranged their own commercial sanitation service separately, in which case no residential charges should appear on your account. Dwellings such as duplexes or homes with carriage houses should have two sanitation charges (for a total of $450). You can double-check how many units you are being charged for by looking at your last tax bill:

If you have general questions about trash pick-ups or about how the City arrived at $225 as the current annual fee, please contact our Public Works Department at 404-377-5571. If you have a question specifically about your sanitation payment or the arithmetic on your tax bill, please contact the Revenue Division.

My next post will focus on stormwater fees.

Property ownership for Decatur couples

2010-02-12T11:34:00.000-05:00

What could be more romantic this weekend than using some of Catherine’s Valentine’s ideas and having a nice, romantic conversation about joint property ownership arrangements over dinner?

I’ve done some research on how many properties in Decatur have more than one owner, but before addressing that, I’ll give some background on co-ownership options.

If you own your home with another person using joint tenancy with right of survivorship, that means that if you die, your spouse or partner automatically inherits your property. Georgia property law says that to create an arrangement like that, the deed must refer to the co-owners “as ‘joint tenants,’ ‘joint tenants and not as tenants in common,’ or ‘joint tenants with survivorship’ or as taking ‘jointly with survivorship’” (O.C.G.A. §44-6-190).

Tenancy in common, on the other hand, means that the co-owner wouldn’t automatically inherit the property: the property would go to the deceased owner’s heirs, and that process would go through probate. Georgia law says, “a tenancy in common is created wherever from any cause two or more persons are entitled to the simultaneous possession of any property. Tenants in common may have unequal shares” (O.C.G.A. §44-6-120).

Obviously, there are also cases where only one of the spouses or partners own the home, and only one name appears on the deed.

Now for the numbers. Deeds are filed with the DeKalb County, and property data is transmitted by the DeKalb County Tax Commissioner annually to us in the City of Decatur. Based on that digest we receive, there were 7,002 residential properties in the City of Decatur in 2009. Of those, 3,441 properties are listed as having more than one owner, or 49 percent of homes.

Of those 3,441, there are 1,904 owners listed using the word “OR,” (for example, "SMITH JOHN OR SMITH JANE) suggesting tenancy in common. There are 235 properties using the letters “JT” (e.g., SMITH JOHN JT JANE SMITH JT) signifying joint tenancy with survivorship. The remaining 1,302 just list both names. Mind you, these numbers are based on the information I receive in the tax digest, and on tax bills we only print the first name listed. The DeKalb County Clerk of Superior Court can verify whether two names are actually on the deed and what type of ownership arrangement was recorded.

If you’re concerned about the type of ownership you share, I would encourage you to talk it over with your loved one, seek the advice of an attorney if you’re making a change, and check with DeKalb County for filing procedures.

State Senate considers property tax changes

2010-02-10T09:49:00.001-05:00

As expected, state senator Chip Rogers and five co-sponsors introduced Senate Bill 346 last Monday, which would allow property owners to appeal their values at any time, and would require assessment notices to be sent to property owners annually.

The full text of the proposed legislation is available here, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has provided these good bullet points summarizing the highlights of the bill:

Year-round property appeals.
Making sure that every property receives an annual notice of assessment.
Statewide uniformity of assessment notices and appeal forms.
Allowing counties to accept payment plans for property taxes and discounts for early payments.
Establishing time limits for assessor action in response to appeals.
Requiring a unanimous vote by Board of Equalization members to increase assessed value.

The bill has already met some resistance, but given the clout of the senators already supporting it, some version of “assessment reform” appears likely to pass during this legislative session.

In other state property tax news, the Department of Revenue has proposed new rules for calculating conservation use assessment values.

Tax & beer news before the big game

2010-02-05T08:46:00.004-05:00

I love the subheading--“An assessment battle brewing in Fort Collins.” The Reporter-Herald reports that beverage giant Anheuser-Busch is appealing its property tax assessment in Colorado. For tax geeks and football fans, this story may whet your whistle before Sunday:

FORT COLLINS — Anheuser-Busch is challenging its property tax assessment for the plant just outside of Fort Collins.

