2 Responses to “Property Tax Service or Scam, Part II”

1. Nathan Thompson Says:
   April 10th, 2008 at 7:39 pm

   Dear Barbara E. Hernandez,

   After reading your recent article on the D A investigating property tax services, one can’t help but wonder how you managed to end up with such a severe slant to your story. I normally don’t put much stock in this type of article, but I have spent months dealing with this issue and continue to research the topic daily. (In fact, that’s how I found your article).

   To begin with, you have to look at the fundamentals of any type of business venture. That is simply supply & demand. There is obviously a high a real need and high demand for this business since companies providing this service are starting up all over the state.

   Is there a true need for this service? I say yes. With the slightest bit of investigation, you’ll find that property owners throughout the state are being overtaxed by their local assessors every year. Is it a crime to assist these people in reducing their tax burden? Most certainly not.

   If there is a crime in progress here, it’s when thousands of property owners throughout the state have had their property taxes raised by the maximum “allowable” rate of 2% which compounds every year, when they were actually entitled to a massive reduction. There are also thousands of property owners who are being denied their Constitutional rights, (specifically the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S Constitution right to equal treatment under the law).
   This condition is due to the sporadic reductions in assessed value which are given only to those who stand up and demand them, while others who are equally entitled to reductions, are left to bear the burden of the aforementioned “allowable” increases. This is happening all over the state with homes that are “exact model matches” homes in subdivisions where the simple fact is the assessor’s office just isn’t doing their job.
   One can’t help but laugh as the local assessor goes out of their way to make a point of questioning the integrity of businesses who challenge the wrongful taxation by their offices.
   As you might have guessed, it’s my opinion that having the local assessor provide quotes on the subject of whether or not independent companies should assist property owners with the process, is a little on the ridiculous side. After all, it’s their flawed taxing practices of assessors that have given rise to the need for this service in the first place. Now you’re asking them if it should be done and they’re saying: “no we’ll take care of it for you for free”. That’s like leaving the fox to guard the hen house.

   After months of studying the tax regulations and consulting with real estate tax attorneys, the true state of our local assessors taxing practices comes to light. Trust me; what’s going on here is definitely more suited for dark corners and half-lit rooms. Not all of us have had the pleasure of attending numerous meetings with the assessor’s office staffs in multiple counties. Once you have, you’ll be left with a certain feeling of wonder and amazement. Although most of the employees are friendly and courteous, there is no consistency in application of the tax regulations. The only consistent factor from one office to the next is that practically every person you ask a question of has a totally different answer from the next. For the average homeowner, this can lead to frustration and potential surrender to their overtaxed status. (Perhaps this is the reason for the lack of consistency)? Many property owners will end up missing the deadlines for “proper” filings even if they are diligent enough to stay the course.
   Think about that for a moment. There is a “deadline for a proper filing” in order for you to have the benefit of a voter approved law.
   The simple facts are:
   There are laws are in place to protect the rights of tax payers and they are being ignored.
   There are civil rights that all citizens have and they are being violated.
   Thousands of property owners in California are being overtaxed because of improper values being
   placed on their properties by the local tax assessor’s offices.
   There are errors upon errors in the tax records that lead to improper valuations.
   Property owners are overpaying their taxes in California by BILLIONS of dollars each year.

   If you choose to ignore these facts in your presentation of this topic to your readers, I guess that’s your business. I believe in letting the truth be told even if it offends some people. I’m sure that most assessors are honest enough people in person. However, that doesn’t change the fact that their methods are flawed and their general practices are not in keeping with the nature or intent of our state’s laws.
   I stated earlier that you had presented statements with a severe slant to your article. I know that my statements here are slanted in exactly the opposite direction. However, I’m not giving my mere opinion of something here I’m giving you information that is based upon months of my hands-on research of property data and tax records.

   In addition, my business is representing my clients when it comes to getting a fair tax treatment from the local assessor. The company I represent is called PayFair Solutions. We are located in Rocklin, CA and our web site is http://www.PayFairTax.com. I can be reached at (916) 960-5959 if you would care to reply, I’d love to give you the real story behind this business and its true nature.
   They say that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. One thing’s for sure, if you leave your tax appeal up to the people who have been in charge of it thus far, you can expect the same results!

   I sincerely doubt that this writing will ever see the light of day. I will however, be forwarding a copy to your newspaper for their review. Who knows, maybe it will get published and perhaps we’re not all going to be stuck with just one narrow side of things. We’ll just have to wait and see.

   Thank you for your time,

   Sincerely,

   Nathan Thompson

2. Bay Dweller Says:
   September 20th, 2008 at 11:51 pm

   Yes, this company Property Tax Adjusters, Inc. is a scam. They sent unsolicited mails to the home owners collecting a fee of $125 in the Silicon Valley (depends on where you live). Their return mail envelope looks exactly like from the county assessor’s office. They immediately cashed my check and before any work could start they said they would not refund my money even I don’t need their “service”. They will never refund you and county offers property reassessment for FREE. I lost $125. But I filed complaint to the Federal Trade Commission. I suggest people who are victim of this scam do the same.

   WATCH OUT THIS COMPANY!