How to recoup money that was overcharged on property taxes?
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How to recoup money that was overcharged on property taxes?
I found out that town assessor office wrongly calculated our property taxes for 12 years. In house data sheet it was wrongly stated “full basement”; our basement is just half “full” and half “crawl” space. Other error, our deck is 435 sq ft; their data shows 735 sq ft. I determined that the fair market value of the house is $146,000; they had it valued at $186,000. I filed paperwork for an appeal. The assessor’s office immediately agreed with me and told me they will give me about $300 but they refused to pay me back any money for all those 12 years when they overcharged us.
Asked on October 7, 2011 under Real Estate Law, Illinois
Answers:
FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
The way property tax assessments work for payment by the property owner is based upon a home's then current fair market value. Over the years a home's fair market value can be reassessed based upon market conditions where a home's value either increases or decreases based upon market conditions.
In order for you to be possibly entitled to a tax refund exceeding the $300.00 offered you, you need to demonstrate through written appraisals the property's appraised value on a specific date on each calendar year, for example June 1, 2011, June 1, 2010, June 1, 2009 and so forth.
You need to be aware that most states have statutes stating that property tax refunds can only deal with assessments under consideration that can only go back so many years in time such as one or two.
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