If a state panel agrees with the company, Larimer County stands to lose $1 million per year in tax money.

Larimer County Commissioner Steve Johnson took exception to the company claim that the county’s $90 million valuation was inflated by $40 million.

He questioned why the company, which was purchased by InBev in 2008, now questions the valuation.

“We have a new company that is coming in and gaming the system,” said Johnson. “This company would be paying less than its fair share, and everyone else will be paying more than their fair share.

“I think that’s a crappy thing for an employer in Larimer County to do.”

Anheuser-Busch opened in Larimer County in 1988 and has since increased production from 6.1 million barrels of beer to 11.2 million in 2007.

The assessed valuation has hovered around $90 million since 2003 without any protest from the company, said Christine Murray, certified general appraiser with the Larimer County Assessor’s Office.

But this year, Anheuser-Busch claimed its value for 2009 is $50 million — much less than the $90 million designated by Murray.

“The number they’re looking at, that $50 million, is random,” said Murray, who stands behind her assessment and says it meshes with those of similar properties. “Nobody seems to know (where it came from.)”

The brewery’s general manager, Kevin Fahren-krog, however, said in a written statement that the figure is from an independent property tax consultant. The consultant, he said, based his figure on similar properties within Larimer County and across the United States.

“We review assessments on our property nationwide on an annual basis and in the current economic climate realize that market values have declined,” according to his statement.

“Anheuser-Busch is a significant tax payer in Larimer County, paying more than $8 million per year in real and personal property taxes.

“We seek to work with the county to pay our share.”

In other football-related property tax news, former NFL lineman Paul Runyan has made the papers recently for grazing donkeys to get a property tax break under New Jersey law. Here’s a tip for Decatur residents—grazing donkeys won’t get you a tax break here, and they’ll just eat your flowers anyway.

Property tax impact on the elderly

2010-02-03T07:30:00.009-05:00

A study published last month by the University of Wisconsin examines whether high property taxes force senior citizens out of their homes. Their basic conclusion is that total household expenses, of which taxes one factor, are the more statistically significant indicator. The full article is a little dry, but here’s an excerpt from UW’s news release about the findings:

When pushing for limits on property tax increases, politicians and policymakers often use anecdotal evidence to argue that high or rising property taxes force homeowners, especially the elderly, to sell their homes, according to a study by economist Andrew Reschovsky, a professor in UW-Madison's La Follette School of Public Affairs, and state Department of Revenue economists Rebecca Boldt and Bradley Caruth.

But while property taxes can mean economic hardship for some elderly homeowners who want to stay in their homes, taxes aren't driving them out, the research says.

The study found only a small increase in the probability of moving among older elderly homeowners who experienced large increases in property taxes. In younger households, property taxes had even less of an effect on moving.

Across Wisconsin, only 389 homeowners moved in 2005 because their property taxes grew faster than the median change in property taxes during the previous two years, the study found. Of those 389 homeowners who moved, 85 were older than 79.

"Some homeowners in Wisconsin do face high property taxes relative to their incomes," Reschovsky says. "But most taxpayers who are struggling, even among the elderly, are not picking up and moving because of property taxes. Property taxes are only one part of the cost of living."

However, older elderly homeowners can be more sensitive to large increases in property taxes than younger households, the study shows.

Of all homeowners, one in 1,600 chose to move in 2005 because of an above-average increase in property taxes. But one in 300 older elderly households moved because of larger than average property tax increases.

A final note: the researchers say they used a “rich data set” based on Wisconsin tax records. If you look at the full article, they sure do have a lot of figures and graphs to back up their conclusions, although I wonder if the results would be the same for other states.

The exemptions you deserve

2010-02-01T08:00:00.001-05:00

Now is the time to make sure you receive all the homestead exemptions that you’re eligible for for 2010. If you know you already receive your homestead exemption, great—even though it’s Groundhog’s Day tomorrow, you don’t have to apply for the homestead exemption over and over and over again. Just applying once after you moved into your house will do.

If you’re not sure whether you have a homestead exemption, check this spot of your last tax bill. You will see the $20,000 figure listed for the Capital, General, and DDA lines.

If you don’t have your last bill, you can call us at 404-370-4100 or email us to double-check.

