Politics & Government
Clavin: Residents Not Taking Advantage of Reassessment Challenges or Exemptions
Hempstead Town Receiver of Taxes said he estimates that more than 20 percent of town residents are not taking full advantage of potential tax exemptions and challenging their home's assessment.
More than 20 percent of Town of Hempstead residents may be paying more in property and school taxes than they need to be, according to the Town's Receiver of Taxes, Don Clavin.
Clavin said that when he speaks to residents at meetings, 70 to 90 percent of attendees say that they believe their property assessment is too high, but that many still miss the Jan. 1 to March 1 period to challenge their assessment.
"Your way to protect yourself is to challenge your assessment," Clavin said.
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Clavin said that each year, Nassau County is forced to refund residents millions of dollars as a result of incorrect home assessments.
"$100 million in refunds," he said. "Clearly there's something wrong with the system."
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Clavin said that residents could use assessment information on the county's Web site to win a small claims court case against the county in challenging their assessment by showing that comparable houses had lower values than the challenging resident.
Clavin said that using a lawyer is not necessary and would result in the resident giving half of his or her winnings to the lawyer.
"If you get a reduction, you get to keep all your money," he added. "That's very important to me."
County Executive Ed Mangano changed the assessment system recently so that the county would only assess homes once every four years rather than the current annual format. This means that homeowners would not have to challenge their reassessments annually, which Clavin said "allows you to take a breather." He also said that county reassessments may be "inaccurate."
Clavin spoke on Monday afternoon in the Bellmore Memorial Library. He said that these meetings, which he does twice per year in each community in the Town of Hempstead, have led to more residents taking advantage potential tax exemptions and challenging their house assessments.
Clavin said some residents are not taking advantage of New York State's School Tax Relief (STAR) program, which provides exemptions for school property taxes for homeowners, and for which all homeowners are eligible.
"I'm a big believe that your taxes should not be a mystery," he said.
