"It's an uphill battle to get attention," he said.
Bittner and Courville in Howard County recently learned that they won their appeal. Their assessment fell from $394,810 to $349,810, an 11 percent drop on their 18-year-old home.
"I was surprised at the amount of a break they gave me," Bittner said.
Still, officials said that since the 5 percent assessment cap means in Howard that $47,000 of their home isn't being taxed, the reduction won't immediately affect their annual tax bill.
That doesn't matter, Bittner said, adding that the appeals system worked well. He thinks the lower value is more accurate and may help how the home is assessed in the future.
"I know I was within my rights," the 33-year-old said.
filing an appeal
Instructions are included with the assessment notices mailed to homeowners every three years. Or go to the Web site of the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation at www.dat.state.md.us. Headings with directions and links to forms are listed under the heading "Property Owners" on the left side.
