The Property Tax Grievance Process

Per New York State law, property taxes are supposed to be based on market value. Simply put, the more your home is worth, the more taxes you will need to pay. It is the job of the tax assessor to ensure that the assessment of your home reflects a fair value that is correct and accurate. Home assessments should correctly determine the value of your home, but home values do change over time. It is possible for home assessments to become excessive due to disproportionate appreciation or depreciation of your home’s value. If your assessment is higher than expected, there is a good chance that you are paying more taxes than you should be.

It is your right as an individual to challenge any unfair assessment through the tax grievance process. A property tax grievance is a formal application to have your assessed value decreased based upon comparable sales. A value is placed on every property, and if you can successfully demonstrate that your home is worth less than the value assigned by the assessor, your grievance will generally result in a reduced assessment.

The following is an outline of the eight main steps in the tax grievance process.

Initial Tax Grievance

Step 1) If you choose to retain us, The Property Tax Grievance Law Practice of Akiva Shapiro, Esq., PLLC will do a free analysis of your property. If it is our opinion that your home has been unfairly assessed, we will begin the grievance process.

Step 2) Our team will prepare and file all of the paperwork, represent you before the Assessment Review Commission, attend all hearings, and file an appeal if necessary.

Step 3) The Assessment Review Commission will make its initial determination and will either offer a proposed reduction or deny the application.

Should an Appeal Be Necessary

Step 4) Depending upon the Assessment Review Commission’s decision, we will either accept the proposed reduction or proceed to Small Claims Assessment Review (SCAR) to petition the court for better terms. Note that if a proposed reduction is offered, and not accepted, it is a risk to proceed with the SCAR process, since it is possible that the SCAR process may results in a lower reduction or no reduction reduction of the assessment. Therefore, unless the proposed reduction is clearly out of line, we will often accept the proposed reduction. The county clerk imposes a $30 filing fee to begin the SCAR process.

Step 5) The SCAR process is a formal petition filed in Supreme Court requesting a review of the Assessment Review Commission’s decision. There is a presumption under the law that the assessment made by the assessor is correct. The burden of proof is with the petitioner to overcome this presumption.

Step 6) We will prepare all the necessary documents to be used in the SCAR process.

Step 7) We will appear in court on your behalf and present your case before the hearing officer.

Upon Success

Step 8) If we are successful, a reduction may be reflected in several ways. Since the grievance process for tax assessments is initiated well in advance of the tax bills, the result will usually be a lower property tax bill than you otherwise would have received without having gone through the grievance process. In some cases, a refund check may be issued for any over payment of taxes, or some combination of both. Whichever method is used, once the tax bills are in, we will calculate the savings for you and notify you in writing.

Please note that it is neither possible, nor ethical, to guarantee success. However, it is our commitment to you that The Property Tax Grievance Law Practice of Akiva Shapiro, Esq., PLLC will do everything in our power to obtain a reduction of your specific assessment.