Tax Assessment Question

[Account Closed]

A friend of mine came to me with a dilemma. This is a new one to me so I figured I would ask the group. My friend had outright owned some property in Southern California and in '99 sold it to someone providing the buyer with owner financing. It was a parcel of land of about 20 acres with no structures on it. My friend put the buyer's name on the grant deed. In 2005, the buyer defaulted on the loan and in 2005 the grant deed was put back in my friend's name. The new assessed value on the property is significantly higher than it was when he purchasesd it before '99. He now pays a higher real estate tax each year because of the new assessed value of the property was which put in place in 2005. Is there a way he can have the assessed value brought back to when he had originally purchased it or is he stuck with the new assessed value?
Thanks

[Account Closed]

In California, property is reassessed whenever there is a qualifying change in ownership. In this case, there were two qualifying changes in ownership. The first was the sale from your friend to the buyer and the second was the transfer from the buyer back to your friend or the foreclosure that returned title of the property to him.

The question that should be addressed is the new assessed value at the time your friend re-acquired title. Was the property valued at a stated price, or was it valued based on comparable sales? If your friend has evidence the property was overvalued for the transfer, he should file an appeal of the base year value. There are specific appeal deadlines that apply, so your friend should reseach these as they apply to his situation.

Finally, your friend can apply for a temporary reduction in assessed value if the value of the property has declined since he reacquired it. This is an annual review process. He should be able to get the necessary information and application from the Assessor's website for the County in which the property is located.

[Noelle I]

Evidenced by the past, the Assessor's office may not be able to reduce every property that is eligible for a reduction, Sometimes when they do reduce property taxes, it isn't enough. The Property Tax Assessment Adjusters (ptaaonline.com) identifies properties that can be helped, and their complete service includes handling requests for review of assessed value, completing a detailed analysis on comparable home sales, as well as the formal appeals process, which includes attending and representing you at any hearings scheduled. The service exists to get the best reduction for homeowners possible. In addition, PTAA is a member of the Better Business Bureau, meaning the company adheres to the morals and guidelines of running an ethical and legitimate business.