How To Lower Your Property Taxes In Shasta County

How to appeal your property taxes in 4 easy steps!

It’s that time of year again to pay your property taxes; providing your taxes are not impounded in your mortgage payment. Is there a way to pay less property tax? The answer is maybe.

First off, in case you’re in a hurry, here’s how and where to pay your Shasta County property taxes in order to avoid a penalty:

The remaining one-half of the taxes on all real property and personal property secured by real property are due by February 1, 2009, and will be delinquent on April 10, 2008.

Make your check payable to: Shasta County Tax Collector

Mail To:
Shasta County Tax Collector
P.O. Box 991830
Redding CA 96099-1830

Regarding the payment due date: Placing the envelope in the post office box does not guarantee that the mail will be processed the same day/evening. State law requires that a payment be treated as if it had been received on the date shown by the post office cancellation mark on the envelope. Only U.S. Federal Government postmarks will be accepted. To avoid penalties, ask to have the envelope hand canceled by the post office. Metered mail is not accepted as a valid cancellation. Contact the Shasta County Tax assessor at 530-225-3600 for specific questions.

You can also pay your property taxes online with a virtual check. Visit the Shasta County Tax Collector Web Site https://www.co.shasta.ca.us/html/TC/Virtual_Check_Intro.htm

Here’s how you may be able to reduce your property tax bill:

When the economy is faltering it’s time to scrutinize your property tax bill. As I’m sure you already know, real property values in Shasta County have dropped severely in the past several years. The Shasta County property tax rate is generally 1.1% of the assessed value. Therefore, if the assessed value of your property is high relative to comparable properties, you could be over paying your property taxes.

Step one: You can verify the value of your property yourself and you don’t have to pay anyone or any company. Be aware, there are many scams where companies offer to reduce your property tax for a fee. I recommend you save your money for all the other taxes you must pay.

Step Two: Make sure you’re not over paying you property tax by finding out the value the Assessor is using for your property. This is also a good time to check for errors in the description of your property. Errors such as: The reported square footage of the dwelling, bedroom and bath count and lot size all can affect the value of your property.

Step Three: Verify the Assessor’s valuation by determining the fair market value of your property. Any competent real estate broker should be able to help you with steps one and two. Should you need assistance, please email or call as I will provide you with an Assessor’s print-out and assist you with an expert property valuation at no cost to you.

Step Four: If you think the assessed valuation of your property is “high”, I recommend you contact the Assessor’s office at 225-3600 and request an informal review of your property. You may also wish to file a Request For Review form with Shasta County Assessor-Recorder. You can download the form by clicking on the previous hyperlink.

Once you have completed the form mail to:

SHASTA COUNTY ASSESSOR-RECORDER
1450 COURT STREET, SUITE 208-A
REDDING CA 96001-1667

The Request For Review Form is generally filed before filing an official Appeals Application. Like most things in life, it’s best to start out with a gentle request first. It’s my opinion you are better to try and fail than to never try at all.

An important side note: The Tax Collector collects property taxes that fund the activities of local government of the county including the school system. The Tax Collector does not determine how much to collect. The County Assessor determines the value of a parcel and gives the value information to the County Auditor-Controller, who applies the tax rates and special assessments to the tax bill. The Auditor-Controller then charges the Tax Collector with the collection of the tax bill.

You may also wish to review the Shasta County’s Assesment Appeal Handout. The purpose of this handout or pamphlet is to acquaint you with the process of appealing your assessment to the Assessment Appeals Board (AAB), including the statutory requirements for filing an appeal and presenting a case before the Board. The pamphlet will help you understand how the system works and what you can do to make the most use of it.

Was this information helpful? I’d like to hear your thoughts, please comment below. Also, be sure to let me know if I can help you in any way or if I left out any important information.

Bad MLS Photo Of The Week 3/24/2010

Need A Mother-In-Law Setup? Enter Now and Win a Bagohome!

This listing appears to have a mother-in-law suite with steps leading to a sun deck and extra storage space. The refrigerator is dual purpose (manufactured by 4 Seasons, Inc) and keeps your beverages warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Convenient parking with lighting for your safety. Please call Cousin Eddie prior to showing.

Click Photo To Enlarge

[Read more…]

But Wait…There’s More!

There couldn’t be a better time to walk away from your house! As a refresher, see my blog post from November 5th 2008 regarding the short sale process and the “Cash For Keys” some lenders offer homeowners as an incentive to go away quietly.

I’m posting today about another government program that could put some cash in your hands. That is, if you’re facing the foreclosure of your home. The government program I want to tell you about was created to increase the viability of short sales; here are the rules if you want to play.

In December, the Treasury Department modified the rules of the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program (HAFA). The new and improved rules have streamlined the process at the national level. Some of the interesting excerpts of the rules require lenders to answer a request for a short sale within 10 business days (including furlough days). To sweeten the pie, lenders will receive $1,000.00 to help cover the cost and speed up the process of a short sale. Just like in the movies when you tell the cabbie to, “step on it” as you toss a Benjamin at the driver.

Now here’s the good part. You, the former homeowner receive FREE CASH. That’s correct, if you act now you’ll receive $1,500.00 as a “relocation incentive” to cover moving costs or other incidentals. Fine print: to be deducted from the sale price.

Okay, here’s the catch: The new rules don’t kick in until April 2010. So if you can’t afford a loan modification (do you know anyone who has received a loan modification?) or if you don’t qualify for a loan modification, you’ll be stuck searching for other government program(s). Stay tuned as I will be posting more government programs as they become available (subject to taxpayer funding.)