If you don’t have the homestead exemption but you’re eligible for it, now is a great time to file your application. All you need to do is fill out this easy online form.

Remember that you have to apply for your homestead exemption for the City of Decatur and DeKalb County separately. Applying for one does not transfer over to the other.

If you’ve become eligible for an additional exemption based on age or income, this is the perfect time of year to get your paperwork in order. If you’re applying for an exemption based on age or income, we will need your:

Driver's License or Birth Certificate
Previous year's Federal and State Income Tax Returns
Social Security form 1099

Please note that if you’ve moved out of a home in Decatur where you had the homestead exemption to another property within Decatur, you must reapply for the exemption for the new location. We don’t know to automatically “transfer” your homestead exemption from your old house to your new house.

If you are no longer eligible for an exemption that’s on your account, please let us know. For example, you should let us know if you’ve moved out of your house and are renting out your old property.

Please be aware that we routinely review exemptions held by owners who have out-of-city and out-of-state mailing addresses. We also compare exemption information maintained by DeKalb County to verify whether the county acknowledges your homestead claim.

Reminder: business license payments due

2010-01-29T13:32:00.001-05:00

The City of Decatur charges an occupation tax on all businesses operating within the city limits. We mailed out renewal notices for 2010 to business owners back in October, which should be paid by or before this January 31.

Although the deadline is upon us, we do provide a 90-day grace period for occupational tax payments, so businesses have until April 1 to pay without being charged late fees.

Apart from the payments, a law passed by the Georgia General Assembly in 2009 (HB 2) also requires businesses to verify their legal presence in the United States in order to receive a business license (OCGA § 50-36-1(e)). Our office mailed out affidavits this week to all active Decatur business owners for them to verify their legal status. Affidavits are due back to us by April 1.

Update on a Bank of America check...

2010-01-29T10:03:00.000-05:00

To recap developments from yesterday, Bank of America created a property tax check on behalf of some of their Decatur borrowers on Dec. 17 that my office never received. After several phone calls between my office and Bank of America yesterday and today, I was able to open a formal “research request” with Bank of America’s tax department this morning.

One of their tax specialists informed me that he was submitting the request to higher levels within his department to research and reissue payment for the affected customers, with an estimated completion date of February 3. Bank of America should pay the penalties and interest, and the late payment would not affect their customers’ escrow accounts.

We do not maintain lists of individual property owners in Decatur who escrow with Bank of America. So if you received a delinquent notice from my office this week, and you escrow with Bank of America, please call us at 404-370-4100 so we can update our notes on your account and remove your home from our collections list.

My apologies to any resident who has been affected by this situation. Thank you for your patience while Bank of America works to resolve it for us.

Tax notices mailed

2010-01-28T16:44:00.000-05:00

In an effort to notify property owners of any past due property tax balances from 2009, the Revenue Division of the City of Decatur mailed out 603 notices yesterday to owners who either made no or partial payments. Penalties and interest have been accruing on unpaid balances since our payment grace period ended on January 7.

We mailed out the original bills in two installments in April and October last year. Why do some bills go unpaid? Sometimes it involves an unwillingness or inability to pay, but in several instances the delinquency is due to a simple, temporary oversight. Occasionally these bills are overlooked by new owners who purchased a property within the last several months who thought everything was “handled at closing.” We also run into owners who just changed their mailing address, but we sent the bill to the most recent address we had on file.

Periodically we run into issues with our residents’ mortgage companies. For example, we have received several calls today (and a note forwarded from Geoff Koski, publisher of Decatur News Online) from property owners who received a late notice from us, but who were told by Bank of America that their taxes have been paid.

We received a large check from Bank of America on Dec. 21 that covered 119 of their Decatur accounts, and we posted that payment in December to all the accounts that the bank listed. We did not send late notices to any customer whose account was paid by that Dec. 21 check.

However, we did not receive any other major checks from Bank of America in December or January for any of their additional customers. We have been communicating with Bank of America to find out what’s going on. No check has cleared our bank with the check number, check date, or check amount that Bank of America has provided.

