Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Property appraiser: Be patient

By Times editorial
Published August 27, 2006

Editor's note: This news release comes from Property Appraiser Melanie J. Hensley, CFA:

Aug. 23, 2006

Patience, please!

Because of the high volume of phone calls and walk-in customers after the mailing of the TRIM notices (proposed notice of property tax), I want to assure everyone that the property appraiser's staff members will return all calls they receive from property owners concerning their TRIM notice.

I would encourage all property owners who call the office to allow us five working days to return their call. If you do not feel comfortable waiting for the return call, the next action would be to file a petition with the clerk of the value adjustment board no later than Sept. 11.

The petition forms may be obtained from either the Property Appraiser's Office, at www.myflorida.com or on my Web site, www.pa.citrus.fl.us. Look under the red link that says "Click here for trim information."

There is a $15 nonrefundable filing fee that must accompany your petition. The parcel identification or alternate key number that is required on the petition is available on my Web site. All lines on the petition must be completed.

Filing a petition timely will guarantee you a hearing before a special magistrate. When the appraiser for your area returns your call, and if you come to an agreement concerning the value of your property, you will be able to "withdraw" your petition. If you still do not agree with the "market value" of your property, you should continue with the petition process.

My office does not arbitrarily set the market value for property throughout Citrus County. The Florida Department of Revenue sets standards that must be met before it will accept the tax roll. The level of assessment and the coefficient of dispersion are two of the standards set by the department. Following the rules set by the department has resulted in higher market values based on sale prices recorded in 2005.

We have three means of arriving at the market value for your property: sales comparison approach, cost or income.

In the case of single-family residential property, we consider both the cost and the sales comparison approach in arriving at market value. For commercial property, we consider all approaches that are applicable to arrive at market value for each property. Florida Statute 193.011 provides the eight criteria we must consider when setting values for ad valorem purposes.

[Last modified August 27, 2006, 06:40:47]