Louisiana property tax appeals

In Louisiana, counties are called parishes, and your home is assessed at fair market value every year with a residential assessment ratio of 10 percent. Each assessor opens the assessment rolls for public inspection so you can see your value before the tax roll is finalized. Outside Orleans Parish, that inspection period runs fifteen days, opening no earlier than August 15 and closing no later than September 15. Orleans Parish runs its own thirty-two day period, opening no earlier than July 15 and closing no later than August 15, so confirm the exact current dates with the Orleans Assessor. During the inspection period, you file a written objection with your assessor. If you and the assessor do not agree, your parish's governing authority sits as the Board of Review, and from there you can appeal to the Louisiana Tax Commission, then the courts. Every homeowner also gets a homestead exemption of $7,500 of assessed value, roughly $75,000 of fair market value, on their primary residence. An appeal helps when recent sales show your assessed value is above what your home would sell for, or when the record has an error. This is general information, not tax advice.