A final note--if you’ve received a late notice in error, please accept my apology. Your payment may have arrived just after we printed out the bills. If you believe that your lender, our office, or a bank somewhere in between, has made an error, and that your taxes are actually paid, please call us immediately at 404-370-4100 so we can start to rectify the situation. To ensure the best service possible, please have a copy of your tax bill on hand when you call.

Don’t try this at home: Trinidadians vow civil disobedience rather than pay new property tax

2010-01-26T13:11:00.002-05:00

After the passage of a new property tax law in Trinidad & Tobago last month, opponents of the measure immediately vowed to mobilize the population in civil disobedience against the tax:

Opposition Member of Parliament for Tabaquite Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj says his constituents will not pay the new property tax, and has promised civil disobedience. He said if Prime Minister Patrick Manning 'gets back the monies that UDeCOTT [The Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago] has (taken) from the people of Trinidad and Tobago, and use it to fix the roads, then we would consider paying property tax'.

Maharaj made the statement during a meeting in Macaulay, on Monday night in support of his campaign for the political leadership of the UNC [United National Congress].

Promising to lead protests against the Government, Maharaj said, ’I will get buses for you (constituents) and we going to sit down in Manning’s palace and wherever he goes, we going with him.’

Maharaj said, ’We will teach Manning an opposition campaign of a lifetime.’

This set the backdrop for parliamentary elections in Trinidad over the weekend. Initial results suggest that Kamla Persad-Bissessar, a member of parliament who has expressed misgivings about the property tax bill, will become the new prime minister. Nevertheless, hardline opponents of the bill have vowed civil disobedience…again…because of election irregularities.

And I thought billing property taxes in Decatur was tough!

Despite down market, medical office space owners remain “healthy”

2010-01-25T09:56:00.000-05:00

The health care industry has weathered the recession better than most sectors. That strength appears to have carried over into the commercial property market. Last month the Atlanta Journal Constitution printed this article about the health care industry helping to prop up the health care market:

The health care sector is one of the few bright spots in an otherwise dismal market for office space.

While the recession has left entire floors barren in many high-rise office buildings, demand for space in buildings near hospitals is competitive and that has propped up rents and kept vacancies in check.

Doctors and other medical tenants have weathered the economic slowdown better than retailers and other office tenants. And for landlords, these tenants tend to stay in the same location longer than other office renters and have lower default rates.

Overall office sales are down this year, but the proportion of deals for medical buildings was up almost 11 percent, according to Chris Bodnar, vice president of CB Richard Ellis' Health Care Capital Markets Group. And the vacancy rate for these buildings is a mere 10 percent, compared to 16 for overall office buildings.

And that could go even lower in the next few years as the economy improves and baby boomers continue to age.

This got me thinking about medical office space in Decatur. Although I don’t know what commercial property owner’s vacancy rates are in Decatur, I estimate that at least 11 percent of office-based businesses in Decatur are tied in some way to the health care industry. (Our biggest sub-groups are mental health providers, physicians, and dentists.) That percentage is based off of the number of businesses that have a medical-related NAICS code.

From a business licensing standpoint, it does seem like turnover in retail businesses such as restaurants and shops is more common than healthcare businesses in Decatur, but there are no reports I can easily run in our business licensing system that would back up that observation.

Bank of America loan modifications: Decatur impact?

2010-01-22T17:33:00.000-05:00

Last month Bank of America announced that it had modified 600,000 home loans nationwide since January 2008. From the Associated Press:

CALABASAS, Calif. – Bank of America Corp. said Monday it has provided mortgage relief through loan modifications for more than 600,000 homeowners since January 2008.

The renegotiated loans were done through its own programs and the government's Home Affordable Modification Program [HAMP], the bank said.

Bank of America has concluded more than 450,000 loan modifications since January 2008 under its own programs. That includes about 225,000 modifications so far this year.

Through the government program and others, Bank of America said it has provided $215 billion to refinance existing mortgages.

Read the whole story here. More recently, Bank of America announced that it has modified an additional 20,000 loans through HAMP.

Whether many Decatur home owners have received these modifications is unlikely. Although Bank of America and Wells Fargo together issue half of all home loans nationwide, only about 210 property taxpayers in Decatur, or 3 percent of our total number of taxpayers, pay their taxes through an escrow account with Bank of America (usually after being routed through Home Focus then First American), according to our internal payment records.

