This Case Study of a grievance argued for a property owner pertaining to Excessive Assessment was written by Warren Leisenring, Jr., a consultant for the Tax My Property Fairly website and an 11-year member of a Board of Assessment Review (BAR) in Upstate NY. We thank him for sharing this with our readers, for the purpose of giving property owners some insight as to what to expect and how to prepare their grievances.

A year ago this month, a property owner in Upstate NY received a notice from the assessor that her assessment increased from a full market value of $175,926 to $333,093.

This Case Study outlines the long process taken – starting with the homeowner's initial meeting with the assessor – and going all the way to a Small Claims Assessment Review with the Supreme Court for the State of New York. To fight for what she knew was right, the homeowner hired a consultant, Warren Leisenring, Jr. The process took a year. It reveals how the lack of adequate training provided for Assessors, Boards of Assessment Review, and SCAR Hearing Officers directly affects property owners. In this case, it cost the owner thousands of dollars in additional taxes that could not be recovered.

Please also see:

Case Study #1 on Grieving by Excessive Assessment

Case Study #2 on Grieving by Excessive Assessment

Case Study #3

Pull up a comfortable chair and your favorite drink before you read this Case Study. To most, it will be unbelievable.

This Case Study will reveal how the lack of complete training for Assessors, Boards of Assessment Review, and SCAR Hearing Officers directly affects property owners. In this case, it cost the owner thousands of dollars in additional taxes that could not be recovered.

It is amazing how such a simple grievance could get this screwed up, but it did. I am not holding any individual responsible for anything other than not being properly trained for the positions they were either appointed or hired to do.

It took extensive knowledge from both the New York State Real Property Tax Services' point of view and the property owner's point of view to argue this grievance. For many property owners, I am sure they would have given up with what they would have faced. For me, I fight for what I feel is right and will go to whatever extent it may take to prove what is right.  

Background

This grievance came from central upstate New York. As with the other two Case Studies on Excessive Assessment, all personal information has been excluded for privacy reasons.

In March 2022, the property owner received a notice from the assessor that their assessment had increased from a full market value of $175,926.00 to $333,093.00." These notifications are also known as "impact statements."

The notification dealt mainly with the assessed value rather than the full market value. The "assessed value" of a property is the amount of value upon which a property owner is taxed. In this particular grievance, the Equalization Rate was at 48.5%, so the assessed value greatly differed from the full market value. The assessed value went from $95,000 in 2021 to $161,550 in 2022.

The property owner did some research before meeting with the local assessor and obtained ten comparable properties similar to the "subject property." The "subject property" refers to the property owner's property.

The property owner was asking for a reduction in assessment from the full market value of $333,093.00 to $254,309.00. Below is a similar comparison sheet that the property owner showed the assessor. I have left off the Address and Property Identification columns because of personal information.  FMV (Full Market Value), AV (Assessed Value)

Read more on how this grievance evolved for a year and the outcome.

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The content of this Case Study represents the sole views and opinions made by the writer. Any views, opinions or conclusions made by the reader are solely those of the reader and the writer can not be held responsible or liable for any of those views, opinions or conclusions.

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