The Effingham County Board of Assessors mailed 27,180 change of assessment notices on April 30. Property owners have 45 days to review their new assessment and file an appeal if they feel their assessed value is incorrect.

June 13 is the deadline for filing a written appeal. The appeal can be mailed or hand-delivered to the Tax Assessors office in the Historic Courthouse located at 901 North Pine St. in Springfield.

A notice was mailed on every parcel located in Effingham County as required by Georgia law. Statistics on the notices are: 15,155 or 56 percent had no change of value from 2013 digest year; 3,644 or 13 percent had the assessed value lowered; 8,370 or 31 percent has an increased value for 2014.

There are 693 notices that fell under Senate Bill 346, which allows the 2014 value to be no more than the sale price for one year. This was applied to sales which occurred in 2013 and the property was transferred to the new owner’s name on Jan. 1. Senate Bill 346 is a one-year cap and the cap will be removed in the 2015 digest year. Also, 130 of the properties that had a value increase were new parcels added to the digest for 2014 split out of existing parcels.

The Tax Assessors Web site has been updated with the current values and property owners. Taxpayers can review a breakdown of land and building values on this site as well as determine if they have homestead exemption. However, factors applied for conditions of the property are not shown, but staff in the assessors’ office can answer questions about property values.

The Web site address is www.effinghamcounty.org/DepartmentsRW/TaxAssessor.aspx, or go to www.effinghamcounty.org and choose Department Tax Assessor.

Property owners are encouraged to review their notices and contact the Tax Assessors office with any questions or concerns about the value on their property. The telephone number is 754-2125; office hours are 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday.