At the beginning of every year, we send a letter out to our clients we represented from the previous year.  Our purpose of the letter is twofold.  First and foremost to thank them for giving us an oppotunity in an ocean full of real estate agents.  Secondly, we always remind our past clients about the importance of filing for the Homestead Exemption on their primary residence.  This year’s letters have already gone out, but I wanted to post some helpful information and links in the event that you have purchased a home in the last calendar year.  

As you know, buying a home can be a huge tax advantage, so we want to be sure that as a new homeowner you know you may be eligible for a Homestead Exemption.

Georgia allows homeowners to claim a Homestead Exemption as a tax benefit that could amount to considerable annual savings.  To qualify the homeowner must occupy the residence and file at the county Court House or Tax Commissioner’s Office in person, by mail or on the web, depending on the county in which you reside.  Filing deadlines do vary by county, but we encourage you to do this as soon as possible.

For your convenience, we have attached the contact information below of most major Georgia county Tax Commissioner offices, so that you may file for exemption quickly and easily.  If your county is not listed, please visit www.georgia.gov/00/topic_index_channel/0,2092,4802_5083,00.html to find your county’s tax office information.  If you have any questions about the homestead exemption and its benefits, we encourage you to talk with your accountant.  Many thank to Leigh Clack with Neel and Robinson for providing these updated links and contacts.

Fulton County – deadline is April 1, 2009                   404-612-6440

http://www.fultonassessor.org/Forms/HtmlFrame.aspx?mode=content/Exemptions.htm&taxyear=2007&ownseq=1&jur=&LMparent=180

DeKalb County – deadline is March 1, 2009 (file by Friday, 2/27)  404-298-4000

https://dklbweb.dekalbga.org/taxcommissioner/index.asp?pg=homestead#applications

Gwinnett County – deadline is March 2, 2009            770-822-8800

https://ssl.gwinnetttaxcommissioner.com/Property/information/TypesOfExemptions.aspx

Cobb County – deadline is April 1, 2009                     770-528-8600

http://www.cobbtax.org/Forms/HtmlFrame.aspx?mode=content/Exemptions.htm&LMparent=189

Clayton County – deadline is April 1, 2009                770-477-3311

http://www.co.clayton.ga.us/tax_commissioner/exemptions.htm

Cherokee County – deadline is April 1, 2009              678-493-6122

 http://www.cherokeega.com/ccweb/departments/assessor/

Henry County – deadline is April 1, 2009                    770-288-8180                 

http://www.co.henry.ga.us/taxcommissioner/PropertyTaxExemptions.shtml

Forsyth County – deadline is March 1, 2009 (aim for 2/27)     770-781-2106 

http://www.forsythco.com/DeptPage.asp?DeptID=25&PageID=299

Douglas County – deadline is April 1, 2009                  770-920-7272

http://www.celebratedouglascounty.com/tax/

Fayette County – deadline is March 1, 2009 (aim for 2/27)   770-461-3652

http://www.fayettecountytaxcomm.com/HOMESTEA.html

Paulding County – deadline is April 1, 2009                 770-443-7606

http://www.paulding.gov/gov/taxcommissioner.asp

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 10th, 2009 at 3:13 pm and is filed under Clients, Financial, Home Tips, Legal, Metro Atlanta, New Buyers, New Sellers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.