Comments on: Decatur Annexation Public Hearing Tonight

By: Brad

Brad — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 16:44:00 +0000

I live in a neighborhood (Emory Garden Condominiums-Zone 1
on map) which is home to many young families, immigrants, and others
that are currently living within their means. The tax increase brought
about by annexation would displace many of these people as they simply
could not afford to pay. If annexed, these people would have the choice
of not being able to pay the tax, the mortgage, or a portion of both.
Either way, they would most likely end up losing their home. I suppose,
however, if they choose to work 60-70 hours a week they could stay but
lose their quality of life. With the current economic climate, the
first scenario is more likely to happen.

By: dedogur

dedogur — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 18:53:56 +0000

Steve, government taxing a home well above and beyond it’s value certainly seems corrupt. To the recipient of a tax bill, there is a feeling of the numbers being focused on the needs of the tax collector rather than reality of the market. This seems to be happening to a lot of people, and not just in Decatur either. But the term is admittedly too strong, and based on emotion rather than reality. I don’t actually believe it is the result of greed and corruption. It’s the result of a real estate market in limbo, with a huge gray area of what actual values are. Certainly a tough job for appraisers. But I think it’s inappropriate for property appraisals to be based on the maximum value something would be worth in perfect and bubbly real estate market.

By: Steve

Steve — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 13:20:06 +0000

dedogur, “corruption” is pretty strong. Would you care to cite specifics?

By: dedogur

dedogur — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 04:06:34 +0000

well I’m really hoping we can get a resolution to the tax situation because it’s going to force us to have to sell after 7 years on Decatur. And I seriously doubt that we could even get even 30% of our appraised value in this market. I have no desire to sell and we will fight this greed and corruption with everything we have.

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 02:09:53 +0000

Good luck with appealing your tax appraisal. I still can’t get my house equalized with those of most of my neighbors who, in some cases, have more rooms, square footage, etc., and we have the same lot.

You can go to Dekalb Tax Commissioner page, type in your street and compare your taxes to everyone around you…you will be surprised, and not in a good way. It can be VERY arbitrary, and trying to get a clear answer from the “board” as to their reasoning is akin to asking a Magic 8 Ball.