HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — The Houston County Tax Assessors Office has been sending out property tax revaluations for the past month.
Last month, they out 69,000 notices. As of noon Wednesday, 97 people have filed an appeal, less than 1%.
Nestled in the back of one Perry neighborhood lies a 1-acre-large property.
"We've lived here since August of 1999," Julice Law said.
Law says over the past 22 years, they haven't added onto their home, but this year, their property value went up by $11,000.
"I had looked at it and said, 'Wow, it went up,' but it could've been a lot worse," Law said.
Houston County's Chief Appraiser James Moore says everyone in Houston County should have received their new reassessments by now.
"We're getting phone calls, and we're trying to tell people what the notices are and what they might expect as far as their approximate taxes that they might be paying," Moore said.
Moore also says although many property values in the county will rise by 10 to 20 percent that doesn't mean your taxes will increase.
"If there is a significant increase in property values, the taxes could go up, if the millage rate is left the same, if it's not rolled back, so it's hard to say exactly how much the tax bill will end up being until we know what those millage rates are going to be," Moore said.
"Given the current climate, we thought, 'It could've been a lot worse. We will just have to tighten up a little bit and be able to cover the extra,'" Law said.
Law says their increase wasn't "substantial enough" to appeal.
"We're just going to hope that it doesn't go crazy again next year and that it kind of flattens out again, because there were a few years where there were no increases, and we were so thankful," Law said.
Moore says people have until June 21 to file an appeal. By the end of June last summer, he says about 200 people filed an appeal.
"I think it's going to be about the same as last year," Moore said. "It's still a little early to tell, because a lot of people wait until close to the end of time for appeals."
"Like I said, we will live with it and be thankful we get to live in Houston County, because it is a great county to live in," Law said.
Depending on what happens with the millage rate, Moore says your taxes may stay the same or they may raise or lower them.
If you appealed your new value already, Moore says you should hear from an appraiser who will go over your notice with you soon.
Houston County homeowners can expect to get a tax bill in the fall. It'll be due in late December.