NTF Work Sheet: Property8. 5-08.

NEBRASKA TAXPAYERS FOR FREEDOM ISSUE PAPER:

PROPERTY TAX AND VALUATION STATEMENTS.

PROPERTY TAX STATEMENTS.

First, remember that the property taxes you pay at the end of a calendar year are based on the valuation notice you received several months prior. The year-end real estate tax statement shows how many dollars and cents you must pay for every category of taxation within each taxing authority, e.g., Douglas County. It tells you if a financial company pays your taxes. The statement contains a legal description of your property, including subdivision, address, lot, and block number. It shows homestead exemption, other exemptions, land value, structure value, and net taxable value. Bills list taxing districts, taxing authorities, current levies, and current and in some counties prior tax amounts. Numbers farther down reveal your total tax levy and tax bill in dollar amount. Your bill also tells payment due date, delinquencies showing on your property, and sum you must pay for the entire year. You can figure what percentage of your total tax bill came from one taxing authority by dividing the taxing authority total tax assessment, e.g., $1317.82 for Omaha Public Schools + ESU 1, by total tax, $2,342.86. You then can determine that about 56% of your property tax funded public education.

VALUATION STATEMENTS.

In May, the county assessor mails property tax valuation notices to every property owner whose valuation has changed. The statement identifies the property by type, subdivision, address, block, and lot number. Columns with previous and current year dates tell the recipient the valuation of land and structure in each of these years, so that one can tell how much property has increased or decreased in value. By state law, residential property must show valuation at between 92% and 100% of market value. Remember that the county assessor does not have leeway in setting this percentage and does not determine property tax rates. Some counties include the tax rates and tax dollar amounts on property for each year listing the valuation amount. Some statements include instructions telling homeowners how to file valuation protests. To calculate the percentage of increase in your valuation, subtract your previous valuation from the current valuation, then divide this sum by the previous valuation. For example, $125,000 - $100,000 divided by $100,000 equals 25%.

Research and documentation for this work sheet done by Doug Kagan. This material copyrighted and notarized by Nebraska Taxpayers for Freedom, with express prior permission for its use by Citizens for Local Control, Cherry County Taxpayers, Dawes County Taxpayers, and other groups in the Tax Freedom Network. 5-08 C