PROPERTY VALUATION

Local funding of schools in Ohio is inextricably linked to the taxation of real property. Defending challenges to the erosion of a school board’s commercial tax base brought by property owners is therefore a priority. Firm attorneys provide representation for school boards before county boards of revision and the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals as well as various courts of appeals and the Ohio Supreme Court. Through this process, we work to prevent unwarranted decreases in real estate values and to find new sources of revenue by seeking increases in valuation based on recent sales and new construction. In addition to our experience involving challenges to valuation, we are involved in personal property tax issues and tax abatement matters, including foreign trade-zones, rural and urban enterprise zones, community reinvestment areas, tax increment financing (TIFs), and other forms of tax incentive programs. We represent boards of education in direct negotiations with companies and firms receiving tax abatements to secure appropriate compensation for projected future losses of tax revenue.