Ultimate Union County Real Property Tax Guide for 2024
Guide Overview
Understand how Union County applies its real estate taxes with our thorough overview. If you are thinking about moving there or only planning to invest in the county’s real estate, you’ll learn whether the county’s property tax laws are conducive for you or you’d prefer to search for a different location.
Average Property Tax Rate in Union County
Union County Property Taxes Range
Union County Property Taxes Range
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You May Be Charged an Unfair Property Tax Amount
Maybe you’re unaware that a property tax bill may be more than it ought to be due to an unfair assessment. That probability is real if understanding your property’s worth was probably assigned collectively based upon just a few onsite inspections in your area. In addition, appraisers can make mistakes. With any possible incorrect assessment, it’s necessary to quickly gather up the facts and think about submitting a formal appeal.
If you have newly refinanced, be alert for erroneous double billings. Analyze your property’s billing statement with vigilance. Such tax levies are accessible for all to review on the web. Compare your property’s estimated market value with comparable homes in your area while paying special attention to recent selling activity. Research recent hikes or weakenings in property market price trends.
In the event you turn up what appears to be an overstatement of tax due, you should act quickly. If you are uncertain whether a protest is a good bet or not, leave it to pros to weigh whether to appeal. There are companies able to appeal bills for you risk-free, no initial expense. There’ll be more details to follow.
What Is a Tax Protest Procedure?
You can protest your county’s assessment of your property’s tax value if you think it is greater than it ought to be. Union County is the one that appraised the real estate and it will consider your appeal.
The forms you require and the process you will follow are found at the county tax office or on their website. Go slowly going over all the regulations before you begin. If you leave out necessary details or overlook a submission deadline, your appeal could be dismissed or returned to you to finish.
Your tax notification will give you a time window in which you can file your protest. Don’t lose any time preparing your protest papers or you might miss the deadline.
It is important that you receive a copy of the detailed assessment report from the county. The report may decide whether or not you have a credible argument. You will have a stronger possibility of achieving a new valuation of your real estate if errors were made in the assessment.
When you have a strong appeal, your submission might be dealt with promptly via a simple procedure. If not, you might be required to make a detailed submission to the county review board. The panel will exclusively be interested in seeing verification that the valuation is inaccurate and nothing else. High real property tax rates and robust real property value increases in your neighborhood are not legitimate reasons to contest.
If you are sure that you have validated your arguments but the county did not agree, you can protest their conclusion to your state’s property tax assessment office. If the case requires going to court, you may need help from one of the best property tax attorneys in Union County SC.
Any real estate owner can protest a property tax assessment. However, the time it takes to conduct a protest may not be appropriate if the assessment increase does not raise your payment significantly. Check your real property tax bill, including any exemptions that pertain to your property. Then question if the size of the increase justifies the work it will take to challenge the valuation.
How to Get Your Taxes Reduced for Free?
Often experts specializing in these challenges ask for commission on a contingency basis. Service charges are based upon a percentage of any taxes reduced by your tax advisor. In the case of no savings, you pay nothing!
Incentivized to uncover tax reductions, these tax specialty firms totally scrutinize your levy and are equipped for possible litigation. Protest firms are frequently retained to specifically address dozens of available exemptions known to be exceptionally complicated and litigious.
Two customary ways for appraisal re-evaluations are mostly used to buttress protests. A re-appraisal often incorporates one of these methods, i.e. a “sales comparison” or an “unequal appraisal” evaluation. While both performed in one district, sales comparisons rely on current sale prices while unequal appraisals demonstrate similar properties’ estimated values mismatches.
Community unaffiliated appraisal companies that specialize in thorough assessments often employ the sales comparison method. Frequently mandatory, complete reevaluations are handled onsite. Being a complete inspection carried out by an appraiser licensed by the state, its conclusions are widely accepted at face-value. It cannot be disregarded short of staging a new thorough assessment review. Say three comparable homes sold for $500,000, while the subject home requires new shingles costing $10,000, then its new value slips to $490,000.
The unequal appraisal routine is utilized to find probable tax decreases even if appraised values don’t exceed current market values. An area list of equivalent properties having nearly the same estimated market values is generated. These properties’ tax bills are then compared. Properties reflecting a mismatch with tax assessed being 10% or more above the sampling’s median level will be singled out for more study. They customarily bill clients based on a percentage of any tax savings instead of flat, out-of-pocket costs.
Find a firm meeting your needs in this list of the best property tax protest companies in Union County SC.
How Does Union County Real Estate Tax Work?
The states give real estate taxation power to thousands of locally-based governmental units. Most often taxing entities’ tax assessments are consolidated under the same notice from the county. Receipts are then dispensed to related entities per an allocation agreement. There are three main stages in taxing property, i.e., devising tax rates, estimating property market worth, and receiving payments.
Accorded by state law, the government of your city, public hospitals, and thousands of other special units are empowered to appraise housing market value, fix tax rates, and collect the tax. They all are public governing units administered by elected or appointed officers. Such units, for example public schools and colleges, serve a specified region, i.e. a county, township, school district, etc.