Foreclosure freezes thaw out

2010-01-20T08:02:00.003-05:00

Suspensions on home foreclosures by major mortage lenders during the holiday season have come to an end. Last month the Associated Press ran this holiday news story about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac:

WASHINGTON – Mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are suspending foreclosures and evictions for about two weeks in a temporary break for borrowers during the holiday season.

The suspension, announced Thursday by the government-controlled companies, runs from Saturday through Jan. 3. "No family should have to face the prospect of being evicted during the holiday season," Michael Williams, Fannie Mae's chief executive, said in a statement.

On Dec. 17, Citigroup, Inc. announced a slightly longer suspension:

NEW YORK (TheStreet) – Citigroup said Thursday it plans to suspend foreclosures for 30 days for homeowners with Citigroup-owned mortgages.

Under the program, which begins Friday, Citigroup will halt all foreclosure sales on first mortgage accounts nationwide through Jan. 17. The bank also will cease evictions.

Despite expectations of fewer foreclosures during the holiday season due to freezes such as these, CNBC’s Diana Olick reported last week that bank foreclosures actually increased during the month of December. According to her Realty Check blog, foreclosures surged by 14 percent.

The City does not receive or maintain records on the number of homes foreclosed on by banks, but anecdotally the foreclosure rate has remained lower than neighboring communities.

MLK weekend a “huge success” for local homeowners

2010-01-19T13:59:00.001-05:00

Volunteer! Decatur coordinator Lee Ann Harvey reports that this weekend’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Service Project was a major success. The annual event helps Decatur’s senior residents by making greatly needed interior repairs and doing yard work that they have been unable to do, which helps the elderly to remain in their homes safely, comfortably, and affordably. I got Lee Ann’s permission to share part of an update that she emailed out last night (and I made some of her lines bold):

We may have had rain two out of three days this weekend, but it didn’t dampen the spirits of approximately 1,180 volunteers who came out to do home repairs and yard work for senior citizens during the 8th annual Decatur Martin Luther King, Jr. Service Project this weekend. This project is held by the Decatur Preservation Alliance in partnership with the City of Decatur and with the assistance of numerous nonprofit organizations, businesses, skilled tradespeople, places of worship, and other organizations.

We initially planned to do repairs on 11 homes. Since the weekend was progressing so well, we added two more homes on Monday that needed more minimal repairs. So, volunteers ended up doing repairs on 13 homes. All but a couple of those homes (one was a condo) also had yard work done.

Thanks to an eager workforce, volunteers did yard work on 37 additional homes for a grand total of 50 senior citizens’ homes worked on this weekend. In addition, volunteers did yard work for the people with disabilities who live in the PRI homes behind the Solarium. There was so much yard waste that approximately 2,500 yard waste bags were used and there were numerous additional piles of brush.

These seniors can now live more safely, comfortably and economically in their homes thanks to much needed repairs that include:
Handicap ramp that was designed and built to allow a senior who had a stroke last year to be able to get in and out of her home. This 96-year-old woman was grateful that she no longer had to be afraid that she would be unable to get out of her home.
An original front stoop had deteriorated so much that it was a health and structural hazard. It was repaired to look like new but to still maintain its original architectural integrity.
Moisture infiltration issues were alleviated and damage repaired to prevent health issues from mold and mildew.
Completely rebuilt steps, handrails and landings outside two homes to allow back door access.
Installed smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.
Performed numerous plumbing and electrical repairs. Many of the skilled tradespeople worked on the project the entire weekend.
Replaced lots and lots of rotten wood.
Repaired and replaced caulking.
Replaced old light bulbs with new energy efficient ones.
Increased seniors’ safety by repairing and replacing doors and door hardware and locks, as well as repairing and replacing windows and fixing broken window locks.

Lee Ann also thanked many people for their hard work including all the volunteers, the Food Committee, a Girl Scouts, Southface volunteers, a large volunteer group from a homeless shelter run by an Atlanta church, city manager Peggy Merriss, the City Commission, and city staff including Paul Wells and Patrick Grier who served as house captains.

