On Dec. 1 — like they do every year — statements went out to property owners in Lowndes County informing them what they owe in taxes.
Approximately 32,000 hit the mail heading toward the owners of real estate parcels, which means residential properties, commercial properties and homesteaded properties. About 3,500 went out to business personal properties.
Property taxes are paid in every jurisdiction in every state in the United States. They provide local governments a stable and reliable source of revenue, according to the Tax Policy Center, a joint venture of the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution.
Put simply, the tax equals a percentage of the assessed value of the property and may be levied in some form by every level of government — county, municipal and school district.
If you had ranked Mississippi counties by assessed values five years ago, Lowndes County would have been 21st. Today, the ranking would be 7th.
In a half-decade, the assessed value of all property in Lowndes County has gone from about $532 million to $1.6 billion.
“That increase… is bigger than what 48 counties operate on,” Greg Andrews, the county’s tax assessor, noted while sitting in his office last week.
Property taxes are due Feb. 1, which means the collection side of the tax assessor’s office is in its most hectic time right now. Andrews has 12 to 14 employees in his office acting, essentially, as bank tellers for every property owner in the county.
About 35 percent of people pay their property taxes by putting a check in the mail. The other 65 percent walk in the door at 1121 Main St., or go through the drive-thru, Andrews said.
Once the checks are received, the tax assessor’s office distributes the money to the proper entity, or arm of government.
Setting property values
Determining what a property or business owner owes in property taxes begins with the appraisers who work for Andrews. There are six who work in the field. Two are based in the office.
Each year, the assessors visit 25 percent of the county’s parcels. Assessors look at a different 25 percent each year, so within a four-year period, they have laid eyes on every parcel in the county.
On a year to year basis, the assessors keep up with permits that the county and city issues: construction permits, renovation permits, demolition permits, etc.
It is through those two methods that Andrews’ office comes up with a property’s value.
If a person disagrees with the value, or has questions, they can take the matter up with Andrews’ office through the first Monday in July, when county supervisors are presented with the tax rolls.
“An appraisal is an opinion,” Andrews said. “I’m open. I may be wrong. I may be right. But we’re going to take a look at it if you have a problem with it.”
From July through September, a property owner can protest his appraisal with the board of supervisors. In September, after the board has passed its budget, the taxes are set in stone.
What a property owner owes is determined by the millage rate that each entity sets. Municipalities, counties and school districts each establish their own millage rates to meet budgetary needs.
According to Andrews, when all is said and done and property taxes have been settled up this year, local sources in Lowndes County will have paid $13.5 million to city schools; $6.9 million to the city of Columbus; $14 million to county schools; and $19 million-plus to the county.
Property Tax Changes Over the Past Decade
2013-2014
■ A property owner with a home within the city of Columbus appraised at $100,000 owes $1,438 in taxes.
■ A property owner with a home in Lowndes County appraised at $100,000 owes $850 in taxes.
■ A property owner with a home in Caledonia appraised at $100,000 owes $918 in taxes.
2003-2004
■ A property owner with a home within the city of Columbus appraised at $100,000 owed $1,383 in taxes.
■ A property owner with a home in Lowndes County appraised at $100,000 owed $907 in taxes.
■ A property owner with a home in Caledonia appraised at $100,000 owed $997 in taxes.
These property tax numbers do not figure in Homestead exemption
William Browning was managing editor for The Dispatch until June 2016.
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