Note: A short sale is the process of selling a house for less that what is owed to the lender (bank). Therefore, the lender(s) must agree to a short payoff. Why would a lender agree to accept less than what is owed? The lender may agree to a short sale if the market conditions would cause a house to sell for a lower amount than the outstanding loan balance. The lender also has other options including foreclosure. Sometimes the lender may profit from a short sale, check out a prior post “How Banks Can Profit When You Lose Your Home” In most cases, it’s the lender’s option to agree to a short sale.

Due to the current financial climate in Shasta County, it’s my experience many lenders agree to participate in short sales. In most cases, the owner of the property fares better in a short sale too. The homeowner can mitigate any legal ramifications and/or further damage to their credit rating by using the short sale process. Short sales offer many other benefits to homeowners too numerous to discuss here. If you’re considering a short sale, you’re welcome to email or call. Often times we can turn your “lemons” into lemonade.

What do you think? I’d like to hear your thoughts, post your comments below.

Key Interest Rate To Remain Low – Good News?

According to what I read on Bloomberg’s web site, the Federal Reserve has decided to keep key interest rates near zero for an extended period. The Federal Reserve also confirmed that it will stop buying mortgage backed securities at the end of March.

So, what does this mean if you’re thinking of buying a house and need a home loan? As you may know, the Federal Reserve is the central banking system for the United States. Its job is to protect the stability of our monetary system. That is to keep inflation to a minimum and maintain economic growth. The Federal Reserve doesn’t interact with you or me; it sets the federal funds rate. The federal funds rate is the interest banks must pay to borrow money from each other. Many people think a bank receives money from depositors and in turn, loans out the money to borrowers. This is true, but wait, there’s more. Banks can actually loan out up to ten times as much money as it owns. That’s great for the Banks but I just want a loan.

Just like automobiles and hot dogs, if retailers can buy the product at a lower cost, they can retail (sell) the product at a lower cost to you the consumer. The number of consumers for any commodity increases as the retail price of the commodity decreases. As consumers, we like low prices. In this example, the money you want to borrow is the commodity and the cost of the loan is the retail price, also known as the interest rate you pay.

If the key interest rate stays low, it’s my opinion this is good news for people wishing to obtain a loan to buy a house. But what happens if the Federal Reserve stops buying mortgage backed securities?

First, a simple definition: A mortgage backed security is an asset backed security. In this example, the promissory note a borrower signs to obtain a home loan is only a piece of paper. However, the owner of the “paper” has the right to foreclose and take the house (asset) from the borrower if the borrower does not make their loan payments. Therefore, if the Federal Reserve stops buying mortgage backed securities (paper) there could be less “new” money for the banks to lend.

I have some concerns if the Feds stop buying mortgage backed securities. Primarily, what will happen to mortgage interest rates? Could near term interest rates rise? If so, how much will the increase be? I’ve been hearing from one quarter of a percentage point all the way up to three quarters of a point.

Long story short, sometimes it’s better to get going while the getting is good. Or, if you snooze you lose…you get the point. If you’ve been thinking about buying, NOW could be the time. With some Redding homes selling for less than the cost to build and interest rates at historic lows; it doesn’t get much better for buyers. Just my thoughts for the day, what do you think?

Shasta County Foreclosure Starts up 9% in February

ForeclosureRadar.com just released its February 2010 California Foreclosure Report. Their report is statewide and broken down by county. Here are some of the stats from Shasta County.

Notice of Defaults, the start of the foreclosure process, increased by 9%. February 2010 had a total of 142 NOD’s filed compared to last month’s 130.

The number of homes in Shasta County that had a Notice of Trustee’s sale filed, increased by 21% from last month’s 98 to 119 this month.

There were a total of 84 trustee’s sales with the bank taking back 81 homes as REO’s and only 3 homes sold to a 3^rd party investor.

Download the full report at Foreclosure Radars website.

Bad MLS Photo Of The Week 3/17/2010

It’s time again for the bad MLS photo of the week. One of the most important marketing tools you have to sell a home is the photograph(s). In this case, the photo did its job, it got my attention!

First off, let me apologize if you see your home listed here. If your home is for sale, it might be a good idea to take some new photos. If it’s not your first time seeing these photos; what were you thinking?

Home for sale in Shasta Lake City, CA. This photo explains the reclining home values in the area.

The trouble with this house is, no matter where you sit, you’re looking at something you should be doing!

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How To Lower Your Property Taxes In Shasta County

How to appeal your property taxes in 4 easy steps!

Here’s how you may be able to reduce your property tax bill:

Bad MLS Photo Of The Week 3/24/2010

Need A Mother-In-Law Setup? Enter Now and Win a Bagohome!

But Wait…There’s More!

Key Interest Rate To Remain Low – Good News?

Shasta County Foreclosure Starts up 9% in February

Bad MLS Photo Of The Week 3/17/2010

Home for sale in Shasta Lake City, CA. This photo explains the reclining home values in the area.

Send Us A Photo - Maybe We'll Post It!

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Redding Properties

How to appeal your property taxes in 4 easy steps!

Here’s how you may be able to reduce your property tax bill:

Need A Mother-In-Law Setup? Enter Now and Win a Bagohome!

Home for sale in Shasta Lake City, CA. This photo explains the reclining home values in the area.

Send Us A Photo - Maybe We'll Post It!

Subscribe

Redding Properties

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