re: Ad Valorem (property tax) elimination

Yeah, appraisals can be pretty tricky. New house= you get charged what you spent on it. Older house= you get charged what you paid for it, which can be way higher than what it's worth.

The appeals process is simple in MS. The first Monday in July, the rolls are produced for public inspection. This is the time to go check our your value. If you can't talk with the appraiser and work something out (see how it gets inconsistent now? The squeaky wheel gets the grease) then your option is to appeal your value before the Board of Supervisors in August. They will review your case but usually they go with whatever the appraiser says. But in many cases I've seen they will help the individual (it's all about who you know, and if they know you).

Yeah there is are guys that make serious bank representing commercial property owners on getting an assessment lowered.


For me it's all about fairness, if you have a legitimate arguement then go talk to the Assessor's office. But the thing in MS is that most people's property are well below their market value. So they don't have a gripe with the Assessor. It's the Board of Supervisors that doesn't lower the tax rate when more value comes in is what is killer. That, and School Boards that take the maximum tax rate hike they can take every year no matter what the value is. School Boards are really the ones running wild with their budgets.