NEW ORLEANS — Thousands of people have been through the assessor's office in hopes of lowering their assessments or getting age freezes.
The line on the fourth floor of City Hall on Monday was full of people there for the same reason: Re-assessments that, in some cases, increased property values by more than 100 percent for some people.
The first deadline to file an "informal appeal" happened Monday. Now, the final deadline for a "formal appeal" (which can submitted either online at nolaassessor.modria.com or in person) is Thursday, Aug. 22.
Many, like Brenda Payne, were there because they qualified for age freezes. Payne just turned 65 and went early to City Hall because she hoped to get her assessment amount frozen.
"I'm glad it didn't go up. I want it lowered or frozen; One of the two. Freezing is better,” Payne said.
Age freezes are just one of the issues the assessor's office dealt with as it completed the quadrennial assessment -- which is done every four years -- something that could mean higher tax bills for some people.
Assessor Errol Williams said that even if you were not able to speak face to face with someone from his office, you still can file a formal appeal. That process -- which can be done at City Hall, the Algiers Courthouse or online -- continues until Thursday, Aug. 22.
“We want to be in the ballpark of what your property is worth. We may not know what the conditions are inside of the property because it's a curbside review. In this state, there is no visit inside the property,” William said.
There are 167,000 properties for Williams to review. He says this year, about 2,500 people appealed their assessments as of Monday morning.
M.A. Sheehan works with property owners in the Lower 9th Ward and says every penny counts for some of her clients. She says her workload of helping homeowners stay in their homes is growing.
“We've had to put everything else on hold to deal with what the assessor is doing,” Sheehan said.
For now, the hand-wringing continues until the next round of assessments in 2023.
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To contest an assessment value, individuals are advised to have an assessment letter and any additional documentation to support their claim, such as a recent appraisal, a builder’s contract, photos or insurance coverage of the property.
People with disabilities who meet certain income criteria may also qualify for the special assessment. The assessor’s office has application forms available on their website (also available by clicking here). Property owners who qualify must provide their Annual Adjusted Gross Income for the year prior, in this case for 2018.
Once the forms are properly filled out, home owners can either final a formal appeal online at the assessor’s website, or go to one of three locations in the city to appeal their assessment.
Those locations are the fourth floor of City Hall (1300 Perdido Street), the Algiers Courthouse (225 Morgan Street) or the second floor of the Lakeview Christian Center (5885 Fleur De Lis Drive).