Reduce Your San Luis Obispo Property Tax Bill!

Reduce Your San Luis Obispo Property Tax Bill!

Do you own a home in San Luis Obispo that has declined in property value? In California we live in a high property tax area and you can save a bundle by fighting your assessment. The County has been reassessing properties all over, but they haven't yet gotten to everyone. You can do something today to get your home reevaluated. Doing it yourself can seem like a daunting task, but there are easy steps to reduce your bill to a much more realistic value of your home, lot or condo.

Example 
I love examples so here's one to give you a clear scenario:
Let's say you live in San Luis Obispo and the value of your home has reduced from $600,000 to $450,000. A huge drop! A reassessment of your bill could lower your annual bill from approximately $7,500 to $5,625, an annual savings of $1,875. That's two round trip tickets to Italy!

So now what?
SLO County has a website that walks you through the process. The "Decline in Property Value" Application is available to download and fill out. There is even a Decline in Value Estimator that can tell you if you are eligible for a reduction. You will need your 9-digit Assessment Parcel Number (APN) to do it. The Parcel number is on your annual property tax bill. You will also need to put in a fair market value of your home based on homes that have sold in your area recently. A Realtor can get you this number, email me if you need a more accurate number. Then it spits out your revised Assessed Value. Then fill out the "Decline in Property Value"form and get the county moving on your reassessment. Do wait till they do it, it could take years.

Options
If you aren't up for the task you can outsource the work to a local real estate lawyer or a property tax appeal expert. They will handle everything and charge 25%-50% of your first years tax savings. I recommend doing it your self, SLO County makes it simple to do.


I hope this is helpful and if you live in another California County or another State you can do this too. Many forms and resources online can assist you in being proactive with reassessments. I encourage you to do this as part of your new year resolution. Take the extra money and go an amazing vacation and send me a postcard.:)


Are you in the market to buy or to sell your home? Give me a call today!

"A Realtor that knows homes." Traci Ferguson 805-235-6396 traci@traciferguson.com http://www.traciferguson.com License #01875751, ecoBroker #16082

Buying a Home in San Luis - Tax Benefits

As a home buyer in SLO you have tax benefits that will save you money every year. Your mortgage interest and real estate taxes are tax deductible and anyone with a mortgage can enjoy this tax benefit.

During the early years of the home mortgage, most of your monthly repayments go towards your interest, with little payment towards the capital. Tax benefits are therefore very useful for first-time home buyers, especially during the early years of acquiring the mortgage. The early part of your mortgage payment is primarily paying on the interest of your loan. This interest payment is fully tax deductible. As you pay more on the amortized home mortgage over a longer time frame, more of each monthly payment goes towards paying the principle, and less towards interest. This means that with time, you lose some of your interest write-off as your equity in the property increases.

It is important for you to note that you can take these tax deductions if you change from standard deduction, which all tax payers are entitled to, to itemized deductions. In the case where your itemize deductions, including home mortgage interest and property taxes, do not exceed the standard deduction amount, it is better for you to take standard deduction.

The following three components of your home mortgage are tax deductible:

1. Interest on your home mortgage
2. Property taxes
3. Loan points for a purchase mortgage fully deductible in the year that they are paid. It is noteworthy that in refinance, the points are written off in increments over the term of a home mortgage. (See my blog post on When to pay down points)

We strive to make it easy for you!
Visit my Mortgage Calculator page filled with additional information.
For more information about Real Estate on the Central Coast, please contact Traci Ferguson by E-mail or by phone directly at 805-235-6396.