The first step to dealing with NJ real estate tax appeals is to hire a competent lawyer. You will find that he is very resourceful in making sure that you only pay what is rightfully due to the taxman. When you feel as though the property tax assessment you have received is high then you need to consult this lawyer. He will institute a chain of events that seek to verify the amount of tax you should pay.
The first thing he will do is to consider the facts of your case. The information you provide him will be crucial in helping him make a decision whether you have a chance of getting a lowered assessment. He has the relevant experience and knowledge to determine the realistic tax assessments from the unrealistic ones. You will find this as an important avenue to start with as he can save you the time and cost of filing a review which might not be successful.
You should note that real estate tax appeals cost you money to file and therefore you should only file when you are absolutely certain you will get relief. The aim is to lower your expenses and filing unnecessary appeals does not help. It is also important to consider that only a few people get their assessments lowered. This is why you need the services of a reputable lawyer who has handled similar cases before successfully. This will also increase your chances of succeeding.
Real estate tax appeals are usually in the period from when the assessments are received towards the end of January until April 1. If there are reassessments or reevaluations then this period can be extended to May 1. This provides a chance for you to go through the assessment and determine whether it is fair or not.
The reason you might be paying more taxes is because your property is recorded incorrectly by the assessor. You can visit the local office and seek to get the information for your property. You should check the number of rooms, the dimensions put down among others in order to determine that they have the correct information about your home. If there is an error, you can submit the correct information to the assessor along with a blueprint for your home. This is an effective method as you can get the assessment rectified immediately. You are therefore saved the expenses of lodging formal real estate tax appeals.
The other way you can get the expenses lowered with the real estate tax appeals is by looking at the calculations done. You should look for variances that exceed the margin of error that the state has set. If there is a significant variation then you can get the assessment reviewed so that you pay lower taxes.
There is no reason why you should continue paying more taxes in this tough economy. Visit the website and learn more about NJ real estate tax appeals.