Appealing Your Revaluation
Appealing Your Revaluation
Appealing your Revaluation
Informal Appeal Form Must be Submitted by Friday, April 30, 2021
By Aaron Nelson on 4/26/21
Heads-up Chamber members: Revaluation is underway and may result in an increase in your property tax bill (property owners) or an increase in your rent or CAM charges (tenants). Several Chamber members have already contacted our office about the revaluation process with interest in filing an appeal of the assessed value.
What: North Carolina counties are required to revalue properties regularly to ensure a fair and equitable distribution of the property tax burden. The Orange County Tax Office recently completed its 2021 revaluation and mailed notice of new values to all property owners. Note: the previous valuation was 2017.
When: New value notices were sent to all property owners in March 2021 reflecting the January 1, 2021 revaluation. The informal appeal process is currently underway and ends on April 30, and the formal appeal process will begin May 3, 2021 and conclude by June 30, 2021. Property owner’s real property tax bill will be mailed in late July or early August 2021 and will reflect the new revaluation tax assessment.
How to appeal: There are two paths to appeal your revaluation: informal and formal. Either way, keep in mind that an appeal is not about your ability to pay your bill but to determine the true market value of your property as of January 1, 2021. The burden of proof is on you, the property owner, to show that the tax assessment is inaccurate.
- Informal Appeal: An Informal appeal provides an opportunity for the property owner to work directly with the Tax Office to review the property and understand how the county determined its value. Informal appeals must be submitted by April 30, 2021. To file an informal appeal, please complete this form.
- Formal Appeal: A formal appeal will result in your case being heard by the Orange County Board of Equalization and Review (local citizen volunteers appointed by the Board of County Commissioners). The Formal appeal time period is from May 3 until June 30. To file a formal appeal, property owners must fill out the form on the Orange County website. Once you submit the form, you will be contacted by the Tax Office to set up a time for your appeal to be heard. The schedule for hearings can be seen here.
Pro Tips: To check the property’s current value and compare it to previous valuations you can click here and enter the property address (if you cannot find your listing under ‘West Franklin Street,’ for example’ please try ‘W Franklin St.’ or ‘West Franklin’ and if you are having any trouble beyond that, call 919.245.2100 for help).
Be clear in your reason for appeal including comparable recent property sales, recent appraisal, or reduced property related revenue for example.
More Information: There is no charge to taxpayers to file either an informal or formal appeal and your are not required to file an informal appeal before filing a formal appeal.
Due to the pandemic, the Tax Office is closed to the public. However, there staff is available to talk by phone and in-person appointments are available on a limited basis. Call 919-245-2100, option 2 or email.
More links:
- Read about the Orange County Revaluation
- Find your property
- Appeal your value
- Contact Orange County Tax Administration: reval@orangecountync.gov, 919-245-2100 option 2
- Learn about the Durham County and Chatham County Revaluation and Appeal Process