The Full Story on Mayor DeGeorge's Property Taxes

In 1993, I bought a home in St. Andrews at 2913 West 11th Street. I closed on this home on January 29, 1993, and, since I didn’t live in the home on January 1 of that that year, I would not have qualified for a homestead exemption in 1993. Also, my mortgage deed (see below) clearly states that THIS IS NOT THE HOMESTEAD OF THE MORTGAGOR, SHE RESIDES AT 832 GRACE AVENUE. I made no request for homestead exemption on this home, or signed any documents requesting it.

The following year, when tax notices were sent out, my mortgage payments, with property taxes escrowed, were automatically deducted from my checking account. I trusted the Property Appraiser's office, and since the property taxes and insurance were set up in escrow, I would have had no need to look at the notices. I sold this home March 7, 2002.

Not until the past two years did I, along with other Bay County residents, have a need to scrutinize tax notices. Recently, I filed an appeal to the Bay County Value Adjustment Board to review my assessment on a third, rental property. I certainly wouldn’t have asked for a review of my property taxes if I had anything to conceal, but, during this review, the error was discovered, namely that I had received homestead exemption on the West 11th Street home from 1993 to 2002. On Monday, March 12, I paid back taxes, penalties, and interest for the West 11th Street property of $6,714.03 at the Bay County Property Appraiser's Office.

I have listed two supporting documents below:

Copy of Mortgage, and
Letter to the Bay County Tax Office.

Copy of Mortgage

Letter to the Bay County Tax Office

March 2, 2007
	Lauren DeGeorge 224 EastThird Court Panama City, Florida 32401
Mr. Rick Barnett Bay County Property Appraiser 650 Mulberry Avenue Panama City, Florida 32401 Dear Mr. Barnett:
This letter is in reference to a home I bought in St. Andrews, and the address is 2913 West 11th Street. I closed on this home on January 29, 1993, and therefore, since I didn’t live in the home on January 1 of that that year, I would not have qualified for a homestead exemption. My mortgage deed clearly states that THIS IS NOT THE HOMESTEAD OF THE MORTGAGOR, SHE RESIDES AT 832 GRACE AVENUE. Your records state that I received homestead that year---even though I made no request for it, or signed any documents requesting it. The following year, when tax notices were sent out, my mortgage payments, with property taxes escrowed, were automatically deducted from my checking account; therefore, I would have had no reason to scrutinize any related correspondence from your office. I trusted your office, and since the property taxes and insurance were set up in escrow, I would have had no need to look at the notices. I sold this home March 7, 2002. I would like to request a complete breakdown of the computation of property taxes by year, including assessed values, millage, along with copies of any supporting documents. Not until the past two years did I, along with other Bay County residents, have a need to scrutinize tax notices released from your office. That is when I started paying attention to notices, and realized we all had a problem. I filed an appeal to go before the Bay County Value Adjustment Board to review my assessments on a rental home. I certainly wouldn’t have asked for a review of my property taxes if I had anything to conceal. I would like to request from you today all documents you provided to the News-Herald relative to this home, along with a written statement of all comments made to Brady Calhoun when interviewed. Additionally, I would like a copy of the statute for procedures for appealing taxes and penalties. I am in the process of researching this problem, and I may need more time to complete this task. I am also requesting a signed copy of the DR-453 Notice of Tax Lien for Homestead Exemption, and/or Exclusion. I would also like to know how many other people have been charged with penalties and interest fees since January, 2004, and the number of residents that have been billed and penalized for improper homestead. I appreciate your attention to my request, and I hope to clear this matter up as soon as possible, but I’ve got to have all the information. Sincerely, Lauren DeGeorge