Own 3 rentals (thanks to everyone for help). I am looking at a 4 unit (there are 10 nearly identical to mine in the same price range on the same street ).
The City of Cincinnati says the market value for house (on what they tax) is $156k which in the the area for the last 10 years as not been anywhere near that price (ave apt sales have been in the 120’s. Along with this, my apt has less sq footage and charged more than the house next to me!! The house I livie in is about 5 minutes away and along with my other rentals feel I am paying appropriate property tax on my house(S) in comparison with the market…but this one is off by at 20-35k…
My question is
a) Is there a way to get this reduced…do I go to the city? Will I have any luck?
b) are there companies out there that do this kinda of stuff?
You should be able to contact the county’s tax assessor’s office and request a property be re-assessed. Sounds like in your situation, it would work out well. In my experience, properties I’ve seen have all been assessed well below their fair market value. Good luck!
Review the city/county rules on assessing property. Some municipalities strive to assess at fair market value while others simply ballpark a number that is higher than the previous year. If you have solid evidence that the unit(s) you are interested in are inferior (smaller etc.) to similarly assess properties you should have a good case for having the assessment reduced.
I can attest to that, challenging a property assessment is a piece of cake if you have a sound and well documented argument. Just follow the rules required by your taxing authority.
I’m also in Ohio and all I do is contact the city auditor and fill out a request for review. I haven’t had to supply any information because I bought them recently and the sale is on record. It’s probably different from county to county. I buy them so cheap that they get reduced down to around 500-1000 of my purchase price. Which state law says is the true value if it was an arm’s length transaction.
I haven’t taken the time to figure out how much I’m saving but I do enjoy the refund checks that come.