Property assessment notices hit Buckhead mailboxes in June, and many homeowners were surprised by what they found. One of our readers had the taxable value of their home more than double to over $18 million! To get a better understanding of the process, Buckhead.com sat down with the Chief Appraiser of Fulton County as well as an attorney who specializes in property tax appeals. Read on for more information on how the process works and click here to search for your assessment online.
The average home in Fulton County saw a 15% increase in value in 2023, and assessed values went up 12% on average in the City of Atlanta compared to 2022, according to the Fulton County Tax Assessor. Despite the increase in average assessed property values, Fulton County Chief Appraiser Roderick Conley told us that 2023 is not considered a “catch-up” year.
Assessment factors
Conley explained that numerous factors affect a property’s assessed value. “A combination of property characteristics, such as year built, square footage, bathroom count, and story height, along with the market, but it’s the market as of January 1 of the tax year.” The last part of his statement is important- the assessed value is based on the market and other factors during the PREVIOUS year. Any market fluctuation during the first half of 2023 would not have a bearing on this year’s assessments.
Jacoby Elrod, tax appeal consultant with Campbell & Brannon, notes that this is one reason some homeowners may not agree with their assessment. “Some people might argue that the market has softened a bit [in 2023]. But while inventory was low [in 2022], sales were still pretty strong in general.” Elrod continues, “And so when we’re looking at 2023 values, the county’s using 2022 sales comps. The way that process works is not the most responsive, maybe to the market, since it’s using the previous year’s data. It’s not…
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