County Offers More Assistance for Property Owners with 2013 Court-Ordered Reassessment

Allegheny County is offering further efforts to assist property owners with the 2013 court-ordered reassessment.

These initiatives include website improvements, data correction by phone, remote locations for informal reviews and town hall meetings, according to a press release from County Executive Rich Fitzgerald.

Here's a look at some of the efforts:

Website Improvements

The county has created a simplified page, www.alleghenycounty.us/courtreassess.aspx, which directs property owners to the information they need regarding the 2013 court-ordered reassessment. The choices on the page are:

• Get Information on 2012 Base Year (Current) Values—Pay taxes online, view current building information, images and comparables.
• Get Information on 2013 Court-Ordered Reassessment Values—View updated building information, images and comparables.
• Download formal Appeal Forms
• Read Court-Ordered Reassessment FAQs
• Schedule an Informal Review or Submit Corrections to Property Characteristics
• Find Out When My Court-Ordered Reassessment Notice of 2013 Market Value Will Be Sent

The county also has improved the online method of correcting property characteristics for the 2013 court-ordered reassessment. Once property owners have located their parcels on the 2013 Court-Ordered Reassessment Values website, they can review tabs that provide general information, building information, and image. If corrections are needed, they can click a button that brings up a fill-in form.

Correcting Property Characteristics by Phone

Property owners without access to a computer can call 412-350-4600 between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, to submit corrections to their property characteristics.

Remote Locations for Informal Reviews

To provide more convenience to property owners, the county is expanding the locations where informal reviews are held to include the four Kane Regional Centers. The four locations are:

• Glen Hazel, 955 Rivermont Drive in Pittsburgh
• Scott, 300 Kane Boulevard in Scott Township
• Ross, 110 McIntyre Road in Ross Township
• McKeesport, 100 Ninth St. in McKeesport

Scheduling can be requested now for these sites, but the actual informal reviews will not begin until next week. Arrangements also are being made to provide for evening and weekend hours at the Lexington Technology Center, 400 North Lexington St. in Pittsburgh.

An informal review is a one-on-one meeting between a property owner and a representative of the Office of Property Assessments to discuss information on a property’s characteristics and 2013 court-ordered reassessment value.

Representatives from municipalities and school districts are not present at informal reviews. Property owners may provide corrections to property characteristics and bring pictures and written documentation supporting a change in their 2013 court-ordered reassessment value. Property owners are reminded that corrections to property characteristics do not automatically result in value changes, and in some cases, a county assessor may visit a property to verify data and may adjust the value up or down based on what he or she observes.

Town Hall Meetings

Fitzgerald and County Council will be hosting town hall meetings beginning next month. The sessions will include a presentation on the assessment process and what information and tools homeowners should use to argue their values.  Additionally, there will be a Q&A session, work stations to help attendees complete appeal forms and Act 50 forms, and one-on-one assistance with attorneys and real estate professionals. 

There will be one town hall meeting per County Council district to begin with, and then additional requests for “help” sessions at libraries, municipal buildings, senior centers, and other organizations will be scheduled. A final schedule is expected to be released by the end of the month.

Fighting the Fight Against the Court-Ordered Reassessment

To date, 25 municipalities and school districts have joined Fitzgerald’s effort by passing resolutions that oppose the ongoing court-ordered reassessment and that call upon the governor and general assembly to impose a moratorium on singled-out, court-ordered county reassessments until there is a statewide law that provides uniformity among all counties in the Commonwealth.

These municipalities and school districts are Baldwin Borough, Brentwood, Brentwood School District, Bridgeville, Carnegie, Clairton, Coraopolis, Dormont, Dravosburg, East Deer, East Pittsburgh, Elizabeth Township, Emsworth, Findlay, Forest Hills, Green Tree, Harmar, Harrison, Liberty, Penn Hills School District, Pitcairn, Richland, Robinson, Wilkins, Wilkinsburg and Wilmerding.