Tax Values Decrease on 40% of County Homes

About 40 percent, or about 100,000 of homes for which Gwinnett County mailed tax reassessment notices for on April 15, will show a decrease in value averaging 23 percent, the county announced. Chief Appraiser Steve Pruitt reported the county mailed 256,000 residential notices. Overall, Gwinnett County residential properties have lost about $3.3 billion in fair market value since last year. There were no increases in residential assessments.

Georgia counties are now required to send an assessment notice to all property owners every year as the result of a state law passed last year.  The notice must include an estimate of proposed taxes based on the current year’s assessed value and the previous year’s tax rate. Also, properties sold the previous year must be valued at or below the purchase or acquisition price in a qualified, arms-length transaction, including bank sales and foreclosures. That provision affected 6,843 properties this year, lowering their collective value by more than $300 million, according to the announcement. 

The taxable value (40 percent) of these adjustments equates to approximately $1.32 billion. The county planned for an 8.7 percent decrease equaling $2.5 billion of taxable value for both residential and commercial property when the 2011 budget was adopted. County officials remain cautiously optimistic that this projection will align with the actual results of these residential adjustments, plus any additional changes occurring from residential and commercial appeals, the announcement stated. Every drop in assessed value reduces the homeowner’s property tax bill, but also reduces the amount of property tax revenue available to fund county operations.

The tax reassessment notices should arrive in homeowners' mailboxes soon. “Property owners now have 45 days from the date of the notice to file an appeal, by using the new statewide uniform appeal form,” said Pruitt in the announcement. Residential appeals are due before May 31. Appeals  may be submitted via U.S. mail or in person. Appeal information, interactive appeal forms and frequently asked questions can be found on the Gwinnett County tax assessor’s website. 

The Tax Assessor’s Office can answer questions about the notices or the appeal process through e-mail at assessor@gwinnettcounty.com, by phone at 770-822-7200 or in person at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center, 75 Langley Drive, in Lawrenceville.