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County-wide reappraisals will not affect Germantown tax bills

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Germantown homeowners recently received information from the Shelby County Assessor of Property regarding reappraisal of their property values.

Shelby County is on a four-year reappraisal cycle for real property and the last reappraisal occurred in 2017.


City administrators noted that, “it is imperative that an increase in appraisal value does not equate to an increase in Germantown property taxes.”


Municipal governments ike Germantown use the assessor’s values to calculate property taxes.


The state’s Truth in Taxation law requires local legislative bodies to adjust the tax rate to a “certified tax rate” that brings in the same amount of revenue as before reappraisal, excluding the previous year’s new construction growth.


Higher values during a reappraisal do not mean higher taxes.

Law requires cities to reexamine property tax rates after a reappraisal to make sure higher taxable values do not automatically result in an increase of property tax revenues for the city.


For example, if the citywide reappraisal results in an overall increase of 10 percent, the city will decrease or “roll back” the tax rate by approximately 10 percent to keep net property tax revenues flat.

Therefore, the average tax bill may actually remain the same as last year’s bill.


If however, a homeowner’ property value increased as the result of the revaluation more than the average, the taxes may be somewhat higher, while if the value increased less than the average, the tax bill may actually be lower in a revaluation year compared to the year before.


The State of Tennessee requires the Shelby County Assessor to conduct reappraisals in order to eliminate inequities that are created over time by changes in the real estate market, ensuring fairness and equity for all property owners.

Over time, a property’s market value can increase or decrease. Reappraisals allow the Assessor to adjust property values so that every property in Shelby County is appraised at market value. In all, reappraisals keep the property tax system fair.


If a property owner has a concern regarding their appraisal or classification and does not agree with the Assessor’s value, the first step is to contact the Assessor and request an informal review.

Anyone not satisfied with the results of the informal review, may appeal to the Shelby County Board of Equalization (SCBoE) which begins accepting appeals on May 1.


Please note that an Informal Review is not an appeal, it is simply an opportunity for property owners to share information with the Assessor’s Office in order for their property values to reflect market value.

For more information regarding the appeals process, go to www.assessormelvinburgess.com/content?key=Appeals_Process.

The Shelby County Trustee’s office created a Tax Freeze Program to help seniors (65 year of age and older) by freezing the tax amount on their primary residence for future years.

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