From the office of District 7 Councilman Patrick Dowd:

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl today encouraged City resident who need help appealing their 2012 property reassessment to call his 311 Response Line today.  Customer service representatives are scheduling residents with one-on-one appeal assistance such as help filling out appeal and tax relief forms, low-cost appraisals and legal support as residents prepare for their appeal hearing.  The deadline to file a formal appeal is April 2. The Court ordered this year’s reassessment values to be used for next year’s tax bills, but those values must be appealed this year.

The Mayor’s Office has been working collaboratively with City Council and the Controller’s Office to coordinate the aggressive appeal assistance plan. Together, City employees will be deployed to neighborhood senior centers to meet one-on-one with residents. The Duquesne Law Clinic will be assisting the Controller’s Office in providing legal help.

To qualify for assistance, the residents’ property must be located within the City of Pittsburgh and must be a primary, owner-occupied, single-family residential property.  In addition, the old assessment value for the property must be under $150,000.  City residents aged 65 and older are not subject to the $150,000 requirement.

Through a competitive process, the City negotiated a $250 appraisal rate, which is a fraction of today’s average appraisal cost. The City will subsidize half of that, so a qualifying property owner will pay $125 for an appraisal.

Councilman Dowd’s office will be in Polish Hill at the senior center at West Penn Recreation Center on Monday, March 5 and Monday March 12.  Anyone needing assistance with their appeal should schedule an appointment through the 311 help line.  You can call 311 and speak to a live operator from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. In the City of Pittsburgh, just dial 3-1-1.  Or use the online 311 form.