From the Northwest Indiana Times:
A local family recently got a notice from Lake County tax officials that sounds like a dream come true.
Rachelle Ruge-Bernard said the government notice stated her 11-year-old, 1,700-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-bathroom house is now assessed to be worth nothing — that's zero dollars — for purposes of calculating her next property tax bill.
But she has filed paperwork with the Center Township assessor's office to correct this mistake and have the county raise her assessment to the proper amount for the second time in five years.
"I think they are ridiculous for not doing their job, but I don't want to be penalized," said Ruge-Bernard, a Gary teacher.
County Assessor Hank Adams, whose office oversees the work of the county's independent elected township assessors, said this week, "There is a screw-up somewhere. I think the reassessment picked up (erroneous data) she had five years ago. She shouldn't worry about it. She won't have to pay anything extra."
Center Township Assessor Kristie Dressel said Tuesday she wanted to thank Ruge-Bernard for bringing the miscue to her attention and that they are working to correct it immediately so the family's assessment is accurate by the time tax bills go out later this spring.
Dressel said it is one of many appeals that typically crop up in the wake of a general reassessment, which was just concluded.
However, most reassessment complaints revolve around property being valued too highly for tax purposes. Dressel said it is unusual for someone, like Ruge-Bernard, to ask for their assessment to be increased.
She said the fault lies with a private firm given the mission of reinspecting and remeasuring every residential, business and agricultural building in the township, which includes the eastern half of Cedar Lake and most of Crown Point, in the search for new construction since the last reassessment eight years ago.
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See the full story here:
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/cedar-lake/house-s-zero-tax-assessment-from-lake-county-is-a/article_1abdb5c7-d2b8-5d5f-a215-88ce7da01293.html
