Frequently Asked Questions
This page is for General Questions and they are listed below. FAQs
for specific sections are on their own page, and those links are provided
below as well.
Business Property Statement Questions
Homeowners’ Exemption Questions
Boat/Watercraft Property Tax Questions
General Questions
Q: What do I do if I believe that my assessed value should be
reduced or that my property taxes are too high?
A: For the 2009/2010 tax year, the
Assessor’s Office reviewed the assessed value of all single family homes
and condominiums and many multi-family dwellings, apartments and
commercial and industrial properties. By law the date of valuation,
or lien date, for property tax purposes is January 1st.
When estimating the fair market value of a property, comparable sales
occurring more than 90 days after the lien date, that is, after March 31st,
may not be considered. Therefore, current sales may not be used to
estimate the assessed value of a property for the 2009 tax year.
If you have evidence that your 2009/2010 assessed value is
significantly greater than its market value on
January 1, 2009, you may file an
Informal Decline-in-Value
Review Application no later than October 31, 2009. The
application is available on-line at
http://www.sjgov.org/assessor/forms.htm, or you may come into our office to pick up
the form.
Applications must be filed no later than October 31, 2009, and must be completed
in full. If your application is late or is incomplete it will be
rejected.
Q: My lender has notified me that my payment is being increased
and/or they require an estimated tax bill to reduce my payment, will
the Assessor’s office correct this or provide an estimated tax bill?
A. The Tax Collector’s Office issues the regular secured
property tax bills in October. Those bills are based on the value
shown on the assessor’s records the preceding January first. If you
bought your property after January first, an adjustment will be made on
the supplemental roll. However, the regular bill will be due and
payable as issued.
If the assessed value is significantly greater than your
purchase price, and you have an impound account, your impound account may
not have enough money in it to cover the entire bill. In that case,
lenders typically will pay the bill, then bill you for the shortage.
Borrowers usually are given the option of sending in the total shortfall
or of spreading out the amount over the next year in the form of an
increased monthly payment.
When we process your deed, we will send you a Notice of Supplemental
Assessment that will show you the value on this year’s regular roll, as
well as your new base year value. The difference between those two
amounts is the supplemental assessment shown on the Notice.
If the supplemental assessment is a negative amount, you will receive
a supplemental refund. Refunds are issued by the
Auditor/Controller’s Office. The time from the date of your Notice
of Supplemental Assessment and the refund date is usually at least 90
days.
If you are due a supplemental refund, after receiving your
Notice of Supplemental Assessment you may want to contact your lender to
see if you should send them a copy of the Notice. You might want to
discuss with your lender the possibility of sending them the supplemental
refund in order to reduce your monthly liability.
A revised regular bill will not be issued. The
Assessor’s Office is unable to provide estimated bills and any
negotiations regarding impound payments are between you and your lender.
Calculation of property tax bills is the responsibility of the San Joaquin
County Auditor Controller’s Office. You may contact them for an
estimated tax bill at 468-3925.
Q.
What is a Notice of Supplemental Assessment?
A. Under the provisions of Proposition 13, property must be reassessed
at market value whenever there is a change in ownership or new
construction is completed. A new Base Year Value is established and
a supplemental assessment is created.
The new base year value must be the Fair Market Value of the property
on the date of the change. If a property has sold, and the purchase
price is the same as the market value, then the reported purchase price is
enrolled as the new base year value. But if the purchase price is
significantly higher or lower than the Market Value of the property on the
change date, the assessor is required by law to enroll the Market Value.
Market Value is determined by doing an appraisal.
A supplemental assessment is the difference between the new base year
value and the value on the assessor’s records for the affected tax year or
years. Changes that occur between January and May will create two
supplemental assessments; changes occurring between June and December will
create one supplemental assessment. The regular tax bill will not
be changed or re-issued.
Supplemental assessments are effective the first day of the month
following the month in which the change occurs. Supplemental
assessments that happen because of an increase in assessed value result in
supplemental property tax bills. Supplemental assessments that
happen because of a decrease in assessed value result in supplemental
refunds being issued. The amount of the supplemental bill or refund
is calculated by multiplying the tax rate times the supplemental
assessment. Both supplemental bills and supplemental refunds are
then pro-rated to cover only the time during the tax year that someone
owns a property. Multiple activities during a tax year will result in
multiple supplemental assessments; each bill or refund will be pro-rated
to cover an assessee’s period of ownership.
