Here’s how you can appeal your property value assessment

Fayette County property owners still have a chance to challenge their most recent property assessment, but time is short.

To do so, property owners must file a “return of value” notice with the Fayette County Tax Assessor’s Office, officials said. That will trigger a new review of the assessed value of the property and a new assessment, officials said.

After receiving that assessment, the property owner has 45 days in which to file her appeal, officials said.

The deadline to file a “return of value” notice is April 1. The process is designed for taxpayers to inform the county of a difference of opinion regarding the property value the county established in the previous year, officials said. It can also be filed based on any changes made to the property.

Upon receiving the return of value notice from a property owner, the assessor’s office must review the value it established last year for the property in question and then send out a new assessment notice to the taxpayer. If the new value is still not amenable to the taxpayer, a written appeal can be lodged within 45 days of the date of the assessment notice.

The first appeal level is heard by the board of assessors and a second appeal if pursued is heard by the board of equalization. The final possible appeal is in Fayette County Superior Court.

The property assessments serve a key role in determining the taxable value of all property in Fayette County. As such, those values are used in calculating property tax revenue for Fayette, its cities and the board of education.

Despite the potential for such a process to negatively impact the county government’s potential property tax revenues, County Commission Chairman Jack Smith last week urged residents to become informed about the process.

Smith noted that information about the appeals would be posted on the county’s website: fayettecountyga.gov, in a bid to help residents through “this economic morass.”