DeKalb County property tax is calculated by taking 40% of your home’s fair market value, subtracting any homestead exemptions you’ve applied for, and multiplying the result by the combined millage rate set by the county, your school district, and your city if you live in one. The county’s own combined levy has held at 20.81 mills since 2015, but school and city rates change independently and push most bills higher.1DeKalb County Government. DeKalb Announces Proposed Property Tax Increase Where you can move the number is on the exemption side and, if the county’s appraised value looks too high, through an appeal filed within 45 days of your Notice of Assessment.
How Your Bill Is Calculated
Georgia law requires all property to be assessed at 40% of fair market value.2Justia. Georgia Code 48-5-7 – Assessment of Tangible Property If the county appraises your home at $350,000, your assessed value is $140,000. Subtract any homestead exemption that applies to you, and what’s left is your taxable assessed value.
Multiply that taxable value by the millage rate. One mill equals $1 of tax per $1,000 of taxable assessed value. So a taxable value of $139,500 at a combined 40 mills produces a bill of roughly $5,580.
Your total millage rate is the sum of separate levies from the county government, the school district, and your city if you live in an incorporated area such as Brookhaven, Dunwoody, or Tucker. Each authority sets its own rate each year. Your tax bill shows the breakdown by taxing authority.
Your Notice of Assessment and the 45-Day Clock
Each year the DeKalb County Board of Tax Assessors determines a fair market value for every property using a mass appraisal system built on recent sales, property characteristics, and market trends.3Georgia Department of Revenue. Property Tax Valuation The assessment date is January 1, and the Notice of Assessment you receive reflects what the county believes your home was worth on that date. The notice compares the current appraised value to the prior year’s and includes an estimated tax bill based on last year’s millage rates, since new rates aren’t set yet.
Read that notice the day it arrives. If the appraised value jumped and you don’t believe your home would actually sell for that number, you have 45 days from the date on the notice to file an appeal.4Justia. Georgia Code 48-5-311 – Appeal of Assessments The deadline is strict.
Homestead Exemptions That Lower Your Bill
Homestead exemptions reduce your taxable assessed value, which cuts your bill directly. DeKalb County offers more than a dozen exemption categories, and they are not automatic. You have to file an application with the Tax Commissioner’s Office.5DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Office. Homestead and Property Tax Exemptions
Basic Homestead Exemption
You qualify if you own and occupy the home as your primary residence on January 1 of the tax year.5DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Office. Homestead and Property Tax Exemptions File once and it renews automatically as long as you still live there. The standard deadline is April 1, though Georgia law now lets you apply beyond that as long as you’re still inside the 45-day window after receiving your Notice of Assessment.6Georgia Department of Revenue. Property Tax Homestead Exemptions Anything filed after that gets applied to the following tax year.
Senior and Disability Exemptions
Enhanced exemptions exist for older residents and people with disabilities. Some apply only to school taxes; others reduce the entire bill. Income thresholds and age minimums differ by code:7DeKalb County Tax Commissioner. Homestead Exemption Information
- Age 62 or older (H3): household Georgia net income $10,000 or less; applies to school taxes.
- Age 62 or older (H7): household gross income $40,000 or less; broader reduction.
- Age 65 or older (H4): household Georgia net income $10,000 or less.
- Age 65 or older (H6): household Georgia net income $37,500 or less.
- Age 65 or older (H8): household gross income $40,000 or less.
- Age 70 or older (H9): total household income (federal adjusted gross income plus municipal bonds) $113,664 or less.
When you calculate Georgia net income for these exemptions, you can exclude up to $49,824 for an individual or $99,648 for joint applicants in Social Security and retirement benefits for the 2026 tax year.7DeKalb County Tax Commissioner. Homestead Exemption Information That exclusion pulls many retirees under thresholds their gross income would appear to exceed.
Disabled Veteran and Surviving Spouse Exemptions
Veterans rated 100% disabled by the VA, or rated lower but compensated at the 100% level due to unemployability, qualify for a homestead exemption of up to $126,526 for the 2026 tax year.8Justia. Georgia Code 48-5-48 – Homestead Exemption for Qualified Disabled Veterans The amount is indexed annually under federal law. Any property value above the exemption remains taxable.
The unremarried surviving spouse of a peace officer or firefighter killed in the line of duty receives a full exemption from all property taxes on the homestead, with no dollar cap.9Justia. Georgia Code 48-5-48.4 – Homestead Exemption for Surviving Spouses of Peace Officers and Firefighters It replaces any other homestead exemption rather than stacking on top of one, and it renews automatically after the initial affidavit is filed with the Tax Commissioner.