South Carolina statutory rules and regulations must be followed in the city’s conduct of taxation. Taxation of real property must: [1] be equal and uniform, [2] be based on up-to-date market value, [3] have a single appraised value, and [4] be considered taxable if it’s not specially exempted. Owner’s rights to timely alerts to tax levy raises are also required.
While observing legal constraints prescribed by statute, the city enacts tax levies. Reserved for the county, however, are appraising real estate, mailing bills, taking in collections, enforcing compliance, and handling conflicts.
Real property estimates are performed by the county. Once again, the state imposes regulations regarding appraisal methodologies. Uniformity in estimating real property across the state is the objective. Evaluation approaches and accuracy matters are fertile points for likely challenges.
Commonly, one of three appraisal methodologies (with assorted modifications) is employed to value real property. A Sales Comparison appraisal is set by comparing a property with like properties sold during the last few months in the same neighborhood. An Income Method for commercial real estate gauges the ensuing rental income to calculate current fair market worth. One type of the Cost method adds major improvement outlays to the initial commercial real property investment while subtracting allowable depreciation.
Generally every three years at a minimum a county appraiser re-evaluates and determines whether to reset property’s estimated market value. That amount is taken times the effective tax levy — the sum of all applicable governmental taxing-authorized units’ rates. Taxing units include cities, county, school, and various special purpose districts such as water treatment plants, athletic parks, and colleges.
Who and How Determines Union County Property Tax Rates?
In compliance with South Carolina laws, property appraisals are made by counties only. Assessors cannot interject revenue implications in their assessments of market values.
State law requires all real estate be appraised anew at least once in a few years. Normally, assessors lump together all similar properties located in the same community and collectively apply one-fits-all evaluation strategies. Absent single property tours, unique property characteristics, possibly affecting property’s market value, are passed over.
Appraisers started by composing a descriptive catalogue of all non-exempt real estate, aka tax rolls. These lists included a description of all properties by address. Post-construction, buildings were categorized by such features as building kind, size, and age. Property age and location were also determinants allowing assessors to group units and collectively attach evaluated market values. Absent a tour, the only fresh, confirmed details appraisers possess to operate on regular new estimates are recent sales data.
Dictated by state law, this operation is created to allot the tax hit in an even way statewide with balanced real estate assessments. By reason of this broad-brush method, it’s not only probable but also inevitable that some market value evaluations are incorrect. This process inherently affords space for numerous protest possibilities.
With market values set, your city together with other county governing units will calculate tax levies alone. When totalled, the property tax load all taxpayers bear is established. This is mostly a budgetary exercise with entity directors first planning for yearly expenditures goals. After this it’s a matter of determining what composite tax rate is needed to correspond with that budget. In theory, expected total tax revenues should equal planned expenditures.
Counties, cities, hospital districts, special purpose districts, such as water treatment plants et al, make up hundreds such public entities in the state. They all calculate their individual tax levies depending on fiscal marks. Under a combined tax bill, most sub-county entities contract for the county to levy and gather the tax on their behalf.
The budget/tax rate-setting exercise usually entails customary public hearings to discuss tax issues and similar budgetary questions. Also, note that by law, taxpayers’ can offer for a public vote should any proposed rate hikes exceed a figure.
Specifically stated under the South Carolina Constitution, taxing bodies, like your city, have restrictions on raising taxes. Actually rates can’t rise until after the city provides notice of its intent to consider a hike. Post-notice, a public formal meeting must be convened to discuss the proposal.
If Union County property tax rates have been too costly for your wallet causing delinquent property tax payments, a possible solution is getting a quick property tax loan from lenders in Union County SC to save your home from a potential foreclosure.
What Are Union County Real Estate Taxes Used For?
Property taxes are the major source of funds for your city and other local public entities. Together with the county, they rely on real estate tax payments to support their operations.
The variety and magnitude of these public services relying upon property taxes can’t be overstated. It usually accounts for the biggest segment of general revenues in these municipalities. In addition to the county and its cities, other specific-purpose units, such as school districts, water authorities, and more, are among tax revenue’s many beneficiaries.
Particularly school districts heavily rely on real estate taxes. Other big-ticket items are local government worker salaries/benefits and public safety. Public protection with police and fire departments is a big consumer of general funds, also. Street construction and maintenance, streetlights, walkways, and public transportation — all depend on real estate taxes. Another must is water and sanitation works, and garbage removal. Parks, woodlands, playgrounds, and other leisure areas are offered within the community. With all this, it’s no surprise why tax bills are many times so hefty.
How Are Property Taxes Handled at Closing in Union County?
Real estate taxes are regularly prepaid for a full year of ownership. Then who pays property taxes at closing if buying a house in Union County? Real property ownership switches from the seller to the purchaser on closing. At the same time, responsibility for paying taxes switches with that ownership transfer. As a result, the purchaser will be reimbursing the previous owner for the after-closing part of the levy.
Most often those proportional tax prepayments won’t be transferred straight to former owners. Rather, they’ll be added to all other obligations of the new owner at closing.