Challenge Your Taxes: Homeowner's Guide to Reducing Property Taxes (Paperback)

by James E. A. Lumley (Author) "The property tax you pay is the annual amount of money collected by your local municipality or county as a fee for the privilege of..." (more)
Key Phrases: state equalization rate, first formal appeal, final assessment roll (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
How to save hundreds—even thousands—of dollars a year in property taxes You can’t escape paying property taxes, but you can avoid paying more than you have to. This authoritative new guide explains how. Written by an experienced real estate counselor, Challenge Your Taxes helps you evaluate your property assessment and pinpoint any inaccuracies that, once amended, could dramatically reduce your tax bill. With proven guidelines and practical tips, you’ll learn how to determine what your property is really worth, qualify your property for a deduction, and—in the case of an unfair assessment—prepare and present a successful appeal. Here’s where you’ll find complete details on:

• Property valuation—fair market value, comparable sales and cost approach, amenity considerations
• Assessors—who they are, what they do, and what they look for
• Checking your property information—study your property record file, confirm property category, use sales/assessment ratio to establish fair value
• Common assessment errors—miscalculated land area, incorrect judgment of condition, comparable sales ignored, wrong zoning classification
• Assessment appeals—summary of procedure, presentation checklist, the appeal board, abatements

Packed with helpful worksheets and numerous examples, as well as sample forms and addresses of state appeals agencies, this indispensable resource has everything you need to Challenge Your Taxes successfully.

From the Publisher
Challenge Your Taxes explains the basic methods used in evaluating property, describing the common mistakes made by assessors. Readers will learn how to determine what their property is really worth and--in the case of an unfair assessment--how to prepare and present a successful appeal.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 257 pages
• Publisher: Wiley (January 16, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471190659
• ISBN-13: 978-0471190653
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #644,866 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Taxed into hell, December 29, 2008

By	taxed to death "tax to death" (NC) - See all my reviews

i read this book and will post remarks on lexingtontruth.com

If people knew how that property taxes have made their property worthless they would leave this nation and find freedom. i live in a little HELL on earth and this book will help other avoid tax HELL Holes like NC.

If you read this book you can avoid lexington, NC and NC and other states that allow forced annexation to turn people into tax slaves just to own a crappy home in the worth place I could find to live in.
I hate this place more than anything and people need to read this book cover to cover.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thorough, June 12, 2008

By	Gina L. Gwozdz, CPA "Gina L. Gwozdz, CPA - GL... (Amarillo, Texas) - See all my reviews

This book does a good job of explaining the property tax system and how most people value their property. The book includes examples and worksheets which can be extremely helpful when you are gathering data for your case. The main idea in this book is that your property taxes are too high because your property has not been properly recorded in the tax assessor's office. Determining this and obtaining the data suggested in this book will prove to be valuable information for most homeowners. This is a common reason used to successfully lower your property taxes. However, if this approach has not worked for you, you may want to look into my book, Lower Your Property Taxes, as I have taken a different approach.