TIME FOR YOUR PROPERTY TAX TUNE-UP CAMDEN COUNTY

By Mike Wilson

The beginning of a new year is a busy time in the Assessors’ Office. January through April 1st is the time for accepting applications for homestead exemption. To qualify, you must own your home and reside there on January 1st, and your Camden County residence must be your primary residence. There are several types of additional exemptions available to persons age 62 and over, disabled veterans, and surviving spouses of veterans, firefighters, peace officers, and surviving spouses of service men killed in action.

You may also apply January through April 1st for an agricultural exemption. There are several programs available, and all require a bona fide agricultural use. One program requires U.S. citizenship and may be owned by a trust or owned by a family corporation whose majority income is derived from Georgia farm products. This ten-year program has no minimum tract size, but has a maximum of 2,000 acres per person or entity. Another program does not require citizenship and is available to corporations doing business in Georgia. In this fifteen-year program, tracts must be over 200 acres with no maximum acreage limit, and over half the tract must be in forestland. A third program offers a reduced assessment on farmland and up to $100,000 off the assessed value of farm buildings. In each program, there can be no commercial activity on the parcel, including rental property. Applicants enter into an agricultural covenant that carries significant penalties if the covenant is breached.

Through April 1st, the Assessors’ Office accepts the owner’s opinion of value of property in a document known as a return. Any changes made to the property, such as deletions, additions, and acreage changes, may also be returned. According to Georgia law, opinions of value are not accepted past the deadline of April 1st, and values cannot be adjusted when tax bills are received. If the value returned is not accepted, the property owner will receive an assessment notice by mail. With new tax laws in effect in 2011, every property owner will receive an assessment notice with the right to contest the value within a 45-day appeal period.

Also during this time, the Assessors’ Office is accepting personal property reporting forms for boats, aircraft, and business inventory and equipment. Applications for freeport exemption of qualified business inventory are accepted. The appraisal staff is reviewing the percentage of completion on construction in progress for a January 1st status, and reviewing any building permits and sales of property.

The Assessors’ Office makes every effort to maintain accurate records and encourages property owners to verify the data on property record information online at www.qpublic.net/ga/camden. Please notify the office if changes are necessary. Office hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. The telephone number is (912) 576-3241.