WHAT IS REASSESSMENT?

South Carolina's constitution requires taxation of all real property, fairly and equitably. When similar properties in the same taxing district are taxed differently, the system is unequal and unfair. The new State Statute mandates reassessment programs every five years to correct such inequities. The Assessor's Office maintains information on each property located within the County. Most property characteristics have not changed since the last reassessment. Therefore, it will not be necessary to remeasure or collect data unless an addition or remodeling took place. A licensed appraiser will verify this information to determine the fair market value.

HOW IS MY PROPERTY REASSESSED?

The County Assessor's Office maintains information on each property located in the County, including size, square footage, location and certain amenities. The Assessor's Office also has copies of building permits, which provide additional information about the property.

To find the value of any piece of property, the County Assessor's Office must know the price for which properties similar to it are selling, what it would cost today to replace, how much it takes to operate and repair, what rent the property may earn, and other facts affecting its value, such as the current rate of interest charged for borrowing the money to buy or build properties.

Along with this information, the Assessor's Office will determine the property's value considering three different approaches:

Sales Comparison Approach - This method compares property in the same area/neighborhood to other properties, which have sold recently. These prices are analyzed to determine if the sales were accurate. One property may have sold for more than it is really worth because the buyer was in a hurry and was willing to pay any price. Another may have sold for less money than it was actually worth because the owner needed cash quickly.

When using the sales comparison approach, the Assessor's Office analyzes many sales to arrive at a fair valuation of your property. Size, quality, condition, location and time of sale are important facts. The sales comparison approach usually is the most reliable way of determining value of residential property.

Cost Approach - A second way to value property is based on how much money it would take, at current material and labor costs, to replace the property with one that is similar. If the property is not new, the Assessor's Office must determine how much it has depreciated. Also, the County Assessor's Office must determine how much the land would be worth if it was vacant.

Income Approach - Another way to value property is to evaluate how much income the property would produce if it were rented as an apartment house, a store or other sort of business. The County Assessor's Office considers the rent a property may earn, vacancy rates, operating expenses, maintenance costs, and the current interest rate charged for borrowing money to determine the value by the income approach.

All county assessors and appraisers receive training in appraisal techniques and must be licensed or certified by the South Carolina Appraisers Board. It is important to remember that the County Assessor's Office does not create value; only the market place can do that. The principle of supply and demand is the largest single factor in determining a property's worth.

WILL I BE NOTIFIED OF THE NEW VALUE?

YES. An Assessment Notice will be mailed to all real property owners the year of reassessment and will reflect the name of the legal owner as of December 31, of the prior year. The assessment notice is NOT A TAX BILL. The notice is simply to make taxpayers aware of a change in their property value or classification.

WHAT IF I DISAGREE WITH MY PROPERTY VALUE?

If, after receiving your assessment notice, you disagree with the new value assigned to your property, you have the right to appeal. An appeal must be filed, in writing, within 90 days of the mailing of the assessment notice. You must file your appeal with the County Assessor's Office.  Do not wait until your tax bill arrives to appeal your new value; it's too late then. If you appeal your property value and the appeal is not settled by December 31, you will be billed for at least 80% of the assessed value for the current year. You may request, in writing, to be billed for more than 80% in order to avoid paying interest should your appeal not be successful.  All taxes must be paid by January 15, including those properties taxed at 80% that are under appeal.

Once the appeal is resolved, you may receive a refund or be expected to pay additional taxes, depending on how the appeal is resolved. You must pay interest at the current prevailing rate on any outstanding taxes owed. Likewise, if your appeal is successful and your taxes are less than what you paid, the County will pay you interest on any refunds due.

WILL MY TAXES INCREASE?

This is the number one question about assessment notices.  However, there is not an easy answer.  From the information available at the time assessment notices are sent, taxes cannot be estimated.  The assessment is only one piece of the formula to calculate taxes.  Since the value of all parcels are changing, the remaining part of the formula will not be known until approximately November.  It would not be accurate to use last year’s formula to estimate taxes.

Unless a property is badly in need of repair, it is rare for a property value to go down.  Millage rates will be lowered as a result of the increase in property values throughout the County.  This is designed to collect the amount of tax dollars budgeted in the year before reassessment.