More details about the annual project are available here. Updates and photos from this weekend are available at Decatur News Online here and Decatur Metro here.

Tax news round-up

2010-01-14T07:45:00.007-05:00

In his state of the county address last week, DeKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis said that an increase in DeKalb County’s property tax rates may be necessary. (See articles here, here, and view Ellis’s full speech here.)

It’s important to emphasize here that the City of Decatur prepares its own budget, adopts its own millage rates, and bills for property taxes completely separately from DeKalb County. Nonetheless, I think it's important to pass this news along to Decatur residents (who pay both city and county taxes) as any change could affect your overall taxes owed.

In other news, the signs from the Georgia General Assembly are that the state senate may introduce a bill to extend deadlines for homeowners to file appeals for their property assessments. The Tuesday night newscast of “Lawmakers” on GPB covered a tax assessments & appeals committee hearing on the subject. (The full 30 minute broadcast is available on GPB’s website, and the property tax appeal story is about 80 percent of the way through—sorry, but they don’t display the minutes and seconds.)

Lastly, the Journal of Accountancy has released a list of income tax provisions that expired on Dec. 31, 2009. (Thanks goes out to TaxProf Blog as well, or I would never have discovered this item!) I found several tax breaks on the list that were related to homeownership or property investment that are now expired:

The tax credit for first-time homebuyers in Washington, D.C.,
The additional standard deduction for local and state real property taxes (but the basic standard deduction on property taxes remains in effect),
The deduction of contributions for conservation purposes made from real estate capital gains, and
Qualified investment treatment for companies regulated under the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act of 1980.

I suspect few Decatur residents would be significantly affected by those expiring provisions, but you may want to check with your tax professional.

Housing outlook for 2010

2010-01-13T08:17:00.022-05:00

What does 2010 hold for home buyers, sellers, and people just staying put? I’d like to share some of the more informative predictions I’ve come across on the web.

The Wall Street Journal sees 2010 as a year of 1) higher mortgage rates, 2) tighter loan standards from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (which back 90 percent of all mortgages), 3) sluggish loan modifications, 4) more adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) resets, and 5) uncertainties surrounding homebuyer tax credits. The link to the full article is here, but here’s what they have to say specifically about ARM resets:

More loan resets: Analysts and pundits have been warning for years about the coming wave of option adjustable-rate mortgages that will jump to sharply higher payments beginning this year. Those loan recasts are concentrated particularly in high-cost housing markets, such as coastal California and other areas where homes became increasingly unaffordable at the height of the housing boom. Meanwhile, more interest-only loans that allowed borrowers to avoid making principle payments for three, five, or seven years will reset to higher payments. Those loans became especially popular among borrowers of jumbo loans, which are too large for government backing and range from $417,000 in most parts of the country to as high as $729,750 in the most expensive housing markets. Many of these borrowers owe more than their homes are worth, leaving them particularly vulnerable to default if they can’t afford the higher payments. That could cause more pain for mid-to-upper end housing markets that began to show more signs of stress in 2009.

Meanwhile, CNN Money suggests one of the major issues of 2010 could be a decline of at least 3 percent in home prices (note: I found this piece thanks to Bubble Meter):

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- After four months of gains, home prices flattened in October. Worse yet, industry insiders think that they'll soon start to fall.

Prices have risen more than 3% since May, according to S&P/Case-Shiller.

But most forecasts predict price declines in 2010, with possible losses ranging from anywhere from 3% on up. Fiserv Lending Solutions, a financial analytics firm, forecasts that prices will fall in all but 39 of the 381 markets it covers, with an average drop of 11.3%.

"We've seen recent price stabilization because of low mortgage interest rates and the impact of the first-time homebuyers tax credit," said Pat Newport of IHS Global Research. "But there are really good reasons to think prices will now start going down."

There are three main reasons for the reversal: a coming flood of foreclosures, rising interest rates and the eventual end of the tax credits.

A few final insights: 1) although they aren’t talking about just foreclosures, the Los Angeles Times speculates that 2010 may be the “year of the real estate auction,” 2) the housing & economics blog Calculated Risk says short sales will rise in 2010 (and gives helpful supporting graphs), and 3) the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s own forecast is mixed.

