COLUMBIA, S.C. — Some Richland County residents are concerned they'll be paying more in property taxes soon, after the Assessor's office completed a state-required reassessment of real property values in the state.
While property values could have gone up or down for many, notices were only sent out to those whose property values were increasing by at least $1,000, according to Richland County.
Millage rate and new property values will determine property taxes
Residents won't know whether or not their property taxes will go up or down until the millage rate is set in October, says realtor Andrea Reynolds with Berkshire Hathway Homeservices Midlands Real Estate.
"Well if you’re one of the lucky ones that in your area the millage went down it could decrease," said Reynolds. "So there’s some good parts about it and some bad parts about it. Obviously our property values have increased significantly over the past couple of years."
She says residents who got notices will most likely see an increase in taxes, which can be hard for people on a fixed-income.
"Your taxes go up a thousand dollars and your payment goes up monthly, it can hurt. Or I’ve seen a lot of people if they’ve paid off their mortgage and they’re retired so I mean it can hurt.”
Residents concerned about how to pay for property tax increases
Lynn Derrick says several people in the Heathwood neighborood are concerned about increases after getting a notice from the county. His property values went up thousands across his three different properties in different parts of the county.
"This one hurts the pocket book pretty bad," said Derrick. "My wife and I, we’re both retired. We’re on fixed incomes. We’re already paying almost $10,000 in taxes on these three properties so when you start getting up to, you know, $15,000, who knows what the millage rate will be, this hits us hard."
How to determine your property taxes and appeal your property value assessment
Property taxes are determined by both the property value, and the millage rate, which is set by the county. Different areas of the county have different millage rates as well. In a press release, the County says you can use their Property Value and Tax Inquiry Page to estimate your new property taxes using last year's millage rate and your new property value.
If you did receive a notice of an increased property value, you can appeal the assessment and ask the Assessor's office to look at your property again. It has to be done within 90 days of the appraisal. You can submit a form online to the Assessor's office.