How to Appeal Your Assessment
Appeals go on Form PT-311A, available from the Georgia Department of Revenue or the DeKalb County Tax Assessors’ office.10Georgia Department of Revenue. PT-311A Appeal of Assessment Form The form asks for your parcel identification number, your own estimate of fair market value, and the grounds for your appeal: value, uniformity, or taxability. Most homeowners appeal on value, arguing the county’s number exceeds what the home would sell for.
Building Your Case
Support your number with evidence. The strongest is recent sales of comparable homes in your neighborhood, ideally from the past six to twelve months. A recent independent appraisal helps. Photographs of conditions the assessor may not have accounted for, such as foundation problems, outdated systems, or deferred repairs, also carry weight. The more specific and local your comparables, the harder they are to dismiss.
Which Appeal Path to Choose
The PT-311A asks you to pick one of four routes:11Georgia Department of Revenue. PT-311A – Appeal of Assessment Form
- Board of Equalization: a citizen panel; the outcome can be appealed to Superior Court on any grounds.
- Hearing Officer: available for non-homestead real property or wireless personal property accounts valued above $500,000, and only on value or uniformity grounds.
- Binding Arbitration: only for value disputes; still appealable to Superior Court.
- Direct to Superior Court: requires consent from the Board of Tax Assessors.
For most homeowners disputing what their house is worth, the Board of Equalization is the standard route.
What Happens After You File
File by certified mail (for proof of delivery), electronically if the county accepts email filings, or in person. The Board of Tax Assessors reviews your evidence and may offer a revised value. Accept the revision and the case closes. Reject it, or receive no change, and the case moves to whichever appeal body you picked.12Georgia House of Representatives. Summary of Appeal Process O.C.G.A. 48-5-311
For a Board of Equalization hearing, the board sets a hearing date within 15 days of receiving the appeal notice and writes to both you and the assessors.4Justia. Georgia Code 48-5-311 – Appeal of Assessments The hearing itself falls 20 to 30 days after that notification. You get one chance to reschedule if the assigned date doesn’t work.
Payment Deadlines
DeKalb County bills property taxes in two installments. The first installment is due September 30 and the second is due in mid-November, with the exact November date shifting slightly year to year. If you’d rather pay all at once, the full bill is due by September 30.13DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Office. Tax Bill Information
You can pay through the Tax Commissioner’s online portal, by mail, or at walk-in payment centers around the county. The online system accepts a full payment or an installment. Partial payments beyond the standard installment amounts are accepted, but anything left unpaid after the deadline starts accruing late fees.14DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Office. Property Tax Payment Information
What Happens If You Don’t Pay
Missing a deadline triggers two separate charges. Unpaid taxes accrue interest monthly at the federal bank prime loan rate plus 3%, set annually from the rate posted at the beginning of the calendar year, with even a partial month counting as a full month.15Justia. Georgia Code 48-2-40 – Rate of Interest on Past Due Taxes A penalty of up to 5% can be added to each delinquent installment.16Justia. Georgia Code 48-5-24 – Payment of Taxes to County in Installments Additional 5% penalties can stack every 120 days on a long-unpaid balance, up to a maximum of 20% of the original tax.17Justia. Georgia Code 48-2-44 – Willful Failure to Pay Ad Valorem Tax
Tax Liens (Fi. Fa.)
Any account still unpaid after December 31 is subject to a tax lien, known in Georgia as a fi. fa. (fieri facias). The lien authorizes the Tax Commissioner or the Sheriff to collect the overdue amount and stays attached to the property until all taxes, penalties, interest, and fees are paid.18DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Office. Delinquent Taxes A fi. fa. also clouds your title, which makes selling or refinancing difficult until the debt is cleared.
Tax Sales and Redemption
If the lien isn’t satisfied, the county can schedule the property for a tax sale. These auctions run on the first Tuesday of the month in front of the DeKalb County Courthouse between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.18DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Office. Delinquent Taxes Once a property is scheduled for sale, the county stops accepting personal checks and credit cards. At that point only cash, cashier’s checks, or bank wire transfers will stop the sale.
After a tax sale, the original owner has a one-year right of redemption. Redeeming requires paying the full auction price plus a 20% premium, any taxes the purchaser paid after the sale, and any special assessments.19Justia. Georgia Code 48-4-42 – Amount Payable for Redemption After the first year, the premium climbs by another 10% for each additional year. The 20% first-year premium is the same on day 10 as on day 360, so waiting inside that first year gains nothing if you have the funds. Once the redemption period expires, the tax sale purchaser can move to take full possession.