Another bite at the apple for property tax reforms? Georgia General Assembly convenes today

2010-01-11T08:03:00.004-05:00

The 2009 session of the Georgia General Assembly was a significant one for property taxpayers statewide. Lawmakers enacted a three-year moratorium on assessments, attached strings to funding homeowner tax relief grants, and debated (and ultimately killed) a proposal to cap property assessments permanently. Here’s a quick rundown of what passed in 2009:

SB 55—Requires tax assessors to factor in foreclosures when determining fair market values.
SB 240—Allows property tax appeals to be submitted for binding arbitration.
HB 143—Allowed for the funding of the Homeowner Tax Relief Grants for 2008 (which lowered the most Decatur homeowners’ tax bills by $252) and denied funding for 2009 (which resulted in an effective tax increase of $252, although the Decatur City Commission simultaneously increased a low income, senior exemption which reduced taxes by $230 for qualified homeowners). HB 143 leaves the door open for funding the exemption in future years if state revenues increase 3 percent above inflation.
HB 233—Put a three year freeze on assessment increases statewide.
HB 261—Gives a $1,800 state tax credit for buying a home.
HB 304—Requires assessors and appraisers to give reasonable notice to property owners before site visits.

And what didn’t:

HR 1—Would have allowed a statewide referendum to amend the station constitution to include a permanent property assessment cap.
HB 483—Would have put a question on the ballot to vote on increasing a statewide homestead tax exemption from $2,000 up to $10,000

What’s up for 2010?

We already have a few clues. According to the Macon Telegraph, “Local property taxes in general are still a target, and state Sen. Chip Rogers, a Woodstock Republican and the Senate’s majority leader, said he’ll be calling for ‘maybe as many as a dozen incremental changes’.” The article goes on to say that most of the changes would involve limiting assessment increases.

However, it appears that no new property tax measures have been “prefiled” in the House or Senate, although there other tax proposals involving income taxes (HB 877), hotel/motel taxes (HB 903), and taxpayer funding of judicial campaigns (HB 892).

We may learn more as Gov. Sonny Perdue lays out budget recommendations this week.

Homebuyer tax credits: two views

2010-01-08T08:25:00.002-05:00

Looking back over 2009, the first-time homebuyer tax credit is still generating controversy in political and tax circles. TaxVox, the tax blog of the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution, called the first-time homebuyer tax credit the third worst tax idea of 2009. The Tax Policy Foundation, using the credit as an example, called the “influence of the housing lobby on the federal tax code,” one of the top ten tax stories of the decade.

Today I want to share excerpts from both sides of the argument. First, the skeptic’s view from TaxVox:

The early returns are coming in on the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit. And it appears to be a bigger boondoggle than even I thought it would be.

At a House Ways & Means Oversight subcommittee hearing today, the Internal Revenue Service inspector general reported that the IRS is auditing more than 100,000 of the roughly 1.4 million returns that included a claim for the credit. This is a staggering audit rate for an agency that usually reviews only about 1 percent of returns.

And what the agency has found is jaw-dropping. Almost 74,000 buyers claimed the credit even though they probably owned a house over the past three years (the credit is only available to those who did not own during that period). One dead give-away: More than 12,000 of this bunch claimed the residential energy credit sometime during the past three years. Another 19,000 filed for the homebuyer credit even though they had not actually gotten around to buying a house, a fairly spectacular exhibition of chutzpah. And 580 credits were claimed on behalf of children, including at least one four-year-old—obviously a budding real estate developer.

Some taxpayers were more confused than crooked. Almost 50,000, who didn’t realize the credit increased from $7,500 to $8,000 in 2009, may have claimed less they deserved. But there was plenty of fraud too. The agency is investigating 167 separate criminal schemes associated with the credit.

And there is more. In a separate study, the Government Accountability Office concluded that in 2008-2009 more than 25,000 credits were claimed by people who reported no income and another 165,000 by those earning $25,000 or less. Care to wager how long it will be before those houses end up in foreclosure? If they were ever actually purchased, that is.

