“Ben Franklin” to Visit Douglas County Courthouse

Douglas County Taxpayers Coalition

www.douglastaxes.com

“Ben Franklin” to Visit Douglas County Courthouse

Douglasville, GA: “A penny saved is a penny earned” is the message a Douglas County taxpayers group is sending to property owners as the April 1, 2010 deadline nears to file a property tax return.

James Bell, director of the Douglas County Taxpayers Coalition (DCTC), said Douglas County will get a visit from Benjamin Franklin (Brad Forschner) next Thursdays, March 11 at 11:00am – 1:00pm at the courthouse to bring attention to the April 1st deadline.

Property owners, whose property values have fallen in 2009, can file with the county tax commissioner’s office a PT-50R form to claim the current value. April 1st is also the deadline to file for homestead exemption which can also be filed at the tax commissioner’s office on the 2nd floor of the courthouse.

Property Returns must also be filed if: You purchased or acquired property during the previous year; You made any changes during the previous year that would affect the value of your property, such as building or demolishing a house, remodeling, adding pools and decks, etc.; You wish to split or combine parcels;

If property owners do not file a return by April 1st to trigger a reassessment and the county appraisal department does not change (raise or lower) the value from the previous year, owners will not have the opportunity to appeal their values until January 2011.

Bell said, according to reports, Douglas County’s tax digest (the total value of taxable properties) could drop by as much as 15-20 percent this year forcing county commission and school board to increase the millage rate or cut spending to reflect the shortfalls.

“It is important that properties are assessed at current fair market value in case county officials do raise the millage rate”, said Bell. We do expect a higher tax rate in 2010. If the millage is raised a lower assessed property values will help to offset the tax burden”.

DCTC will have information available outside the main entrance of the courthouse to assist property owners with filing the returns.

PT-50R forms can now be filed online at: http://www.douglastaxcommissioner.com/

To contact the tax commissioners office (Todd Cowan) (770) 920-7272 or email: tcowan@co.douglas.ga.us

Advertisement