Contact: Morgan Ferrell
Communications Director
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(330) 643-2739
Akron, Ohio – Summit County Fiscal Officer Kristen M. Scalise, CPA, CFE, has announced that real estate tax relief is available to residents who have sustained damage to their property in the wake of the recent storm. The Fiscal Office is taking the necessary steps to provide property owners the ability to file an Application for Valuation Deduction for Destroyed or Damaged Property (Form DTE 26), pursuant to Ohio Revised Code §319.38.
Form DTE 26 can be downloaded from our website. Visit http://FiscalOffice.summitoh.net and click the “Damaged Property” link under the Real Estate and Appraisal column. Completed forms can be mailed to the Summit County Fiscal Office at 175 S. Main Street, Room 304, Akron, OH 44308. If you do not have access to a computer, you may call (330) 643-2704 to request a form in the mail.
The filing deadline for property damaged by the storm is January 31, 2025. Fiscal Officer Scalise has stressed the importance of filing this application as soon as possible. Any deduction from value will affect tax bills mailed in January 2025.
The deduction amount equals a percentage of the reduction in value caused by the damage. That percentage is determined by the calendar quarter in which the damage occurred. The reduction will be 25% in value of the destroyed portion.
Example: Your property is appraised for $100,000 by the Fiscal Office. Your insurance company indicates you sustained $10,000 in damage to your property due to the recent storm. Since the damage occurred in December, you are entitled to a 25% reduction of the damage amount. Therefore, your property will be appraised at $97,500 for tax year 2024.
$ 100,000 Original appraisal value for tax year 2024
$ 2,500 25% reduction of the $10,000 damage
$ 97,500 New appraisal value for tax year 2024
Real estate taxes are billed one year in arrears, so the reduction will be for tax year 2024, collection year 2025.
Once the application is filed, the Appraisal Department will make the necessary inspections to determine the amount of damage. Damage to trees, landscaping, fencing, and personal items is excluded on residential properties. The Fiscal Office tracks the repairs based on the applications received and building permits filed from all the townships and cities affected by the storms.
