Aug 25, 2008 8:08 pm US/Pacific
Bay Area Assessors Asked To Revise Home Values
OAKLAND (CBS 5) ―
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"For Sale" sign in front of a home in San Francisco.
AP
Property tax bills are coming soon and homeowners are scrambling to make the drop in their property values official so they can receive a break.
San Francisco's deadline for property re-evaluation has passed, with the city receiving three times more requests than last year. Marin homeowners have until November 30 to appeal for a reduced property assessment. Alameda County is just about caught up on requests, but more are coming in to beat a September deadline.
The Alameda County Assessor's office reviewed values on 70,000 properties that sold between 2004 and 2008 and reduced more than 44,000. In the past month 2,500 residents have requested additional re-assessments. The County Assessor has granted 2,000 more value reductions.
Lanny Gereaux wasn't one of them, but he's convinced he deserves a property tax break. Gereaux bought his Hayward home six years ago for $725,000. With personal touches and a hot real estate market, it appraised at over $1 million in 2003.
"Then, property values started tumbling everywhere and who knows what it is now. It must be in the low 700's or high 600's," Gereaux said. If he's right, the lower value would give him a big break in his property tax bill.
But that's not the case, according to the Alameda County Assessor's office. The office sent out a letter in July saying his home is valued at $815,505. Gereaux requested a formal review and received letter back from the Alameda County Assessor's office saying "No change is warranted." If he disagreed, he could prove his case by finding out the home's value himself. That's when he called CBS 5 ConsumerWatch.
"It's $450-600 to pay for my own appraisal. Why would I do their job when they should do this for everyone in the county?" he said.
Consumerwatch found out the Alameda County Assessor's office did review home values countywide for all residents who bought after 2004. Chief Deputy Assessor Russell Hall said more than half of them or 44,000 homeowners received reduced values. Gereaux's home wasn't included because he bought his home in 2002.
"If he's not satisfied with our staff's review he has until September 15 to file an assessment appeal," Hall said. "We did not appraise as far back as 2002, because I don't think the market data would support a great reduction in sale prices from 2002. There may be an isolated incident or pocket. And I would encourage those people who believe their properties are worth less, to file an appeal."
Gereaux has picked up the form to appeal. One of the steps is to find three comparable sale prices for homes in his neighborhood. That will be difficult, because homes have not been selling in his Hayward development. So now, he is considering whether to hire his own professional appraiser.
If Gereaux is right and his home is worth less, he stands to save close to $1,000 in property taxes. "Every dollar counts, especially in this economy," he said.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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