Ultimate Montgomery County Real Property Tax Guide for 2024

Guide Overview

Studying this recap, you’ll get a useful understanding of real estate taxes in Montgomery County and what you can expect when your payment is due. Should you already be a resident, contemplating it, or only wishing to invest in Montgomery County, read on to get insight into what to expect.

Average Property Tax Rate in Montgomery County

Based on latest data from the US Census Bureau

Montgomery County Property Taxes Range

Montgomery County Property Taxes Range

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Based on latest data from the US Census Bureau

You May Be Charged an Unfair Property Tax Amount

Perhaps you’re unaware that a real estate tax levy sometimes is bigger than it should be due to an unfair assessment. This might take place when appraisal market values are set collectively in categories, i.e. like properties are combined and accorded the same estimated value with no onsite inspection. Besides that, appraisers sometimes make errors. With any possible incorrect assessment, it’s time to quickly gather up the facts and consider submitting a formal protest.

If you have newly refinanced, look for erroneous double billings. Attentively review your charges for other potential disparities. Bill statements are readily obtainable online for everybody to see. Compare the assessed market value with similar community houses, in particular newly sold. Study recent rises or drops in property asking price trends.

Even if you’re conflicted whether or not the levy is overstated, move now. In case you are uncertain whether a protest is a waste of time or not, leave it to pros to determine whether to protest. There are service providers prepared to protest levies on your behalf at no peril to you, no initial costs. More details later.

What Is a Tax Protest Procedure?

You may appeal your county’s appraisal of your real estate tax value if you suspect it is higher than it ought to be. Montgomery County is accountable for calculating the tax value of your property, and that is where you will file your appeal.

You can locate the required appeal process and the forms on the county’s website or at the county tax office. Prior to starting, make certain you understand the requirements for filling out the documents and arranging your protest. Your protest submission might not be approved if you don’t correctly fill out the forms on time.

You’ll have a time limit after receiving your tax notice to file a protest. Be sure that you start preparing your filing quickly so that you don’t miss the deadline.

Ask for a copy of the assessment including data that was used for the county’s assessment. The appeal may hinge on this. If the tax assessor made errors, like contrasting your property with dissimilar properties, you will have strong reasons to protest.

If you have a compelling protest, your filing might be dealt with without delay through a simple procedure. In any event, you should be prepared to present your case in person to the county’s review panel. You’re going to be required to demonstrate that the tax valuation given to your property is inadequate. General complaints about tax rates or how fast real estate tax values have grown are irrelevant to your appeal.

If you still don’t agree with the county’s conclusion, you have the right to appeal to a state board or panel. If you have to go to court, it may make sense to get help from one of the best property tax attorneys in Montgomery County KS.

It is your right to question your property’s tax value assessment. However, prior to beginning a time-consuming procedure, perhaps you ought to relate the assessment to dollars. Determine your real property tax bill, incorporating any tax exemptions that pertain to your property. What seems a big appreciation in value may actually produce an insignificant boost in your tax bill.

How to Get Your Taxes Reduced for Free?

Pay only if you get a tax decrease when you join with appeal companies on a contingency fee basis. You’ll be charged a fee depending on any tax savings. Zero saved in taxes means they don’t charge you.

Appeal companies are encouraged to fully dissect your billing, prepare for and take part in hearings, look for mistakes, locate omitted exemptions, and get ready for any legal action. Companies are very active on exemption matters, which have shown to be complex and at times lead to legal challenges.

Two traditional approaches for appraisal re-evaluations are mostly used to buttress appeals. Usually, when contesting taxes your re-evaluation will be predicated on a “sales comparison” or an “unequal appraisal”. While both performed in one community, sales comparisons rely on recent sale prices while unequal appraisals expose similar properties’ appraised values mismatches.

Smaller boutique firms that conduct full appraisals most often use sales comparisons. An in-person examination of the real estate is typically needed. As an onsite inspection performed by an appraiser licensed by the state, its conclusions are largely accepted at face-value. Revisions would only come about from, once again, a whole re-assessment. For example, three comparable homes sold for $500K, while the re-evaluated house needs a $10,000 reshingling, then its new value slips to $490,000.

The unequal appraisal routine is utilized to look for opportunities for tax savings even if appraised values don’t exceed existing market values. By community, a report of properties that are about equal in appraised market value is generated via an automated process. After that, a match of those properties’ tax billing amounts is undertaken. Frequently a resulting tax assessed discrepancy that’s 10% or more over the sampling’s median level will be checked out. They typically bill clients a fraction of any tax reduction instead of fixed, out-of-pocket costs.

Select a company that suits you in this list of the best property tax protest companies in Montgomery County KS.

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How Does Montgomery County Real Estate Tax Work?

State statute grants several thousand local public units the power to impose property taxes. Typically taxing municipalities’ tax levies are merged under a single notice from the county. Every municipality then gets the assessed amount it levied. Overall, there are three stages to real property taxation, namely: establishing tax levies, appraising market value, and then bringing in the tax.

Taxing districts include city, county governments, and numerous special districts such as public colleges. As recognized legal governmental entities, they’re overseen by elected officials or appointees. They serve a distinct locale such as within city limits or special purpose units such as recreation parks, water treatment plants, and fire districts.

