There is a lot of misinformation going around about the Mecklenburg County tax revaluation process—some of which even comes from Realtors. Today I want to take the time to clear up any confusion so that you understand the facts.

General Statute 105-286 states that counties are required to re-evaluate real estate values. That’s what has been happening over the last 12 months, and the county has published and released those new values as of the end of January.

Here are some important dates and times to remember:

  • Late January—The re-evaluated property values were mailed to homeowners and commercial real estate owners.
  • May 20, 2019—This is the deadline by which you must submit any appeal to your new property value.
  • July 2019—This is when you’ll be mailed your actual tax bill based on your property values.

What you’ve received in the mail isn’t your actual tax bill, but rather a notification that the county has revaluated properties, which they’ve estimated based on January 1 values—that is now the value of your home or commercial property.

Some homeowners have misconstrued what this means for them. For example, many think that their tax value has gone up from, say, $350,000 to $450,000. This then causes them to think that their taxes will go up based on that number.

“The biggest thing you need to worry about is whether the property re-evaluation that you received in late January actually IS the realistic value of your property.”

This is only partially correct. A lot of people were basing it on last year’s tax rates. The problem with that is that the tax rates, by law, have to be reset to neutral, leaving the county with the same revenue this year as they had last year. If the overall average increase was 40%, and your home went up 50%, you’ll have a little bit of a tax increase, but not as much as many seem to think. If the overall average increase was 40%, and your home went up 30%, your taxes will probably go down just a little bit.

The biggest question to ask right now isn’t what your taxes are going to be—no one really knows that yet. The biggest thing you need to worry about is whether the property re-evaluation that you received in late January actually IS the realistic value of your property. If it is, then the county has done a good job. If it isn’t, then you can appeal that new value by giving you a comparative market analysis to determine your home’s actual worth.

For more information, you can visit www.MeckNC.gov. On the Assessor’s Office page, there is all sorts of relevant information, including frequently asked questions. Otherwise, you can always reach out to the White Group for clarification or guidance on how to navigate the process. And for any other questions about real estate, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’d be glad to help.