I have just read Sandy Keller's blog on
"Have you had to deal with property tax increases in your area?"
and feel sorry for the homeowners in Horry County, South Carolina. Like Horry County, a high percentage of the homes in North Coast of San Luis Obispo County (where I specialize) comprise second or vacation homes. If there were a property tax increase of 301%, we would probably be as horrified as Sandy.
Lately, with the decline in property prices, more than 12,000 homeowners in San Luis Obispo County will face no tax increase in 2008/2009, or receive a reduction on their property taxes. Properties affected are likely those that have been purchased since January 2005. According to the San Luis Obispo County Tax Assessor's Office, properties in North County, such as the subdivisions in Paso Robles, and Atascadero, and South County, namely, Nipomo, are most affected. The values of these homes fell by an average of 18% in the subdivisions, and around 8% to 10% among custom homes. There are a few extremes of 20% to 25% decrease in lowered tax valuations.
Unlike the rest of California where the values of homes had dropped due to the general decline as a result of the high foreclosures and lending/credit issues, this is not the case in San Luis Obispo County. Realty Trac reported that one in 478 homes in San Luis Obispo County is in foreclosure, compared to one in 192 across the state.
The relief to these homeowners poses a challenge for the public agencies that rely on property taxes. In my area, three local school districts - San Luis Coastal, Cayucos Elementary, and Coast Unified School District in Cambria, CA are districts that rely on property taxes. These districts are thankful that there have not been huge declines in the assessments, due to lower declines in property prices on North Coast of San Luis Obispo County.
Interestingly, while relief to these 12,000 homeowners will mean lower tax assessments for the San Luis Obispo County, the overall tax roll for the county has increased marginally by 5.26%, or $40.7 billion. According to the County, that marginal increase was double of what the tax roll was worth in 2000.
If you purchased your property from January 2005, and did not receive a lowered tax valuation notice, visit the San Luis Obispo County Tax Assessor's website, to request for a review of your property's value, or please feel free to contact me for a complimentary home valuation report.
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