Approximately 3,500 Fayette County property owners — 23 times the usual yearly number — want their properties re-assessed.

Concerned by the burst housing bubble’s effect on their tax bills, they filed paperwork with the Fayette County Tax Assessor’s office before the April 1 deadline to get their property re-assessed — downward, for the most part.

The applications they filed will trigger reviews of their properties’ values and possible re-assessments.

Almost all property in Fayette has increased in assessed value during the past decade, but the precipitous decline in the housing market nationwide in the past year has affected actual sales of homes, with many — if not most — properties selling for significantly less than in previous years.

Tax Assessor Joel Denton said Monday his office received approximately 3,500 residential and 300 commercial applications. Fayette County has approximately 42,000 residences. His office on average received about 150 such requests annually in years past.

In a related issue, the April 3 passage of House Bill (HB) 233 declares a moratorium on increasing the assessed value of property from Jan. 1, 2009 until Jan. 1, 2011.

Assessments of fair market value are significant because property taxes are based on 40 percent of fair market value multiplied by the millage rate.

The “return of value” application states what the homeowner believes to be the fair market value of the property, said Tax Commissioner George Wingo.

“When they do that, it obligates the tax assessor to review their account and tell the taxpayer whether he agrees or disagrees with that value,” Wingo said. “And if the tax assessor disagrees, the homeowner can appeal.”

Wingo said there are several local criteria upon which the assessor’s office would base the decision on the fair market value, such as comparable home sizes and sales of comparable homes. Sales are the best measure, Wingo said, because they reflect the agreement between a willing seller and a willing buyer.

Assessors also look at the geographical area in which the home is located, whether densely or sparsely populated, along with factors such as square footage and the type material with which the home is constructed, Wingo said.

The assessor’s office will send a new assessment notice to the homeowner once the property review has been completed. The homeowners can appeal the assessor’s decision with the board of equalization if they do not agree with the assessment, Wingo said, adding that the homeowner should bring all necessary documentation to present to the board.

If the homeowner is still in disagreement, the equalization board’s decision can be appealed to Fayette County Superior Court.

Commenting about the possibility that several homes in a given neighborhood might be revalued downward after review, Denton said his office would then take a look at the assessed values in that entire neighborhood.

Denton said the tentative date for completing the reviews and sending tax notices is May 1.

The Georgia House and Senate Friday passed HB 233 that establishes a moratorium on increases in assessed value of properties from January 2009 through January 2011. The bill, yet to be signed by Gov. Sonny Perdue, does not prohibit assessed values from decreasing.

The General Assembly finds that the citizens and property owners of this state are experiencing a crisis in the reduction of value of tangible property of unprecedented magnitude and that it is in the best interests of this state that immediate action be taken to secure the economic stability of all Georgians, the bill said.

Local governments for many years now have benefitted from ever-increasing assessed values of properties. The result was increased tax revenue for the governments while keeping the same or nearly the same tax millage rates in place.

Officials for years have boasted about “holding the line” on local tax rates while receiving increasing amounts of tax dollars at those same rates because of increases in assessed values.