Cobb County Homeowners Can Take Advantage of New Tax Reform Bill in 2011

If you live in Atlanta or elsewhere in Cobb County, Georgia, a new law was passed last year that can help you keep your property tax bill under control in 2011.

Like many of these property tax reform bills, there are certain provisions to the law that a reasonable person would expect were already part of the existing laws because they are so basic. But apparently that’s not the case.

SB 346 was signed into Georgia law last summer and included many provisions including a requirement that annual assessment notices be sent to all property owners. While that seems like property tax 101, it was added to the law as a way to reinforce the notice requirement in counties that had previously only provided the assessed value as part of a reassessment.

Other requirements of Georgia SB 346 include creating regional boards of equalization, estimating the property tax liability on the assessment notices, and a uniform form for appealing your assessment.

One of the other interesting provisions requires boards of equalization to render a decision on an appeal within 12 months. While that may seem like a long time to get a decision on an appeal, it is a much shorter end-to-end appeals process when compared to most other states in the country.

Another important provision is granting appeal rights to a new property owner who buys a home before the annual property tax assessment notices are sent. New home buyers in Cobb County and elsewhere in Georgia are typically surprised by the property tax bill that shows up after the closing. This new property appeal process will help make sure that a new home buyer has the option to appeal immediately instead of waiting for a reassessment.

A Cobb County homeowner should think of SB 346 as a Georgia Property Tax bill of rights. If you want to appeal your Cobb County property tax assessment, the new law will give you important protections to make sure the county bureaucracy does its job.

Finally, there are multiple paths that Atlanta homeowners can use to appeal their assessment. The law outlines the process for each and the ramifications and limitations of each one.

Regardless of the process you use to initiate an appeal of your assessment in Cobb County, make sure you have your act together before taking on the establishment to correct your property taxes. Use ValueAppeal to help you make your case before the Cobb County property tax authorities.