For those of us that are living in the Phoenix area, we recently received our tax value notification in the mail. It serves as a dark reminder on how far our home values have declined. According to the Maricopa County Assessor’s Office, home values dropped an average of 23 percent during the 12 months that ended in November.

Maricopa County Assessor Keith Russell said, that “The continued slide in residential-home values is squarely reflected in the notices all homeowners will receive,”

The Phoenix Median Home value has fallen from 192,800 to 148,800 according to Keith Russell. He also stated that more than half of the home sales are foreclosure sales.

If you are thinking that because of this decline your tax values will decline don’t be too hasty. Because of the nature of the law, the notice that we received is a projection of the 2010 year. Hopefully, the 2010 year we will begin to see a small decrease in property taxes.

The Phoenix Property “Notice of Valuation” will have some unique terms on them.

1. Total FCV – Full Cash Value is used to compute secondary taxes, which consist of bonds, budget overrides, and special districts such as fire, flood control, and other limited purpose districts. Full Cash Value is a reflection of the market value of your property and consists of land and improvements.

2. Total LPV - Limited Property Value is used to compute primary taxes for the maintenance and operation of school districts, cities, community college districts and counties. The Limited Property Value is calculated according to a statutory formula mandated by the Arizona State Legislature and cannot exceed the Full Cash Value – (Hint – Can’t exceed it so it probably will be equal to it – that is the maximum they can tax you.)

If your Property Tax Notification is erroneous, now is the time to begin the appeal process. On the back of the form will detail the instructions to start the appeal process.

1. Fill out small form on back of Notification Letter and mail it to the Maricopa County Assessor, requesting an Appeal Form.

2. After receiving Appeal form, (up to two weeks) describe why you believe that the Tax Valuation was incorrect and return it to the Assessor’s Office.

Steps 1 and 2 must be completed within 60 days of receiving the notification. I would highly recommend checking the box on the “Petition for Review of Valuation” that requests a meeting with an appraisor. If you choose this option, the Assessor’s Office will notify you with your meeting time and date.

If their are any question about your tax notification you can contact the Assessors Officea t www.maricopa.gov/assessor or 602.506.3406