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1. Is my property assessment a tax?

No, the assessment notice is the estimated market value of your property. Assessed values are used along with the tax levy to calculate a tax rate. The taxes you pay are calculated by multiplying the tax rate by the assessed value of your property.

2. What role does the annual assessment of my property play in determining my property taxes?

Your assessment represents the proportionate share of the total value of all assessments in a taxing jurisdiction in which you own property, such as a school district. Your proportionate share of the total assessed value determines the share of taxes you will pay to the school district. The same principle holds true for taxes to the County, Town, and special taxing districts. Assessments simply determine how the tax levy will be apportioned among all of the property owners in a taxing jurisdiction.

3. Won’t my property taxes go down if my assessment goes down?

Not necessarily. To demonstrate the relationship between assessments and taxes, consider the make-believe hamlet of Any Village, which is a community of two homes. Each resident owns a house valued at $100,000. Any Village’s property tax levy is $2,000 which is the amount needed to cover its expenses. Since each resident owns 50% of the total property value, they each pay 50% of the levy giving them each a tax bill of $1,000.

If property values in Any Village go down 10%, then each property is assessed at $90,000. The amount they pay in taxes, however, remains the same because the tax levy amount has not changed, even though the assessment has declined. Each resident still owns 50% of the total property in Any Village and must pay 50% of the $2,000 tax levy, which is $1,000. Even if the properties’ assessments increase to $110,000 each, the taxes stay exactly the same. They each still own 50% of the total property and Any Village still needs to collect $2,000, therefore they will continue to see a $1,000 property tax bill.

An increase or decrease in the assessment of an individual property is not an indicator of whether the tax bill for a property will go up, down, or remain the same.

4. How do I check to see if my property’s inventory records are correct?

When reviewing your records on the Department of Assessment website www.mynassauproperty.com, you should select the “Property Description” and “Property Sketch” links to make sure that the information posted is accurate. For example, homeowners should check whether or not the architectural style, living area (i.e. number of bathrooms, finished basement and/or attic, presence of garage, etc.), lot size, and condition of the house are correct. If you discover an error, you should contact the Department of Assessment by e-mail: ncassessor@nassaucountyny.gov or by calling (516) 571-1500.