How to lower your taxes on a apartment building.

[Tim Clarke]

I have been looking for an apartment deal going on 7 months.  This is my first commercial deal and have been looking for 6-20 units that fit my other criteria's.  I have looked at a lot of properties. I find that most of the deals go from looking like good deals to bad deals, when the taxes go up because of the new recordable purchase price.  I know that I have to wait until January to file with the Board of Revision.  My questions are:  What is the best way to go about a tax reduction?  How often do they lower the taxes?  Is this something that happens often?   I hear that this is possible but may have come from unreliable source.  Thank you

[Benjamin Aaker]

Some jurisdictions, such as mine, don't proactively look at sales. They do property valuations every few years and you take the hit then on property tax increases. 20 units may be small, but you can check with your local government about your intentions to purchase a property and ask if they will defer or reduce your taxes. Some areas and deals may be eligible for tax increment financing, which will lower the taxes, but these are usually on the larger projects. As you mentioned, you can make an argument with your local jurisdiction on why your taxes are not fair when compared to others in the area and should be decreased.