Payment of tax is the duty of every citizen. This is how the government is able to pay for the public services and assets that you enjoy. The payment of these taxes is already a burden and paying more than you should can exert a financial strain on you. As a property owner, there is a class of taxes that is meant for you. It is arrived at by multiplying the tax rate set by your municipality by the value of your property. However, the assessment of this value can sometimes be wrong. This is why you need to file a property tax appeal in order to reduce the amount that you have to pay as tax. This is the legal way instead of tax evasion which could lead to further penalties if you are caught.
It is important to note even as you are considering a property tax appeal NJ application that the tax rate cannot be appealed. This is determined by the relevant authorities who make the law. The only thing you can appeal for the taxman to change is the assessment. There are provisions that regulate how these assessments can be carried out. Your responsibility is to show that these procedures were not followed or that there was a mistake which resulted in your property being overvalued.
In most instances, you are required to have independent appraisals which can back up your claim of an overvaluation. The timeline of your independent appraisal should correspond with the time that the property taxes are levied. For instance, if the tax is for the year 2012 then the value provided by your appraisal should be for the year 2012.
One of the reasons you might want to file a property tax appeal is because of the economic downturn that has been experienced in the country since 2008. This has led to the fall in value of various pieces of real estate and yours could be among them. There are some municipalities which do not reevaluate the properties frequently. They then make a wrong assumption that these properties will continue increasing in value at a certain rate. If your municipality has not had a reevaluation of the values of the properties in its jurisdiction then their assessments might still be high. You can successfully appeal to have them lower the assessment of your property by showing that your property is now of a much lower value.
Another reason why you might want to file a property tax appeal is if the municipality has assessed your property higher than others in the area. In this instance, you will be required to provide evidence that shows that your assessment is higher than the rest of the municipality by at least 15%.
In order to learn more about the requirements for filing a successful property tax appeal NJ as well as how you can get started with your appeal.
