Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Good Business Idea - Property Tax Consulting

By Scot Simanski

Aiding taxpayers|Helping homeowners lower their property tax assessments as a part-time business idea can be a good if not the best home based business opportunity for many. A lot of people are struggling to keep up with property tax increases. Bankruptcies are being filed and people are losing their houses. People shouldn't be paying taxes higher than what their properties are really valued for.

High property assessments usually go unchallenged because most people lack the time, energy or know how to tackle the job. Many a homeowner would love to have someone that this work from home business offers to look over their property tax assessments. Glaring errors exist especially with the decrease in comparable home prices. A property tax consultant helps people contest these inaccuracies.

A property tax consultant works on a contingency. This means that the service does not cost the customer homeowner any money (other than a small process fee) unless you achieve a property tax reduction for them.

When a case is won for a client the client rewards the property tax consultant by sharing the winnings. After all, it does not cost the customer anything unless the property taxes are reduced. It's a win, win situation for you and the homeowner.

Where the reward money lies is in the contingency fee. When you win your case for the homeowner you receive 100% of the tax savings. For example, your client's property tax is $10,000 and you saved them a typical 20% on their assessment, your fee would be $2,000. The payment is spread out over 2 or 3 years so the client is rewarded by seeing an overall tax saving.

In this climate of falling home prices, finding comparable sold homes that sold for less value than the assessment price placed on your clients home are simple to find. The time is opportune for this home business. Upon finding good comparable sold home and with using a good property tax appeal manual, you should be able to get a reduced assessment and pay less property tax on your client's home.

Charge a small one-time fee to help offset your overhead costs. When you are starting out, this is helpful. You'll want to cherry pick the more expensive homes and those cases you feel you have the best chances to win.

A lot of people are disturbed over their high property tax bill and finding customers is quite easy. This little known business idea is a blessing for the homeowner. Local government is generally constantly raising their tax amounts instead of cutting back. - 15246

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