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Hernando Today

Tax Web Site Can Help People Prepare

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By MICHAEL D. BATES

Hernando Today

Published: March 23, 2009

Updated: 03/23/2009 04:57 pm

BROOKSVILLE - Five months from now, residents will be getting their proposed tax notices in the mail, letting them know the assessed value of their property.

And while the property appraiser's office won't go out on a limb and estimate how much assessments are going down, it doesn't take a tax expert to realize that the down economy will see vastly lowered market values.

Between now and August, taxpayers can do some research that may give them a better idea what their property's value will be worth.

The property's appraiser's office has a Web site that allows people to type in their address and other information to find out what property is selling for in their immediate area.

That's important because the property appraiser determines the assessments — among other things — by looking at comparable sales in the vicinity.

Nick Nikkinen, director of special projects for the property appraiser's office, encourages people to access the site, which he says receives about 50,000 hits every month.

Here's how it works:

Go to the property appraiser's site at http://www.hernandocounty.us/pa/

Toward the top of the page, on the second blue line under the map of Hernando County, click on: property search.

There will be a large box that says: click here to access property record search and GIS mapping system. Click on it.

Now comes the hardest part. Type in all personal data such as address, subdivision, square footage and the rest.

When finished, scroll to the top right of the page and click GIS map.

Almost done: Use the task bar on the left and scroll down to: thematic. There are two boxes, asking you to type in the sale year or all sales by year. For example, if you type in 2008, all sales for that year will be identified.

One more click: Hit "redraw" just above thematic, and you will see a map with the highlighted information in red.

Remember that a property's assessment is calculated based on its market value, or how much that property would sell for under normal circumstances.

Also remember that the property appraiser's office assesses properties "in arrears," using sales from the previous year.

Nikkinen also reminds people that their assessments will be determined as of Jan. 1, 2009.

So even though the economy may have worsened after Jan. 1, the period after that will not be reflected on those proposed August tax notices.

For more help navigating the Web site, call the Hernando County property appraiser's office at 754-4190.

Reporter Michael D. Bates can be reached at 352-544-5290 or mbates@hernandotoday.com.

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