HOW TAX GRIEVANCE WORKS/OUR FEES
Suffolk homeowners like you are feeling the pain of high property and school taxes.
You may have filed for STAR or other exemptions, but you may still
be paying more than your fair share of taxes.
A Property Tax Grievance is a formal complaint that is filed contesting a town’s
assessed value of a specific property. We can’t change the calculations and rates
the State and your town use to determine your Property Taxes. What we can challenge
– and have reduced – is the taxable value of your home. If the Tax Assessor lowers
that, the total taxes you pay are reduced, because your assessment is lower.
Many property owners worry that if they file a grievance, their taxes may be raised
or someone from the assessor’s office will come to their home. We can assure you
that neither of these things will happen. Upon filing a tax grievance, your property
tax assessment can be lowered or remain the same, but can not be increased, and
no one will come to your home (except our own assessor who reviews your property
only from the outside).
- There is no risk involved in filing a tax grievance. Your assessment can
not be increased because you filed a tax grievance
- There are no home inspections
- A reduction does not affect your other exemptions such as STAR
OUR FEES
First: if we do not obtain a Property Tax reduction for you, there is absolute
no cost to you! (that’s a pretty good incentive for us to do a great
job for you!)
When you give us authorization to file a Tax Grievance on your behalf, we handle
the entire process for you. If we are successful in obtaining a Property Tax reduction
for you, our fee is 50% of your first year savings. The savings you reap in
subsequent years is entirely your own. Here’s an example of how it
works:
- Your taxes are calculated by multiplying your assessment by your tax rate.
For example, if your assessment = 5000 and your tax rate is $1.00, your taxes are
$5000.
|
Assessment
|
Tax Rate
|
Taxes
|
|
5000
|
1.00
|
$5000
|
When your assessment is reduced, our fees are based on the difference of what your
taxes would be under the old assessment and what they are under the reduced assessment.
For example, if your old assessment was 5000 and your reduced assessment is 4000,
with a tax rate of $1.00, your savings would be:
|
|
Assessment
|
Tax Rate
|
Taxes
|
|
Old Assessment
|
5000
|
1.00
|
$5000
|
|
New Assessment
|
4000
|
1.00
|
$4000
|
|
Tax Savings
|
$1000
|
|
Our Fee (50% of your first-year savings)
|
$500
|
Our fees are based on 50% of your savings in the first tax year (for example,
if we save you $1,000, our fee is $500). Tax savings in subsequent years are
entirely yours.
IF THERE IS NO REDUCTION, WE DO NOT CHARGE A FEE.
Please Note: We need a certified appraisal of your property to file the grievance,
which must take place within one year of the filing deadline. You may provide this
to us, or we will conduct the appraisal on your behalf, in which case we charge
a $75 fee if you receive a tax reduction. IF WE DO NOT OBTAIN A REDUCTION, YOU
ARE NOT CHARGED THE APPRAISAL FEE.
Should your tax grievance be declined, we may file an appeal if we believe we can
still win a reduction for you (PLEASE NOTE: Not all cases are appealed). If we appeal
your case, New York State charges a filing fee of $30. This fee is charged to you
only if your appeal is successful.
For more information, click on the links below:
Important News For Homeowners
If You Are Selling Your Home
How Your Property Tax Assessments Are Determined
How To Lower Your Property Taxes
What We Do /Our Fees