The supplemental roll is completely separate from the regular roll.
The regular roll is prepared once a year. It is effective January
1st and is delivered to the Auditor’s Office each year on July 1st.
The supplemental roll is created throughout the year as changes are
processed, and it is delivered periodically through the year.
Supplemental bills or refunds are always mailed directly to
the property owner.
Q. What is the status of my 2008/09 appeal? What if I want to
file an appeal for 2009/2010?
A. Appeals of 2008/2009 assessments are currently being
processed. More than 8,000 appeals were received. We have
reassigned staff to form a section dedicated strictly to processing
appeals. Each appeal is processed in the order it was received.
Most of the appeal applications were received during the two weeks prior
to the deadline, so your patience is requested while we process and assign
them.
About 45 days before your scheduled hearing date, you will
receive a notice from the Clerk of the Board. Your appeal will be
assigned to one of our appraisers, and you will be contacted by our
office. The appraiser assigned to your case will review the value, then
discuss his or her findings with you. If the appraiser determines
that a reduction is warranted, you will be offered the opportunity to
stipulate to a reduced 2008 assessment. If the appraiser determines
that no reduction is warranted, you will be offered the opportunity to
withdraw your appeal.
If we are unable to reach an agreement on the value, then a formal
hearing before the Assessment Appeals Board will be held. You will
have an opportunity to present your evidence in support of your opinion of
value, as will the Assessor. After both sides have presented their
cases, the Board will take the matter under submission. You will be
notified by mail of their decision.
Sales occurring after March 31, 2008, may not be considered when
establishing a value for the 2008 tax year.
For the 2009/2010 tax year, the Assessor’s Office has reviewed the
assessed value all single family homes as well as many apartments,
multi-family dwellings and commercial and industrial properties. If
you disagree with your 2009/2010 assessed value, you have the right to
file an appeal. The 2009/2010 appeal filing period opened on July 2,
2009, and will close on November 30, 2009.
Sales occurring after March 31, 2009, may not be considered when
establishing a value for the 2009 tax year.
For more information regarding Assessment Appeals
click here
or if you would like to download an application
click here.
Q: Are
there special programs available for Senior Citizens?
A: The
Property Tax Postponement Program allows qualified seniors to postpone
payment of property
taxes until the individual moves, sells the property or dies. For
information, contact the State Controller’s Office at 1-800-952-5661.
The Property Tax Assistance Program for
Seniors and Blind/Disabled Persons was discontinued with passage of the
2008-2009 state budget.
Q: If I
give property to my children, will it be reassessed?
A:
Legislation was passed in 1986 excluding from reassessment transfers
between parents and children of the principal residence and $1 million
assessed value of other property. A claim form must be timely filed
with the Assessor’s Office to qualify. For additional information
regarding this exclusion, contact our office at 209-468-2658.
This form is available online. Click here to
go to forms.
Q: I am
over 55 and wish to move to a smaller home. Will my taxes go up?
A:
Legislation was passed in 1986 allowing those 55 and over to transfer the
assessed value of their principal residence to a replacement residence in
the same county if the value of the new residence is equal to or less than
that of the original residence when sold. A claim form must be timely
filed with the Assessor’s Office to qualify. San Joaquin County does not
accept transfers from other counties. For additional information
regarding this exclusion, contact our office at 209-468-2658.
This form is available online. Click here to
go to forms.
Q: If I
have an addition to my home, will you reappraise the entire property?
A: No.
Only the value of your new addition will be added to your current assessed
value.
Q: If I
do the work myself, will I only be assessed on the cost of the materials?
A: No. New
construction is assessed at the market value added to the property.
Q: If I
add my spouse on the deed to my property , will it be reappraised?
A: No.
Transfers between spouses do not constitute a reappraisal event.
Q: Is
property assessed at the price paid?
A: Not
always. Real property is valued at its current market value at the time
it changes ownership. In a majority of cases, the sales price equals
market value, but not always.
|