Meanwhile, supporters of the homebuyer tax credit have argued that the homebuyer tax credit has buoyed the housing market during difficult times. Georgia’s own Sen. Johnny Isakson has been a forceful advocate for the credit, and he made the following remarks on the Senate floor in November during debates on extending the credit:

We learned about 8 months ago that a tax credit for first-time home buyers worked. It worked to bring back the entry level marketplace in housing, and it helped to begin to stabilize the housing market which led us in late 2007 into the difficulties we have experienced over the last 20 months. Extending it is important, as long as everybody still understands permanent extension would be bad. Extending it to next April, which this bill does, with a closing no later than June 30, allows the American housing market and first-time home buyers to exercise their right to take tax they pay, convert it to equity in the investment and net appreciating asset, and help stimulate what is the rock-solid base of the American economy.

We also add, in addition to the $8,000 credit extension for first-time home buyers, a move-up buyer tax credit of $6,500. This is the cornerstone of the substitute before us now. It offers to any previous homeowner who has lived in their home for at least the last 5 years the opportunity to sell that home, invest in a new home, and take up to a $6,500 tax credit…

In response to the Internal Revenue Service concerns we expressed a few months ago on fraud, we put in every single request they made for fraud to see to it the HUD-1 is attached to tax statements, to see to it there is no fraudulent claim of the money, and to see to it the IRS has every tool they can to prosecute to the fullest anybody who would abuse this credit…

I urge all Americans who have always dreamed, if they are a first-time home buyer, of having a home of their own or Americans who have been gridlocked in the failure of our move-up market to actually move up and work, you have a 7-month opportunity that is good for you, it is good for the United States of America, and it is good for this economy.

The end of grace?

2010-01-06T08:16:00.000-05:00

Second installment property tax bills were due on December 21, so the final weeks of December were a busy time for Decatur’s taxpayers and tax office.

The good news for anybody who wasn’t able to make that original deadline is that we offered a two week grace period for payments during which no penalties or interest was charged.

However, the grace period ends tomorrow. Penalty and interest will be charged against unpaid amounts after Jan. 7.

Although we honor postmarks, you are strongly encouraged to make your payment as soon as possible! A 10 percent penalty plus 1 percent interest per month will be charged on any unpaid amounts. You can mail your payment to:

City of Decatur Lockbox
P.O. Box 945650
Atlanta, GA 30394-5650

Fyi, including the full nine-digit ZIP code will help ensure that your mail is routed faster. Please write your property ID and the tax year (2009) on your check and enclose your payment coupon. Make checks payable to “City of Decatur.”

If you prefer to pay in person, the Revenue Division is open from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. We are located in City Hall at 509 North McDonough Street.

If you walk in through the front door of City Hall, come to any of the open pay windows to your immediate left on the first floor. Please bring a copy of your bill—we will stamp it and return it to you for your records.

City launches new blog

2010-01-04T08:55:00.000-05:00

A major principle of the City of Decatur’s strategic plan is to encourage community interaction and maximize communication between residents, businesses, and government.

With that in mind, the Revenue Division (tax office) at City Hall is launching its own blog right here at decaturtax.blogspot.com. We're following in the footsteps of trendsetting City blogs from the Community & Economic Development Department (The Decatur Minute) and Active Living Department (231 Sycamore St.).

We will offer fresh, informative, non-partisan content about tax and housing developments to City residents. We'll also provide timely reminders about tax deadlines for homeowners, local and national news on property taxes and real estate, topical educational posts about your tax bill, and special announcements.

We also hope to hear back from you and keep the conversation a two-way street. We welcome your feedback, concerns, and questions about property taxes, or just suggestions on ways to improve this blog.

A few words about what this blog is not: this blog will in not be a political platform or forum about tax rates. For concerns about tax rates I would encourage you to contact your elected officials or visit privately-run blogs. Also, the information provided on these pages shall in no way constitute legal advice about your individual tax circumstances. Please seek the advice of a tax professional for dicey personal situations.

For those of you who prefer to get your tax information in person, of course we’re still open for business! We look forward to hearing from you by phone, fax, email, in person, or now through this blog.