How Can I “Win” an Appeal?

You can “win” an appeal and have the County’s appraised value changed by deriving a value of your own and proving it.  You do not need to be an appraiser, an accountant, or an attorney.  (Note: You can hire someone to represent you.  However, if you do, you must file a Form SC2848 for the County to recognize that person as your representative.  An appraiser cannot be your advocate in the hearings.)  There are several things that would be considered good evidence as to the value of your property.  Here are a few:

1.  Recent Sale of the Property- There is a misconception that the amount paid for the property is always the market value.  If presenting this information, you must consider the position of the seller at the time of sale (e.g. bankruptcy, foreclose, financial hardship).  Also, what improvements have been made since the sale?  Was any special financing involved?  Are you and the seller related or in business together?

  1. Recent Appraisal - With all the refinancing in recent years, many people have had an appraisal done of their property.  When presenting an appraisal, you must provide a copy of the entire appraisal.  Also, the effective date of the appraisal must be considered.  This is not to say an appraisal that is a couple years old will be completely disregarded.  The closer the effective date is to the reappraisal effective date of December 31, of the prior year, the more relevant it will be. If you hire an appraiser specifically to appeal a property, according to State Law, their fee cannot be contingent on a certain outcome.  Also, the appraiser can only be an expert witness and cannot be your advocate in any hearings.  If your case goes to a hearing, the rules of evidence require you to make your appraiser available for cross-examination.  [Note to Appraisers:  All appraisals submitted must meet USPAP and State Law.]
  1. Sales Comparison- If you know of sales of property similar to yours, these can be used to justify a lower value for your property.  Things to consider when selecting comparable properties are: location, property characteristics, the date of sale and any extenuating circumstances of the sale (e.g. bankruptcy, foreclose, financial hardship, family transaction).  You would not be expected to adjust these sales for the differences in characteristics as an appraiser would.  But the more similar the property, the more relevant the sale.
  1. Cost of Your property- If you recently built your house, the cost of land plus the cost of construction could be presented as evidence.  Things that would invalidate this approach are:  the owner or a family member did all or part of the construction; the contract amount was not for 100% of the project; or there was special financing involved.

Remember, an appraisal is an opinion of value.  The more evidence you have to support your opinion, the stronger your case will be.

HOW IS PROPERTY TAXED?

 Property taxes are determined by multiplying the fair market value by the assessment ratio by the millage rate. 

 Example I:     (your home)

                                    $50,000.00      Fair Market Value of home 

                                            x    .04      Assessment Ratio       

    2,000.00      Assessed Value           

        x .250      Millage Rate = 250 mills        

     $500.00      Taxes

      -300.00      Tax Relief ($2,000 Assessed Value X .150  school operations mills)

        200.00     Taxes Due

 Example II:           (a non-legal residence and other properties)

                                   $50,000.00      Fair Market Value of property

         X .06      Assessment Ratio

    3,000.00     Assessed Value

        x .250      Millage Rate = 250 mills

       750.00      Taxes Due

 

NOTE:            Tax Relief does not apply

  Example III:         (approved agricultural property)

                                    $25,000.00     Agricultural Use Value of property

         X  .04     Assessment Ratio

      1,000.00   Assessed Value

                                 x  .250    Millage Rate = 250 mills

         250.00   Taxes Due

 NOTE:            Tax Relief does not apply       

The South Carolina Constitution provides for the following ratios to be applied to the market or use value of property to arrive at the assessed value:

Your home (legal residence)                                                                 4%      

Second home (or any residential property where you do not live)    6%       Agricultural real property (privately owned)                                         4%       Agricultural real property (corporate owned)                                       6%       Commercial real property                                                                      6%       Manufacturing real and personal property                                           10.5%

Utility, real and personal property                                                         10.5%

Personal property                                                                                   10.5%

Motor Carriers, railroads, airlines and pipelines real and                  9.5%

        personal property

HOW DO I GET THE BEST TAX RATE FOR MY HOME?

