Coronavirus and Property Tax Appeals: Here’s What You Need To Know

July 23, 2020
Tiny house model on a calculator with a sign by it that says property tax on a wooden table

Tax attorneys across the United States are expecting the highest amount of commercial property owners to challenge the tax valuations of their expenses since the housing crisis in 2009. A high amount of successful appeals could be extremely cumbersome for municipalities nationwide.

The deadline for tax appeals has also been extended. While the protocol is to give individuals or their businesses 30 days to appeal, HMRC will give them an additional 3 months to appeal any decision that was dated after February 2020. Of course, this could lead to some major delays. 

Attorneys across the nation expect a spike in tax challenges over the next 9-12 months. This, however, will vary on a state by state basis as each will have different appeal rules. In the meantime, it’s important to regularly review your tax bills to ensure accuracy and possibly even challenge valuations you deem unfair. 

You can expect an increase in filings across industries such as office buildings, retail, apartments and hospitality. This may lead to a significant financial impact across these industries. According to an Urban Institute study from 2016, state and local governments collect nearly $503B of their general revenue from property taxes. That’s nearly 16%. 

While the road to economic recovery is still uncertain at this time, there are plenty of resources that can help you figure out if your property taxes are too high. Some property tax firms even have proprietary software that allows you to find out your present property tax value within minutes. 

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