The Blame Game- Mortgages, Escrow and Tax Appeals

Do you own your property? Do you live in Philadelphia? Do you have a mortgage? And does your mortgage company escrow your taxes? Well if the answer to all of the above is a yes, then you may want to double check you’re not a victim of the blame game. 

Recently, due to the overwhelming amount of 2019 Market Value Appeals with the Office of Property Assessment, City Council passed a resolution whereby any owner with a pending Market Value appeal for 2019 could pay whatever their tax bill was in 2018, while they await their appeal, informal or formal, decision.  

Normally, if a tax payer is successful on their market value appeal, they would be entitled to a refund of the difference, which is filed first with the Department of Revenue, and if no response, then to the Tax Review Board which can take several months before relief is  granted.  This created more work and unnecessarily crowded the Tax Review Board dockets. By allowing one who appealed 2019 only pay what their 2018 bill was, the City allows the OPA appeals to play out, and not worry about refunds.  After a decision is reached, and the appeal process (to the BRT or Court of Common Pleas), then the taxpayer would pay whatever the difference is without having to pay statutory interest, penalty, and lien and attorney fees.  Sounds great, right? Well in practice it may not be working that way.  Your mortgage company may have paid the City directly, without any regard to a pending appeal you have; the city has accepted in full direct payment for a higher amount, and will tell you to take it up with your mortgage company, while the mortgage company will tell you to take it up to the City. 

If you have had this issue and need an attorney to fight for your refund, either while your appeal is still pending or after a favorable decision has been reached, The Law Offices of Christopher W. Dean are here to help.  Consultation at no cost!

To determine if you have had a change between your 2018 and 2019 assessment and tax bill, please check out http://data.philly.com/philly/property/tax/?fbclid=IwAR06iVuX5f9HAuVcrWIbbBFpND_4szQmbdYp48wDc_mRuDUGylE1GrBdSY4.