From: Carroll County Board of Tax Assessors
Under Georgia law, each county’s Board of Tax Assessors is required to issue annually an “Annual Notice of Assessment” to the owner of every parcel of taxable real property located within that county. Most taxpayers are familiar with these notices, which will contain among other information the valuation of that taxpayer’s property for tax year 2024 (i.e., the valuation “as of” January 1, 2024), and based upon that valuation the tax commissioner’s office will issue property tax bills later this year. The “valuation date” of January 1st is important to remember because sometimes (like right now, as many know), even where a particular property’s market value may have increased between January 1st and the assessment notice date, the Board of Assessors has based its valuations on the state of the real estate market and property condition/characteristics as of January 1st.
In situations where property values may be currently rising, that information would be relevant to the 2025 tax year’s tax assessment.
For this tax year 2024 your Board of Assessors will mail the vast majority of the notices on June 20th. In cases where the taxpayer disagrees with the stated valuation and wish to formally challenge it, every taxpayer has the right to file a formal, written appeal with the Board of Assessors within 45 days of the date of the assessment notice.
As many citizens are already aware, sales prices in Carroll County have continued to rise, and average property values continue to increase as a direct result. The Board of Assessors monitors these market trends closely as evidenced by the actions of real estate buyers and sellers in the marketplace. When market data indicates that a property’s value has increased since the last tax year even when no additions or improvements or renovations have been made since the last January 1st, this value appreciation is known as “inflationary growth.”
Taxpayers should be aware that, while the taxable value of many properties may increase for tax year 2024, that increase may not necessarily (and often won’t in fact) result in an increase in the amount of the tax bill. The Carroll County Property Taxpayer Reassessment Relief Act of 2001 protects owners of “homestead property” (i.e., primary residences) from property tax increases (as to the county portion of the tax bill) where the increase in property tax valuation is attributable to the “inflationary growth” described above. Several other property tax exemptions may also apply, varying according to each taxpayer’s circumstances, and taxpayers are encouraged to learn about all property tax exemptions that may apply.
Please also note that the 2024 property tax “estimate” shown on your 2024 assessment notice is provided for informational purposes and is calculated based on the most recent, finalized tax rate (“millage rate”) available, in this case the 2023 millage rates. The 2024 millage rates have not yet been set by the applicable taxing jurisdictions (school systems, municipalities, etc.).
Additional helpful information is available online at www.qpublic.net/ga/carroll.