The state’s statutory rules and regulations must be observed in the city’s management of taxation. All real estate not falling under exemptions is required to be taxed equally and consistently on one current market value basis. Appropriate notice of any levy hike is another requirement.

Your city establishes tax rates all within Kansas statutory directives. Left to the county, however, are appraising real estate, sending out levies, taking in collections, enforcing compliance, and resolving disputes.

The present market worth of real estate situated in your city is calculated by county assessors. Once again, the state has set guidelines which county real estate appraisers must carry out. These instructions are set to promote evenness across Kansas. Appraisal approaches and correctness questions are fruitful points for potential challenges.

Across the United States, three methods for setting real estate value dominate (with variations). A Sales Comparison is based on looking at average sale prices of similar properties in the neighborhood. An Income Method for commercial buildings and land estimates the future rental income to establish current fair market worth. A Cost Approach as well is principally a commercial property worth computation method that adds the land value to the outlay for replacing the building.

Usually once per three years or more often a county appraiser re-evaluates and decides whether to recalibrate property’s estimated worth. That value is multiplied times a composite tax levy, i.e. the total of rates made by all related governing units. They range from the county to city, school district, and various special purpose entities such as sewage treatment plants, amusement parks, and property maintenance facilities.

Who and How Determines Montgomery County Property Tax Rates?

In compliance with the state’s constitution, real estate assessments are made by counties only. Assessors cannot introduce revenue implications in their estimations of market values.

Under the state code, new estimations must be conducted on a regular basis. Typically, a broad-based appraisal scheme is employed with that same methodology applied en masse to similar property types. Missing single property inspections, unique property characteristics, potentially impacting property’s market value, are overlooked.

Appraisers started by creating a descriptive list of all taxable real estate, aka tax rolls. A tax roll describes by address all real estate within a particular locale. They were categorized based upon various features, such as size, use, and construction type. Other inputs such as age and area were also factored in when forming these groups by class, which then had market values assigned en masse. Without an onsite tour, this conceivably stale and unreliable details – coupled with current sales stats – is what assessors are often equipped with each new assessment period.

These instructive procedures are made mandatory to ensure even-handed property market worth evaluations. While this en masse operation helps manage an otherwise staggering job, it also results in imprecise appraisal results. This methodology inherently provides room for many protest possibilities.

With market values recorded, your city along with other county governing districts will calculate tax rates separately. When totalled, the property tax burden all owners carry is established. This is mostly a budgetary exercise with district managers first predicting annual spending expectations. After which it’s a matter of determining what combined tax rate is required to meet that budget. Theoretically, at least total revenue should equal the fund required for all planned projects that year.

Counties, municipalities, hospital districts, special purpose districts, such as sewage treatment stations and others, make up hundreds such public entities in Kansas. They all individually determine the needed tax levy to meet their budgeted outlays. Below the county level, almost all local governments have reached agreements for Montgomery County to assess and collect taxes.

Traditionally this budgetary and tax rate-setting process is augmented by public hearings convened to discuss budget spending and tax affairs. County residents have the right under state law to request a public vote should planned tax increases surpass set limits.

Specifically stated under the state Constitution, taxing bodies, such as the city, have crubs on raising taxes. Actually rates must not rise until after your city conveys notice of its intent to contemplate a hike. Then a hearing regarding any planned tax increase must be held.

If Montgomery County property tax rates have been too costly for your wallet resulting in delinquent property tax payments, you may want to obtain a quick property tax loan from lenders in Montgomery County KS to save your property from a looming foreclosure.

What Are Montgomery County Real Estate Taxes Used For?

Property taxes have always been local governments’ very own area as a revenue source. They’re a capital pillar for governmental services used to maintain cities, schools, and special districts, such as sewage treatment stations, public safety services, recreation, and more.

The variety and significance of these governmental services relying upon property taxpayers can’t be overemphasized. Again, real property taxes are the single largest way your city pays for them, including over half of all district school funding. Apart from Montgomery County and its cities, different specific-purpose entities, like school districts, sanitation authorities, as well as others, are among tax revenue source’s many beneficiaries.

A big chunk of property tax revenues goes toward district schools. Another big slice is reserved for municipal and other public employees’ salaries and benefits. Public safety with police and fire departments is a big consumer of the budget, also. Highway work, streetlights, sidewalks, and public transportation — all depend on real property taxes. Water and sewage treatment facilities top the list in sanitation concerns, similarly to hospitals in healthcare. Parks, woodlands, playgrounds, and other recreation preserves are provided within the locality. In other words, “It all adds up!”

How Are Property Taxes Handled at Closing in Montgomery County?

Real estate tax remittances are normally sent off beforehand for the full year. Then who pays property taxes at closing when it takes place during the tax year? When buying a house, at closing, homeownership switches from sellers to buyers. Likewise, liability for the tax goes with that ownership transfer. Thus, the buyer will be repaying the seller for the after-closing portion of the levy.

Paid-in-advance tax refunds don’t customarily take the form of direct transactions to the past owners. Rather, tax reimbursements will be included with all other obligations of the new owner on final settlement.