Should You Contest Your Tax Assessment? Part I

Should you contest your tax assessment? More than likely yes. If you are planning to sell your home anytime soon, probably not. The buyer likes to see that they are getting a good deal, and if your assessment is higher than the sales price...this may give them the false pretense of instant equity. For those staying put, here's the skinny...if you are planning to stay in your home for another 5 years, you should definitely consider contesting the tax assessment.

Tax Assessments skyrocketed when the all-too-eager government officials tried to cash in on everyone's share of the market. Unfortunately, they did not heed the words of critics, and the bubble burst. Now, no one anticipated that it would last this long and dig this deep of a hole (well, I'm sure some critics would say they did). Fast forward to today... Government has a huge budget deficit and the last thing they want to do is spend time, money and energy on profit loss and furthering the deficit! So, not only are they not going to worry about the fair-market value of your home, but they are not going put forth any effort to do so. Should you have to bare the burden? NO.

Here's the rationale...our values are not going to return to the 2007 values of yesteryear until 2014-15. We are seeing a gradual leveling of the market. However, with such a surplus of foreclosures, short sales and overpriced homes...it will take years to wade through it all. Additionally, most home-owners are stuck and can't 'move-up'. Obama's tax credit revision to $6500 for current homeowners was a good idea, but does not consider the complexity of selling a 'contingent' home in this market. You get the idea...the market is not going to set the world on fire anytime soon, and if you plan on staying...you might as well save a little money!