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Tax Information Every community applies its own processes for identifying mil rates and property assessments and determining property taxes. These annual decisions are typically made based on budget needs and community growth. To determine taxes for a property, the community's assessor has to first determine the value of the property based either on a percentage of market value or full market value. It's important to know how your community is assessing properties. Assessing a property is not an exact science. In other words, some assessments can be perfectly accurate, while others might be a little off. This is especially true when large-scale community assessments are being made without correct and updated knowledge of individual properties. It's always helpful to confirm the homes market value by looking at recent, comparable market data. A market analysis will help substantiate a value. Once your property's value has been assessed, this amount is divided by 1,000 and multiplied by the mill rate. The result is the tax bill. For example, a community assesses at 100% of market value. The subject property is valued at $250,000 in April 2007. In November 2007, the community announces that its new mil rate is 20. To calculate 2007 taxes for the property, multiply $250 x 20. The new tax bill is $5,000. Reminder: Its important to pay your tax bill by Dec. 31 of the current year to claim the property taxes on your income taxes for the following year. For example, to claim 2007 taxes on your 2008 income filings, you must pay your full tax bill by |