Understanding Property Tax Terms: A Simple Glossary for Henry County Residents

When it comes to property taxes, it’s completely normal to come across terms that feel unfamiliar or confusing. My goal is always to make this process as clear and approachable as possible, and understanding the language is a great place to start.

This glossary is designed to give you simple, straightforward definitions of the most common property tax terms you may see when reviewing your bill or navigating the process. If you ever have questions beyond what’s listed here, my office is always here to help.

• Acres

  Units used to measure the size of a property. Taxes are based on the calculated acres.

• Appraisal

  The fair market value of your property.

• Assessment

  The process of determining the value of a property for tax purposes. This is completed by the Assessor’s Office, not the Trustee’s Office.

• Classification

  Identifies the use of the property (residential, commercial, farm, agriculture, personal property, industrial). Farm identifies 14 acres or less OR 15 acres or more that is not in the greenbelt program. Agriculture is 15 acres or more in the greenbelt program.

• CO

  The number assigned to the County.

• Current Taxes

  The base amount of the property taxes owed.

• DI Map Group Ctl Map Parcel S/I

  DI (District): The county is divided into 20 civil districts. This identifies the district where the property is located.
  

  Map: Identifies the Property Assessor’s map number.
  

  Group: The letter assigned to a group of parcels on a certain map.
  

  Ctl Map: The controlling map number used to identify the property.
  

  Parcel: The number assigned to each parcel of land (within the group number).
  

  S/I (Special Interest): This applies to property that has separate assessments (the city limits may divide a parcel, a commercial business located within a residential property, multiple personal property assessments located on one parcel of property).

• Etux, Etvir, and Etal

  Etux: Latin phrase meaning and wife.
  Etvir: Latin phrase meaning and husband.
  Etal: Latin phrase meaning and others.

• EQ Factor

  Equalization Factor: The ratio between the market value and the appraised value on record in the Assessor’s Office. This ratio is applied to personal property taxes when the ratio is below 90 percent.

• Greenbelt

  The Agricultural, Forest and Open Space Land Act of 1976, known as the Greenbelt Law, allows certain land to be taxed based on its present use instead of the market value. Two or more separate tracts under the same owner may qualify if one is at least 15 acres and none is less than 10 acres, and if all are part of a farm. To qualify for greenbelt, farm property must produce an average annual gross farm income of at least 1,500 dollars. For more information, contact the Property Assessor’s Office.

• Property Address

  The physical address of a property.

• Receipt No.

  A unique number identifying a single tax bill.

• Rollback Taxes

  When greenbelt property is disqualified for any reason, the owner is liable for a rollback assessment, which means a repayment of the taxes saved while the land was classified as greenbelt.

• Rollback Yrs. (Years)

  The years the rollback tax is assessed. The rollback period is three years for agriculture and forestland, five years for open space land and ten years for land under the open space easement.

• SSD (Special School District)

  Represents special school districts in the County.

• Subdivision Name BLK Lot

  This information identifies the property as filed in the plat in the Register of Deed’s Office.
  

  Subdivision Name: Name of the subdivision on the plat.
  BLK: Block number
  Lot: Lot number(s)

• Tax Rate Per $100 of Assessment

  The ratio of dollars of tax per 100 dollars of assessed value. The County Legislative Body sets the tax rate annually. This rate is applied per 100 dollars of the assessed value. (Assessed value divided by 100 x tax rate = amount of property tax)

• Tax Yr. (Year)

  The calendar year for which the taxes have been assessed.

• Total Due

  The total amount of the current year’s tax owed by property owner.

Understanding these terms can make a big difference when it comes to feeling confident about your property taxes. While the process can seem complex at times, having a clear understanding of the language helps you take the next step with clarity.

If you ever come across a term you don’t understand or have questions about your property tax bill, please don’t hesitate to reach out. My office is here to help you every step of the way.