If you own a home, you want to be sure to obtain the 4% assessment rate if you live in the home as your legal residence. Otherwise, your tax rate will be 6%. Each homeowner is also allowed an exemption of up to $100,000 of the home's fair market value from property taxes for school operating costs. The amount of the savings will vary depending upon the millage rate for school operating costs in the school district where you live. To obtain the lower rate, you will need to complete an application with the County Assessor's Office. This should be done as soon as you move into your house, but may be filed anytime before January 15, when taxes are due. Once you file this application, you will not need to complete another one, unless ownership changes or the County Assessor's Office believes use of the property has changed.

For agriculture property

A property may be taxed at a lower rate if it contains 5 acres of timberland or 10 acres of cropland and at least 50 % of the property is used for a bona fide agricultural use. For parcels of less than 10 acres, the property may still qualify if the owner can show gross receipts from agricultural activity for three of the last five years.  The owner or agent must apply for this discount on or before Jan. 15, when taxes are due. Once you file this application, you will not need to complete another one, unless ownership changes or the County Assessor's Office believes use of the property has changed. Applications are available in the County Assessor's Office.

For real estate developers

A developer may qualify for the multi-lot discount if each of the lots have identical ownership and the developer owns more than 10 undeveloped lots in a subdivision. Lots with mobiles homes are considered improved. The owner or agent must apply for this discount on or before May 1 of each tax year. Applications are available in the County Assessor's Office.

  WHY DO WE PAY PROPERTY TAX?

Property tax is collected by local government to provide for the services most of us take for granted.  Schools, police, public works, road maintenance, animal control, garbage collection, EMS, the judicial system and public libraries are possible because of revenue from the property tax.  A review of your most recent tax bill shows how your tax dollars are divided between the public schools and local governments.  Real property taxes are paid by owners of land and buildings, including homeowners, landlords, business owners and industries.  We are all asked to pay our fair share of the cost of these services by paying tax in proportion to the value of our property.  These taxes are based on the market value of the land and buildings as of December 31 of the preceding year.  For example, the tax bill you receive this fall will be based on property values and construction that existed on December 31.

WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR SETTING THE PROPERTY TAXES?

 County Council, School Boards, City Council, Fire Districts, etc. determine how much money must be collected to fund the budget and the rate of tax necessary to meet the budget to perform services for the public.  For many governments, property taxes make up only a portion of the total amount of revenue needed to fund the budget.  Fees and other sources of income make up the remainder. 

 The County Assessor is responsible for maintaining tax records on all real property and for appraising property not valued by the Department of Revenue or the Auditor.   The County Auditor is responsible for maintaining tax records for motor vehicles and other personal property.   The County Treasurer and Delinquent Tax collector collect taxes.

 The South Carolina Department of Revenue  (http://www.dor.state.sc.us/) provides technical assistance to counties and has general oversight responsibilities for the administration of the property tax. The department also determines the value for manufacturing property, utilities and certain other property.

Terms and Definitions

 Real Property - All land and the buildings, structures or improvements on that land Personal Property - All things, other than real estate, which have value such as cars, trucks, boats, motorcycles and airplanes, and items used in a business such as furniture, fixtures and equipment.

Fair Market Value - The amount for which property can reasonably be expected to sell on the open market with a willing buyer and a willing seller.

Assessment Ratio - The percentage of your property value, which is subject to taxation. For example, the assessment ratio of owner occupied residential property is 4%. Multiply your home's fair market value by the assessment ratio of 4% to determine assessed value.

 

Assessed Value - An appraisal or fair market value of real or personal property multiplied by the appropriate corresponding ratio equals the assessment or assessed value. Assessed value times the millage rate equals the amount of property tax due.

 

Reassessment – Reassessment is a revaluation of real estate. A process required by State law to determine the change in market value of property over a certain period of time in order to provide equity among taxpayers.

 

Millage Rate - The amount of mills levied in order to meet the budget of a school district, county, city or other political subdivision. One mill equals 1/1000 of a dollar or 1/10 of a cent. If the tax rate is 256 mills, multiply .256 by the assessed value to determine the amount of property tax due.

Tax Year - The year for which taxes are due, usually due by January 15 of the
      next year.